Gag orders, witnesses, limits: rules for Paxton’s impeachment trial
AUSTIN — The Texas Senate addressed conflicts of interest, gag orders and witnesses in approving 31 rules for the impeachment trial of Attorney General Ken Paxton, setting the structure for proceedings that will begin Sept. 5.
Late Wednesday night, the senators outlined rules dictating the structure and tenor of the proceedings. Paxton is accused of obstruction of justice, bribery and abuse of office. He has denied all wrongdoing.
Impeachment trials place the Senate in the position of jurors but also as the arbiters of how the trial is conducted. In each of Texas’ previous impeachment trials, the Senate adopted new rules.
Paxton’s trial likely presented more challenges for the lawmakers due to the attorney general’s close ties with some. And unlike any previous impeachment rules, the rules singled out a senator — Paxton’s wife Sen. Angela Paxton — and barred her from serving as a juror in his upcoming trial.
CONFLICTS OF INTEREST
The rules answered a lingering question: whether Sen. Angela Paxton, R-mckinney, could participate in the trial. The adopted rules state “the spouse of a party to the court of impeachment is considered to have a conflict.” Angela Paxton will be present for the trial, which is required by Texas law.
However, the senator is prohibited from voting on the merits of any article of impeachment. She is also barred from deliberations or closed sessions. Though she cannot vote, her presence will count in the total vote, making her a de facto abstention.
Two-thirds of senators are needed to convict Paxton on any of the 20 articles of impeachment and bar him from holding public office.
Had she not been counted, a verdict removing him from office would have required 20 senators out of 30. Now, 21 are needed.
The rules make no mention of other conflicts of interest. At least one other senator, Sen. Bryan Hughes, R-mineola, has connections to the allegations against Ken Paxton.
The articles of impeachment allege Hughes was a “straw requestor” who allowed the attorney general’s office to use his name in a timely request for an official legal opinion from the office that benefitted Austin real estate developer Nate Paul, a Paxton campaign donor who is central to several impeachment allegations.
SENATORS AS WITNESSES
The rules would allow House managers to call Hughes to the stand for his role in those allegations. However, it states that senators should only be called as witnesses as a last resort.
A senator could only be called as a witness if the evidence sought is “not otherwise provable.” If Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, who presides over the Senate, deems a request for senator testimony “frivolous,” the requestor could be subject to contempt of court.
WITNESSES AND CROSS EXAMINATION
The trial will rely on witnesses attending the trial rather than depositions, which is a blow to Paxton and his team.
Paxton would prefer a trial with no live witness testimony or new evidence beyond what was in the report that led to his impeachment by lawmakers in the House. However, the rules allow for the questioning and cross examination of witnesses.
A list of witnesses, if there are any, must be filed to the Senate clerk by Aug. 22 or a date set by Patrick. Tony Buzbee, one of the attorneys representing Paxton during impeachment, said in a news conference earlier this month they had identified 66 witnesses to question.
Only one person from Paxton’s team or the House impeachment managers can question a witness or cross-examine a witness.
MOTIONS TO DISMISS
Buzbee has said the Paxton team wants the senators to quickly vote to dispose of the case in a summary judgment over allegations he said would not hold up in any court.
While it will take twothirds of the Senate to convict Paxton, it will only require a simple majority vote to approve any motion to dismiss any article of impeachment.
Patrick, the presiding officer of the court, will have more say-so over other motions. Unlike previous impeachments in Texas, in several cases he will be permitted to rule unilaterally on motions.
In the impeachment trial of a district judge in 1975, for example, any senator could ask for a vote on any motion.
NEW ARTICLES OF IMPEACHMENT
Should the House choose to bring any new articles of impeachment against Paxton, those must be presented at least 30 days before the start of the trial.
Paxton faces 20 articles of impeachment that accuse him of sweeping abuses. An attorney for the House impeachment managers previously told The Dallas Morning News reported that more impeachment articles could be coming as Paxton’s finances and family trust were the target of a dozen new subpoenas the ethics panel in the House issued May 28 — a day after the House overwhelmingly voted to impeach Paxton.
The lawyers for the House impeachment managers did not say what information they were seeking from the subpoenas.
TIME LIMITS
“The Senate will not tolerate unnecessary delays, outbursts, or side-bar remarks,” the rules note.
Time limits are set on different parts of the trial.
Each side will have one hour to deliver an opening statement and 24 hours each to present evidence.
When it comes to cross-examining witnesses, the rules note it should be “closely monitored for violations” of state law on the control of the court. The court should make such proceedings of witness examination effective at finding the truth, avoid wasting time and protect witnesses from harassment or undue embarrassment, according to the guidelines. It also forbids leading questions.
Rebuttal of evidence is limited to one hour for each side.
Final arguments are also one hour each.