Corruption allegations plagued Texas AG Ken Paxton long before staffers’ call for an investigation
Tuesday, October 6, 2020
Posted By Sanford Nowlin on Tue, Oct 6, 2020 at 12:49 PM
- Twitter / @KenPaxtonTX
- Ken Paxton, shown here with President Donald Trump, is co-chair of the Lawyers for Trump coalition.
This week’s headline-grabbing claim from top aides that Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton took bribes and abused his office are only the latest allegations of ethical and legal breaches against the state’s top lawyer.
The Republican AG was indicted five years ago on separate felony charges of securities fraud. That highly publicized case has been delayed through a series of legal maneuvers and still has no trial date.
Among other things, Paxton has also faced a probe over a questionable 2004 land deal and a State Bar of Texas complaint over his handling of the U.S. Supreme Court’s gay marriage ruling.
Paxton has denied the newest allegations, claiming they were politically motivated and refusing to step down.
“Despite the effort by rogue employees and their false allegations I will continue to seek justice in Texas and will not be resigning,” he said in a press statement.
Paxton previously served as a Texas state senator and state representative before becoming attorney general in 2015. He’s also been a key ally of Gov. Greg Abbott and Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick and serves as co-chair of the Lawyers for Trump coalition.
Beyond the current complaints by staffers and his securities fraud indictment, here’s a quick rundown of other allegations that have been raised about Paxton since his time as AG:
- In 2016, it came out that Paxton raised more than $329,000 from wealthy donors to help fund legal fight over the securities case. The donations raised concerns the AG broke Texas bribery laws. However, an investigation by Kaufman County’s DA determined he hadn’t crossed the line because he had a “personal relationship” with one his largest donors.
- Paxton faced a 2016 investigation by a pair of Forth Worth special prosecutors into the possibility that he’d illegally profited from a land deal that led to the development of the Collin County Appraisal District’s headquarters. A grand jury ultimately opted not to take action.
- After the Supreme Court legalized gay marriage nationwide in 2015, more than 200 Texas lawyers filed a State Bar complaint against Paxton for telling Texas clerks they did not have to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples if it violated their religious beliefs.
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