(CN) — In a twist of fate, Hunter Biden requested Thursday to dismiss both federal tax and gun cases against him based on successful legal arguments made recently by one of his most prominent detractors — former President Donald Trump.
Filing the requests in federal courts in Delaware and California, Hunter Biden argued that Attorney General Merrick Garland’s appointment of David Weiss to special counsel for his investigation and subsequent trials disregarded federally mandated procedure.
The president’s son has previously filed similar motions for dismissal in both cases, all of which were denied.
However, Hunter Biden’s latest requests to dismiss follow, and heavily rely on, a bombshell ruling in one of Trump’s various criminal cases that has the potential to radically alter how special counsels are appointed.
On Monday, U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon dismissed Donald Trump’s classified documents case, ruling that Garland did not have the authority to appoint Jack Smith — or anyone, for that matter — to special counsel. Instead, she said, special counsel must be nominated by the president and confirmed by the Senate.
Smith’s team has since argued that the ruling deviates from well-established and longstanding legal precedent, and has appealed the dismissal to the 11th Circuit in Atlanta.
But with Cannon’s ruling now on the books, Hunter Biden has argued the precedent that once protected Weiss’ position from being challenged is null — and that Weiss was never actually authorized to prosecute him.
“The attorney general relied upon the exact same authority to appoint the Special Counsel in both the Trump and Biden matters, and both appointments are invalid for the same reason,” Hunter Biden wrote in his motion.
“Now that the defect has been recognized and used to invalidate an indictment brought by the special counsel against former President Trump, the equivalent result should be available to Mr. Biden. Different defendants but same constitutional flaws,” he added.
However, Cannon’s ruling specifically contrasts Weiss’ appointment to special counsel with Smith’s, noting that Weiss was a U.S. attorney and Smith was a private citizen when they were each appointed.
Still, if Hunter Biden’s requests for dismissal are successful, they would serve as a long-sought reprieve for the younger Biden, who has in recent years been embroiled in legal troubles.
In June, Hunter Biden became the first convicted child of a sitting president after a 12-person jury found him guilty of lying to a federally licensed gun dealer, lying on a federal form and possessing a gun while using or being addicted to a controlled substance.
“Ultimately, this case was not just about addiction — a disease that haunts families across the United States, including Hunter Biden’s family,” Weiss, who brought the charges against Hunter Biden, said shortly after the verdict was announced. “This case was about the illegal choices defendant made while in the throes of addiction, his choice to lie on a federal form when he bought a gun and the choice to then possess that gun. It was these choices, and the combination of guns and drugs, that made his conduct dangerous.”
In September, Hunter Biden is set to face trial in Los Angeles for three felony and six misdemeanor tax offenses. Government prosecutors — led by Weiss — say the president’s son failed to pay $1.4 million in taxes between 2016 and 2019, and instead spent millions of dollars on an extravagant lifestyle. Hunter Biden has pleaded not guilty to all charges.