Hunter dealt another blow as judge tosses effort to have tax charges dismissed: Says accusations of 'politically motivated' Biden charges are based on 'hearsay'

Hunter Biden has lost an effort to have eight criminal charges against him thrown out and a judge Monday night allowed the tax fraud case to move forward.  

Judge Mark Scarsi determined the three felony charges and six misdemeanor charges for tax evasion, filing a false return and failing to pay over $1 million in taxes between 2016 and 2019 could not be deemed political as Hunter's attorneys had argued. 

Hunter's attorneys last week returned to federal court in Los Angeles to urge the judge to consider dismissal of the nine tax charges against Hunter brought by special counsel David Weiss. 

'The motion is remarkable in that it fails to include a single declaration, exhibit, or request for judicial notice,' Trump-appointed Scarsi wrote. 'Instead, Defendant cites portions of various Internet news sources, social media posts, and legal blogs. These citations, however, are not evidence.'  

Scarsi said the sources contained 'multiple levels of hearsay' and failed 'to present a reasonable inference, let alone clear evidence, of discriminatory effect and discriminatory purpose .'

The charges stem from what federal prosecutors say was a four-year scheme to skip out on paying the $1.4 million he owed to the IRS and instead use the money to fund an 'extravagant lifestyle' that by his own admission included drugs and alcohol.

The charges span the 2016, 2017, 2018 and 2019 tax years. 

Meanwhile, Hunter Biden, 53, has also been charged in Delaware with lying in October 2018 on a federal form for gun purchasers when he swore he wasn't using or addicted to illegal drugs. He was addicted to crack cocaine at the time. He is also accused of possessing the gun illegally and has pleaded not guilty in that case.

Federal prosecutors say Hunter repeatedly failed to pay his taxes on time, missed deadlines to pay debts he owed to the IRS and criminally evaded taxes by cooking his books and filing false returns. 

The Justice Department says Hunter faces up to 17 years in prison for the tax charges and 25 years for the gun charges if convicted, in dual cases that could have a devastating impact on his father's presidential campaign. 

Hunter is accused of dodging taxes on income he received from China and Ukraine  - giving fodder to Republicans who have accused Hunter of corruptly profiting off overseas business dealings through his last name. 

For six months they've been probing his dealings for a reason to impeach Joe Biden. Hunter's lawyers have seized on this, claiming Weiss 'caved to outside pressure' from Donald Trump and House Republicans, who demanded his prosecution. 

'Biden is being targeted because of his political and familial affiliations,' they wrote. 

The indictment states that despite receiving millions in personal income and financial support from a friend, Hunter 'spent this money on drugs, escorts and girlfriends, luxury hotels and rental properties, exotic cars, clothing, and other items of a personal nature, in short, everything but his taxes.' 

Hunter's lawyers also argued the case must be thrown out because it had been tainted by a pair of IRS agents who previously worked on the case before becoming whistleblowers and testifying in the House GOP impeachment inquiry. 

'The government's actions in this case are beyond egregious,' they wrote, accusing the whistleblowers of 'vigilante justice' and 'taking the law into their own hands' by leaking tax records. 

The trial for the gun charges in Delaware is set to begin June 3, weeks before the June 20 trial for the tax charges in California.

Last summer a proposed plea deal sensationally fell apart after questioning from a judge. 

The charges against him were set to be held over as part of a plea deal Hunter struck with prosecutors, in which he would admit to tax crimes for deliberately failing to file and pay his tax bill on millions of dollars of income.

But a Judge Maryellen Noreika in July brought up a controversial clause that would give him blanket immunity for other offenses. 

Noreika asked both prosecutor Leo Wise and Hunter's lawyer at the time Chris Clark whether this meant Hunter could still be potentially be charged with failing to register as a foreign agent, violating the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA).

Wise said yes. Clark said he did not agree, and the deal was off. 

After a recess, Hunter's lawyers agreed that only immunity from tax, gun, and drug crimes would be offered. But Noreika was still skeptical of the deal's unusual structure. Since then, talks have floundered over the scope of Hunter's immunity.