Texas AG Ken Paxton's criminal case likely to face further delays as attorneys revive fights over

[TexasTowelie]

by Emma Platoff, Texas Tribune


Texas AG Ken Paxton's criminal case likely to face further delays as attorneys revive fights over venue, prosecutor pay


Even after the state’s top criminal court ruled and ruled again on a long-running side battle to the criminal case against Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, a trial still seems distant. Both defense attorneys and prosecutors this week filed new legal motions with the potential to spell months of further delays.

The securities fraud case against Paxton has been stalled for years as attorneys duke out side battles, like a dispute over how much the prosecutors may be paid. That remains to be finally resolved, even after the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals last month reaffirmed its ruling that the $300-per-hour rate initially promised to the special prosecutors fell outside legal limits.

Prosecutors Brian Wice and Kent Schaffer — who have yet to be paid for work on the case completed as long ago as 2016 — had signaled they might withdraw if they could not be paid. But they made clear this week that they are not ready to give up the dispute, asking a Harris County judge for a private “ex parte” hearing over their fees — a meeting that would not include Paxton’s defense team.

Meanwhile, Paxton’s defense team has asked that the case be moved back to his hometown of Collin County, years after it was moved from there to Harris County. The case was moved hundreds of miles southeast after the prosecutors claimed that Paxton, a Republican who is well connected in that region and once represented it in the Texas Legislature, would not get a fair trial there.

Read more: https://www.texastribune.org/2019/07/19/ken-paxtons-prosecutors-continue-fight-over-their-pay/

Justice delayed is justice denied.

[joshdawg]

1. Oh, hell.

Just lock his ass up and be done with it!