Paxton’s power would get a boost in new bill
A new bill would give Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton greater prosecutorial authority over abuse-of-office charges — the very crime for which the FBI is reportedly investigating the state’s top attorney.
The bill, proposed by state Sen. Paul Bettencourt, R-Houston, would allow Paxton’s office to prosecute the charges without consent from local prosecutors, as is required now.
Paxton, a Republican who has been awaiting trial in a separate, unrelated felony securities fraud case for five years, has also been under investigation by federal law enforcement after seven former aides accused him of using the powers of his office to help campaign donor Nate Paul, an Austinbased real estate developer. Paxton has maintained his innocence in all cases.
His office did not respond to a request for comment.
Bettencourt’s bill was inspired by an unusual case in Harris County, in which Precinct 1 Commissioner Rodney Ellis, a Democrat, was found to have stored more than 1,200 privately owned pieces of African artwork, free of charge, at a county warehouse for more than three years.
Ellis pushed the Commissioners Court to sign a 2018 deal for 14 pieces for display in county buildings, but that agreement lapsed in January. His precinct later accepted more than 1,400, few of which have ever been shown publicly. The cost of storage over those three years is estimated at between $432,000 and $576,000, according to quotes from Houston art storage facilities.
A new contract has yet to be approved, and Ellis has not been charged with any crimes, though political foes allege that it constitutes an illegal abuse of office.
The Harris County District Attorney’s Office is investigating the matter. The FBI is also reportedly investigating, according to KPRC 2, which broke the story.
“Hundreds of thousands of dollars have been spent on that facility. This problem has now dragged on well over a year and a half publicly,” Bettencourt said at hearing Monday. “While there may or may not be any other activity in Harris County about it, I believe that it’s essential to restore the public trust by passing a bill in the Legislature.”
A spokesman for Ellis, political consultant Bill Miller, said the matter has “nothing to do with” Ellis and characterized the abuse-of-office accusations as “unfounded allegations.”
“Time will prove that right,” Miller said, adding that the artwork is staying put for now and the drafting of a new contract is on hold while the investigation is ongoing. “He’s still committed to displaying art, but this particular set of art pieces are in dispute, so it’s sidelined for the time being.”
Of Bettencourt’s bill, Miller said: “There are lots of theories behind legislation.”
Bettencourt said the owner of the art should have been paying thousands of dollars in business personal taxes, which is a tax on the value of a business’ inventory and equipment. County court records show no such payments have been made since 2018.
Miller declined further comment.
Josh Reno, Texas deputy attorney general for criminal justice, testified Monday that the office works with local prosecutors when requested if there is a potential conflict of interest.
“Local county and district attorneys want to be elected, and they are at a disadvantage in some of these cases when they may be prosecuting a very popular individual in their community,” said Reno, a former assistant district attorney tapped by Paxton in November. “I think SB 252 gives another tool in the tool belt for prosecutors who may not have the ability or may not have the political acumen to stand up to these folks.”
That would give the office “incredible power” over local prosecution decisions, said Sen. Robert Nichols, R-Jacksonville.
“My concern is — it’s obvious in this case, probably somebody should do something — but in our history, in our state’s history, occasionally we get some renegade attorney generals who if they really didn’t like you could harass the individual official,” Nichols said.
Sen. Sarah Eckhardt, D-Austin, who was a prosecutor with Travis County for eight years, said it was “folly” to presume the state’s top attorney would be any less political than a local prosecutor.
“We’re dealing with an attorney general’s office for which the elected attorney general’s been under indictment for five years, so if you think you’re going to get less political prosecutions out of the current attorney general’s office, I think that’s highly unlikely,” Eckhardt said.
Last year, Paxton, an ally of former President Donald Trump, drew national attention and praise from Trump when he led an unsuccessful legal effort to overturn the outcome of the 2020 presidential election.
The Bettencourt bill was left pending in the Local Government Committee. Among the members: Sen. Angela Paxton, R-McKinney, the attorney general’s wife.