Attorneys representing Ken Paxton blast his impeachment, call accusations 'worthless' & 'weak'
AUSTIN (CBSNewsTexas.com) — Lawyers for impeached Attorney General Ken Paxton said he is innocent and that they don't believe he will be convicted in a trial that will soon be held in the Texas Senate.
The attorneys spoke for the first time Wednesday during a news conference in Austin.
It will be up to Texas senators to listen and weigh all of the evidence against Paxton and decide if he should be removed as attorney general permanently.
Paxton has been suspended without pay ever since the Texas House impeached him Memorial Day weekend.
He has previously denied any wrongdoing.
One of his attorneys, Tony Buzbee, told reporters, "The impeachment articles that have been laid out by the House are baloney. Just so we're clear, the allegations are untrue. They are false."
He and another attorney, Dan Cogdell, said the process has been a sham because the House never notified Paxton that he was being investigated and never gave him or his team a chance to tell their side of the story.
Cogdell said, "Paxton is innocent of these accusations. Let's not let this get low in the weeds. He is absolutely 100% innocent of these accusations."
The Texas House members said their job was to act like a grand jury and decide if the allegations were enough to forward them to the Texas Senate so lawmakers in that chamber could hold a trial.
Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick has said he and the 31 senators are taking their jobs seriously and would not comment or discuss the impeachment case publicly.
Paxton is accused of abusing his office and power so he could help himself and a campaign donor.
Among the 20 articles of impeachment are abuse of public trust, being unfit for office, dereliction of duty and constitutional bribery. Attorneys who will be prosecuting the case spoke at a news conference last week.
Dick DeGuerin, one of the lead prosecutors against Paxton, told reporters, "The people of the State of Texas are entitled to know whether their top cop is a crook. We intend to present these 20 articles of impeachment in a fair way."
Another attorney hired by the Texas House, Rusty Hardin, said, "This is not about a one-time misuse of office. It's not about a two-time misuse of the office. It's about a pattern of misconduct and abuse of office. Subjecting people who don't have a voice to basically threats and fear that if they come forward, they will pay a big price for it."
Paxton's attorneys held their news conference at the Texas Republican Party headquarters.
A party spokesman told CBS News Texas that its office is open to all elected Republicans.
The impeachment trial will start by Aug. 28, but senators will decide later this month an exact date, along with the rules and procedures for the trial.
There has been no word yet if Paxton's wife, Senator Angela Paxton, will recuse herself.
