Texas attorney general's lawyer is withdrawing from his defense, citing unspecified 'issues'
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton. Image from Collin County.
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton renewed his not guilty plea to securities law violations on Thursday during a court hearing in which his lawyer objected to cameras in the courtroom and got permission to withdraw from the case.
Paxton’s lawyer, Joe Kendall, said a new defense lawyer was joining Paxton’s legal team, the Austin American-Statesman reports. Kendall told the judge there were “issues” that would complicate his continued representation of Paxton, but did not go into specifics, according to an account by the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.
A motion to withdraw said “differences have arisen that adversely affect the attorney client relationship making continued representation untenable,” according to coverage by NBCDFW. Paxton told Judge George Gallagher than he intended to hire a new lawyer by next week.
Dallas lawyer Pete Schulte says he is representing Paxton, a Republican. In a tweet, he wrote, “Let me be clear: I represent @KenPaxtonTX as a lawyer on his team. I am not Joe Kendall’s co counsel by Kendall’s definition. That’s it.”
Prosecutors didn’t object to a change in lawyers but said Paxton had gone through a series of lawyers and they did not want it to become a stall tactic, according to the Star-Telegram report. Gallagher granted the withdrawal motion, the Dallas Morning News reports.
Gallagher’s Fort Worth courtroom is in Tarrant County. Kendall read a statement requesting trial in Collin County, where Paxton was indicted and where cameras are not allowed in court.
Paxton is charged with securities fraud and failure to register with the state securities board. The charges involve his work soliciting investors on behalf of a technology company.
