WASHINGTON — (AP) — A federal judge terminated the gun case against Hunter Biden on Tuesday after President Joe Biden issued a sweeping pardon for his son.

U.S. District Judge Maryellen Noreika closed the case the week before Hunter Biden was to be sentenced. He could have faced up to 25 years in prison, though as a first-time offender he likely would have gotten far less time or avoided prison entirely.

Prosecutors opposed dismissing the case, arguing in court documents that a pardon shouldn't wipe away the case “as if it never occurred." Hunter Biden was convicted on three felonies after he lied on a federal form to purchase a gun in Delaware by saying he wasn’t a drug user in 2018, a period when he has acknowledged being addicted. The judge's order ends the case but does not toss out the conviction.

The Justice Department special counsel is also opposed to dismissing a case filed in California after Hunter Biden failed to pay $1.4 million in taxes. U.S. District Judge Mark Scarsi in Los Angeles indicted he would dismiss the case once the pardon is formally received. Still, Scarsi was critical of the president's assertion that his son was singled out for political reasons, saying two judges had rejected similar arguments from his defense attorneys.

The president's Sunday decision to go back on previous pledges and issue his son a blanket federal pardon for actions over the past 11 years has sparked a political uproar in Washington, drawing criticism from many Democrats as well as Republicans and threatening to cloud Biden's legacy as he prepares to leave office on Jan. 20.

Hunter Biden was originally supposed to strike a plea deal with prosecutors last year that would have spared him prison time, but the agreement fell apart after Noreika questioned unusual aspects of it.

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This story was first published Dec. 3, 2024. It was updated Dec. 4, 2024, to explain that the case was terminated, which ends the case but doesn’t toss out the conviction.

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