Hunter Biden wants to change not guilty plea in federal tax evasion case

Hunter Biden wants to change his not guilty plea to avoid going to trial on federal tax evasion charges , his defence attorney said Thursday, appearing to surprise prosecutors and the judge just as jury selection was set to begin.

Defence attorney Abbe Lowell told the judge that the evidence against Hunter Biden is overwhelming and that the president's son wants to resolve the case with a plea instead of going to trial for a second time just months after he was convicted of felony gun charges in a separate case.

But prosecutors are objecting to the proposed Alford plea, under which a defendant maintains their innocence but acknowledges prosecutors have enough evidence to secure a conviction.

Hunter Biden is not innocent. Hunter Biden is guilty, prosecutor Leo Wise said. He is not entitled to plead guilty on special terms that apply only to him.

The Justice Department charged Hunter Biden with misdemeanour and felony charges over what prosecutors say was a four-year scheme to avoid