Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton Acquitted in Impeachment Trial – Rolling Stone

Republican Texas Lawyer General Ken Paxton was acquitted on Saturday of corruption charges, following an impeachment trial that included allegations of misconduct, bribery and corruption.

In May, his party colleagues voted to impeach himconcluding that he may have committed numerous crimes and that he abused his position to help his friend and donor Nate Paul, an Austin real estate developer.

Following the 121-23 House vote in May, he was immediately suspended from office while awaiting trial in the state Senate, of which his wife, Angela Paxton, is a member. The trial began on September 5. On Saturday he was acquitted by Senate Republicans (his wife attended the trial but was not allowed to vote), since The Associated Press reports. All but two Senate Republicans voted to acquit Ken Paxton on each of the 16 articles of impeachment (he was charged with 20, but the Senate voted separately to dismiss four articles of impeachment, which were not addressed in the trial).

Paxton was not present at Saturday’s proceedings, although he issued a statement after the verdict.

“Today the truth prevailed. The truth cannot be buried by slanderous politicians or their powerful benefactors,” Paxton said. “I have said many times: Seek the truth! And that is what was achieved.”

Texas Republican Gov. Greg Abbott welcomed Paxton back to office on Saturday. “The jury has spoken. Attorney General Ken Paxton received a fair trial as required by the Texas Constitution.” Abbott posted on X, formerly Twitter. “I look forward to continuing to work with the Attorney General to secure the border and protect Texas from federal overreach.”

The acquittal may have reinstated Paxton in office, but his legal troubles are far from over. He is under criminal indictment on securities fraud charges in 2015 before taking office, after he allegedly defrauded investors in a tech startup (he pleaded not guilty to two felony counts), although he has not yet been tried. .

He has also been under investigation by the FBI for allegedly using his office to help a donor, allegedly opening a legal defense fund and accepting $100,000 from an executive who was under investigation by Paxton’s office for Medicaid fraud. Additionally, she is under investigation by the FBI and is at risk of losing her ability to practice law in the state due to her alleged role in the baseless attempt to overturn the 2020 election.