A federal judge in Delaware formally dismissed misdemeanor tax charges against Hunter Biden on Thursday, but the president's son is expected to face the same charges β or new ones β in the near future.
The decision by U.S. District Court Judge Maryellen Noreika was expected following a failed plea agreement last month between federal prosecutors and President Joe Biden's son.
Special counsel David Weiss's office moved to dismiss the charges last week, citing venue problems that would not have been an issue had Biden pleaded guilty in the case as initially anticipated.
Hunter Biden had agreed to plead guilty to misdemeanor charges related to his failure to pay income taxes earlier this year in return for prosecutors recommending a sentence of probation. But the agreement fell apart over confusion at the plea hearing about a separate gun charge and questions the judge had about the deals.
Weiss was the main prosecutor at the time, as U.S. Attorney for Delaware. He has since been named special counsel.
Read the full story on NBCNews.com here.
Get a weekly recap of the latest San Francisco Bay Area housing news. >Sign up for NBC Bay Areaβs Housing Deconstructed newsletter.