US prosecutors oppose President Joe Biden’s son Hunter Biden’s bid conditions to change plea

Hunter Biden, son of US President Joe Biden, offered to plead guilty to federal tax charges but avoid admitting any wrongdoing, in an unusual legal manoeuvre that federal prosecutors quickly opposed.

It was not immediately clear whether the judge overseeing the case would accept the offer or move ahead with a trial that could air embarrassing details of the younger Biden’s life shortly before the November 5 presidential election.

He had previously pleaded not guilty in the criminal case, which accuses him of failing to pay $US1.4 million ($A2.1 million) in taxes while spending lavishly on drugs, sex workers and luxury items.

He was charged in December as part of a wide-ranging probe of his finances and business dealings, becoming the first child of a sitting president to face criminal charges.

In the Los Angeles federal court where his trial was due to take place, Biden sought to enter what is known as an “Alford plea”, an unusual type of guilty plea where a defendant does not admit to the allegations against them.

US Justice Department prosecutors in the courtroom said they would not accept that plea.

Alford pleas are usually negotiated in advance because prosecutors must get high-level approval before agreeing to them. But prosecutors in the courtroom expressed confusion at Biden’s plea.

“It’s not clear to us what they are trying to do,” one prosecutor told Judge Mark Scarsi.

If Scarsi accepts the plea offer, that would head off a weeks-long trial that likely would air messy details of Hunter Biden’s life shortly before the election between Vice President Kamala Harris, a Democrat, and Republican former President Donald Trump. Joe Biden dropped his re-election bid in July under pressure from his fellow Democrats.

Hunter Biden, who has been open about his struggles with drug and alcohol addiction, is accused of failing to pay taxes from 2016 to 2019 while spending huge sums “on drugs, escorts and girlfriends, luxury hotels and rental properties, exotic cars, clothing, and other items of a personal nature,” according to an indictment.

The trial could also shed light on his work with Ukrainian natural gas company Burisma and his other business dealings while his father was vice president. The president’s Republican foes have claimed those activities by his son were corrupt.

The indictment says Hunter Biden “earned handsomely” while serving on the boards of Burisma and a Chinese private equity fund.

Hunter Biden has denied any improper business dealings and Republican-led investigations in Congress have not directly implicated his father in any wrongdoing.

Hunter Biden is also appealing a June conviction in a separate case in Delaware for illegally buying a gun while using drugs. That conviction means he could face a stiffer sentence if convicted in the tax case because he would be a repeat offender.