Special counsel won't charge Biden for his handling of classified docs | LIVE

Special counsel Robert Hur said helium volition not urge charges against President Joe Biden for his handling of classified documents portion retired of office, contempt uncovering grounds that Biden "willfully retained" materials.

"We reason that nary transgression charges are warranted successful this matter," said Hur's study summarizing his yearlong probe. "We would reason the aforesaid adjacent if determination was nary argumentation against charging a sitting president. Our probe uncovered grounds that President Biden willfully retained and disclosed classified accusation aft his vice presidency erstwhile helium was a backstage citizen."

"These materials included (1) marked classified documents astir subject and overseas argumentation successful Afghanistan, and (2) notebooks containing Mr. Biden's handwritten entries astir issues of nationalist information and overseas argumentation implicating delicate quality sources and methods. FBI agents recovered these materials from the garage, offices, and basement den successful Mr. Biden's Wilmington, Delaware home," the study said.

"However, for the reasons summarized below, we reason that the grounds does not found Mr. Biden's guilt beyond a tenable doubt. Prosecution of Mr. Biden is besides unwarranted based connected our information of the aggravating and mitigating factors acceptable distant successful the Department of Justice's Principles of Federal Prosecution. For these reasons, we diminution prosecution of Mr. Biden," the study said.

Read the afloat study below:

According to Hur's report, among the classified documents Biden retained were materials documenting his absorption to the unit surge successful Afghanistan, including a classified handwritten memo helium sent President Obama implicit the 2009 Thanksgiving holiday, which FBI agents recovered from Biden's Delaware location and its garage.

Asked successful his interrogation with investigators astir handwriting connected a folder containing marked classified documents astir Afghanistan, the study said Biden "identified the handwriting arsenic his, but said helium recalled thing astir however the folder oregon its contents got into his garage."

The long-anticipated study was released Thursday, hours aft the White House reviewed the papers and announced that "in keeping with his committedness to practice and transparency," the president would not asseverate enforcement privilege implicit immoderate information of the report.

Ian Sams, a spokesperson for the White House counsel's office, said successful a connection that the president's ineligible squad had completed a reappraisal of the study and that "in keeping with his committedness to practice and transparency," the president would not asseverate enforcement privilege implicit immoderate information of the report.

Attorney General Merrick Garland earlier this week informed cardinal lawmakers that Hur had concluded his investigation, which examined however astir 2 twelve classified documents coiled up astatine Biden's idiosyncratic location and office.

Attorney General Merrick Garland appears earlier a House Judiciary Committee proceeding connected Sept. 20, 2023, connected Capitol Hill successful Washington.

AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin

The records successful question day backmost to Biden's clip arsenic vice president, and astatine slightest immoderate see "top secret" markings, the highest level of classification.

Garland appointed Hur arsenic peculiar counsel successful January of 2023, aft aides to the president discovered a batch of 10 documents astatine the Penn-Biden Center successful Washington, D.C., wherever Biden kept an bureau aft his vice presidency.

A 2nd find of further records successful the store of Biden's Wilmington, Delaware, location precipitated Garland's determination to delegate Hur arsenic peculiar counsel, ABC News reported astatine the time.

Investigators interviewed arsenic galore arsenic 100 existent and erstwhile officials, including Secretary of State Antony Blinken, erstwhile White House Chief of Staff Ron Klain, and Hunter Biden, the president's son. In October, Hur's squad spent 2 days interviewing Biden himself.

ABC News antecedently reported that sources who were contiguous for immoderate of the interviews, including witnesses, said that authorities had seemingly uncovered instances of carelessness from Biden's vice presidency, but that -- based connected what was said successful the interviews -- the improper removal of classified documents from Biden's bureau erstwhile helium near the White House successful 2017 seemed to beryllium much apt a mistake than a transgression act.

The White House had emphasized from the opening that it would cooperate with investigators. Biden himself repeatedly denied immoderate idiosyncratic wrongdoing and said helium was "surprised" to larn of the documents' existence.

The Hur probe has played retired softly against the backdrop of peculiar counsel Jack Smith's enquiry into erstwhile President Donald Trump's handling of classified records, which culminated past twelvemonth successful a 40-count indictment, to which Trump has pleaded not guilty.

Trump has sought to nexus his circumstances to Biden's by trying to gully an equivalence betwixt their behaviour and calling his prosecution the effect of a justness strategy improperly targeting Republicans.

But records subsequently released by the National Archives bespeak that Biden's ineligible squad cooperated with National Archives officials, whereas national prosecutors person accused Trump of deliberately withholding records helium knew to beryllium classified from investigators with the National Archives and, later, the FBI.