Paxton Makes First Court Appearance
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FORT WORTH (CBSDFW.COM) - Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton appeared in court on Thursday morning for the first time since he was indicted on three felony charges. His attorney, Joe Kendall, entered Paxton's not guilty plea and then recused himself from the case.
The state's top prosecutor appeared before State District Court Judge George Gallagher at a 10:00 a.m. hearing on Thursday morning in the Tim Curry Criminal Justice Center in Fort Worth. Now without a lawyer, Paxton has until next Thursday to find a replacement.
Paxton said that he will hire another attorney, possibly Pete Schulte, who has helped him in this case.
A grand jury in Collin County charged Paxton, a Republican, with two first-degree felonies on alleged securities law violations. Paxton told the judge on Thursday that he believes all future hearings and the trial should be held in Collin County, where the judges do not allow cameras in the courtroom or even the courthouse.
Gallagher agreed that the trial would be held in Collin County, but stated that he would make the final decision about whether any video or still cameras were to be allowed. Paxton's Republican supporters and Texas Democrats sharply disagree over the use of cameras in the courtroom.
"I understand, from the media's point of view, that of course they would want to have cameras," said Paxton supporter Cathie Adams. "But the U.S. Supreme Court doesn't have cameras and, actually, I think it was very succinctly stated in the plea which was, we want this trial to happen in the courtroom and not the media."
"It's really concerning that the Attorney General doesn't want to conduct his trial in a transparent manner," Texas Democratic Party member Manny Garcia said. "This is a long track record of Ken Paxton requesting the white collar treatment."
The indictments accuse Paxton of offering to sell more than $100,000 in stock from Servergy Inc. to two investors, and failing to disclose that he received company shares to sell the stock. The investors include State Rep. Byron Cook, a Republican from Corsicana, and a Florida businessman.
Paxton is also accused of a third-degree felony for failing to register with the Texas State Securities Board as an investment adviser.
The indictments say that the alleged illegal activities took place when Paxton was a state lawmaker. He was elected attorney general in November.
Follow reporter Jack Fink on Twitter (@CBS11Jack) for updates from the courtroom.