Paxton criminal case, now 5 years old, delayed again

Chuck Lindell, Austin American-Statesman Published 12:28 p.m. CT July 30, 2020

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Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton.

 (Photo: Courtney Sacco/Caller-Times)

The criminal case against Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, held up for five years by numerous challenges and appeals from both sides, was pushed further back this week by a state appeals court in Houston.

The 1st Court of Appeals, responding to a challenge from the appointed prosecutors in the Paxton matter, on Monday overturned a Harris County judge’s order that had returned the case to Collin County, where Paxton resides.

The case had been transferred in 2017 to state District Judge Robert Johnson in Harris County after prosecutors argued that pretrial publicity, and actions by Paxton supporters, meant they could not get a fair trial in Paxton’s backyard.

Paxton’s lawyers challenged the transfer, and on June 25, Johnson returned Paxton’s case to Collin County, ruling that a prior judge lacked the jurisdiction to transfer the matter to the Houston area. Johnson also stepped away from the case, which was reassigned to state District Judge Jason Luong, also of Harris County.

Based on that recusal, the 1st Court of Appeals on Monday abated Johnson’s ruling and returned the case to Luong, giving the new judge 45 days to reconsider the transfer order because the Paxton case is now Luong’s responsibility.

Paxton faces three felony counts related to private business deals in 2011 and 2012 — two counts of securities fraud related to efforts to solicit investors in Servergy Inc. without revealing that the McKinney tech company was paying him for the work, and one count of failing to register with state securities regulators while conducting other investment business.

Paxton has defended his actions as legal.

The fraud charges, a first-degree felony, carry a maximum of 99 years in prison, while failure to register is a third-degree felony with a maximum 10-year sentence.

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