Outgoing US President Biden Pardons Son Hunter Ahead Of Trump’s Inauguration

In a surprising move, U.S. President Joe Biden on Sunday granted a full pardon to his son Hunter Biden, who had been awaiting sentencing in two criminal cases.

Naija News reports that this decision comes despite Biden’s earlier assurances that he would not intervene in his son’s legal matters.

“No reasonable person who looks at the facts of Hunter’s cases can reach any other conclusion than Hunter was singled out only because he is my son — and that is wrong,” the president said in a statement.

According to AFP, the decision is likely to spark renewed debates over the impartiality of the U.S. justice system, especially as President-elect Donald Trump prepares to assume office on January 20.

Trump has already signalled intentions to appoint loyalists to key positions in the FBI and the Justice Department.

Earlier this year, Hunter Biden was convicted of lying about his drug use when purchasing a firearm — a felony — and pleaded guilty in a separate tax evasion case.

However, sentencing had not yet occurred. President Biden, nearing the end of his term, had previously maintained he would not use his presidential powers to shield his son.

“I said I would not interfere with the Justice Department’s decision-making, and I kept my word even as I have watched my son being selectively, and unfairly, prosecuted.

“The charges in his cases came about only after several of my political opponents in Congress instigated them to attack me and oppose my election.

“I believe in the justice system, but as I have wrestled with this, I also believe raw politics has infected this process and it led to a miscarriage of justice,” President Biden said in Sunday’s statement.

While Biden expressed his respect for the justice system, he condemned what he described as a politicized process that led to “a miscarriage of justice.”

The pardon comes amid a Supreme Court decision granting presidential immunity, which has stalled criminal cases against President-elect Trump and virtually guarantees he will not face jail time, even after his significant conviction for falsifying business records in May.