President Biden Grants Unconventional Pardon to Hunter Biden, Bypassing Justice Department

President Joe Biden issued a broad and unusual pardon to his son Hunter Biden, bypassing the traditional Justice Department process. The pardon dismissed charges related to a gun purchase while Hunter was addicted to drugs, and it is being compared to other notable clemencies in history.

President Biden Issues Unconventional Pardon to Hunter Biden, Overruling Usual Justice Department Process

President Joe Biden granted his son, Hunter Biden, a broad and unprecedented pardon, bypassing the typical procedures followed by the Justice Department’s pardon office. On Tuesday, U.S. District Judge Maryellen Noreika formally dismissed the gun case against Hunter Biden after the president issued a "full and unconditional" pardon for any federal crimes committed between 2014 and the end of 2024.

The pardon followed a jury conviction in June related to three gun charges, including one for Hunter Biden’s 2018 purchase of a revolver while struggling with drug addiction. He had been awaiting sentencing on December 12, but the presidential pardon led to the dismissal of the indictment. Legal experts have noted that such a clemency is highly unusual, with some describing it as among the most sweeping since former President Gerald Ford’s pardon of Richard Nixon in 1974.

President Biden signed the pardon after a Thanksgiving holiday spent with family in Nantucket, Massachusetts. What set this pardon apart was that it was not processed through the standard application system managed by the Justice Department’s pardon office. This office has historically reviewed clemency requests for over 130 years, conducting investigations and evaluations before recommending actions to the president. However, according to an internal email, Hunter Biden’s pardon was not processed through the office, raising questions about its procedural irregularity.

Margaret Love, who served as U.S. pardon attorney from 1990 to 1997, expressed concern about the bypassing of the Justice Department, calling it “the most sweeping pardon” she had seen, comparable only to Ford’s pardon of Nixon. Love, who played a key role in the clemency process during her tenure, lamented the erosion of traditional pardon procedures. She said, “It makes me sad that the power has been pried loose from the justice system.”

The dismissal of the charges was requested by Hunter Biden’s attorney, Abbe Lowell, who argued that the pardon "releases the wrongdoer from punishment and restores the offender’s civil rights without qualification." On the other hand, special counsel David Weiss, representing the Justice Department, opposed the move, arguing that dismissing the grand jury’s decision would be akin to erasing it completely.

In another ongoing legal matter, U.S. District Judge Mark Scarsi in Los Angeles is reviewing a similar request to dismiss a set of tax charges against Hunter Biden. He pleaded guilty in September to charges related to tax evasion and late payments for several years. The case continues to draw attention, with the outcome of the dismissal request potentially shaping future discussions on the scope of presidential pardons.

Hunter Biden Joe Biden Justice Department legal case U.S. District Judge Maryellen Noreika