U.S. Justice Department takes over federal criminal investigation into Texas AG Ken Paxton
AUSTIN (CBSDFW.COM) – The U.S. Justice Department in Washington has now assigned its Public Integrity Section to conduct the criminal investigation into Attorney General Ken Paxton.
In doing so, the Justice Department recused the U.S. Attorney's Office in the Western District of Texas, based in San Antonio.
The news comes from the special prosecutors who are handling the three felony state charges filed against Paxton, unrelated to the federal investigation.
We reached out to the Justice Department seeking comment but haven't heard back.
No word if Paxton will face any federal charges, but he has denied any wrongdoing.
A defense attorney for the Attorney General, Dan Cogdell, told CBS 11 Thursday the Justice Department is doing the right thing and that the Paxton team had expressed concerns about the integrity of the federal investigation in Texas when it began more than two years ago.
At the time, Paxton's former top deputies went to the FBI, making allegations of bribery and abuse of office against him.
Paxton fired them and called them rogue employees.
Four of those top deputies filed a whistleblower lawsuit against him.
Last Friday, Paxton agreed to settle that lawsuit by paying the four men $3.3 million and apologizing to them.
Paxton said in a statement that he was settling the case in part to save taxpayer money.
But in an interview Wednesday, Texas House Speaker Dade Phelan told CBS 11 that taxpayers should not have to pay for that settlement. "I don't anticipate that $3.3 million will be in the House budget. Mr. Paxton is going to have to come to the Texas House. He'll have to appear before the House Appropriations Committee and make the case to that committee as to why that is proper use of taxpayers' dollars and then he's going to have to sell it to 76 members of the Texas House. That's his job, not mine."
When asked if he supported it individually, Phelan said, "No. I don't think it's proper use of taxpayers' dollars."
Paxton is still facing the three state felony fraud charges filed back in 2015.
He has pleaded not guilty in that case.
It's now up to the state's highest criminal court, the Court of Criminal Appeals, to decide whether the case should be handled by a judge in Collin County or Harris County.
There is no indication when that decision will come.