Judge Delays Hunter Biden’s California Trial Until September

A judge agreed Wednesday to delay Hunter Biden’s California trial on federal tax charges until September.

The trial, which was initially set to start June 20, will now begin on September 5, according to NBC Los Angeles. Hunter Biden’s attorneys argued it should be postponed due to “uniquely challenging and high-profile nature of this case,” along with the defendant’s other trial on federal gun charges scheduled to start June 3 in Delaware.

“In this court, we like to set schedules and keep them,” Judge Mark Scarsi said, per CNN, adding that “the needs of a defendant outweigh the prejudice in moving it.”

Hunter Biden was indicted in December on nine charges related to his alleged failure to pay over $1.4 million in taxes. Prosecutors fought against efforts to delay the trial.

“The time to try this case is now,” prosecutor Leo Wise told the judge, per CNN. “We feel this attempt should fail.”

Similar efforts to delay his Delaware trial have failed.

Judge Maryellen Noreika declined a bid by Hunter Biden’s attorneys last week to delay the gun charges trial. The Third Circuit Court of Appeals also rejected a request to delay the trial Tuesday after his attorneys asked the court to reconsider a panel decision declining their motion to dismiss the charges.