Tag Archives: Collin County

Here come the Rangers

Posted on August 13, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

I don’t know where this is going to go, but it sure will be fun getting there. The Texas House General Investigating Committee voted Monday to request that the Texas Rangers look into allegations against House Speaker Dennis Bonnen and … Continue reading →

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Raising money to register Republicans

Posted on August 3, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

Just keeping an eye on things. A new super PAC focused on registering new Republican voters in Texas has raised nearly $10 million from some of the state’s biggest GOP donors, according to its first report to the Federal Election … Continue reading →

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Paxton wants to move his case back to Collin County

Posted on July 26, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

Of course they do. Paxton’s defense team has asked that the case be moved back to his hometown of Collin County, years after it was moved from there to Harris County. The case was moved hundreds of miles southeast after … Continue reading →

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We return once again to the Paxton prosecutor pay fight

Posted on July 21, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

This is an interesting argument. The prosecutors appointed years ago to take Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton to trial will continue to fight over their pay rate, lengthening a dispute that has already delayed the case for well over a … Continue reading →

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Will Ken Paxton ever be prosecuted?

Posted on June 20, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

At this point, I’d have to say it’s very unlikely. After mulling the question for nearly six months, the nine Republican judges on Texas’ highest criminal court will not reconsider their 2018 ruling that threatens to imperil the criminal case … Continue reading →

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Another reason David Whitley has to go

Posted on February 24, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

County elections officials feel like they can’t trust him or his office right now. That’s a big deal. As the Texas secretary of state’s office rolled out its botched effort to review the citizenship of nearly 100,000 voters, Betsy Schonhoff … Continue reading →

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A trio of updates about that bogus SOS letter

Posted on January 30, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

Most counties reacted skeptically, as well they should. The Texas Tribune reached out to 13 of the 15 counties with the most registered voters on Monday; Galveston was the only one that indicated it would immediately send out letters, even … Continue reading →

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Meet KP George

Posted on January 5, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

He’s the new Fort Bend County Judge. In December, that strange suspended-in-motion month between his election and taking office, K.P. George was checking out the quaint old domed Fort Bend County Courthouse, soon to be his domain. In November, to … Continue reading →

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Paxton prosecutors take their shot at a do-over

Posted on December 29, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Good luck. In a fiery filing that amounts to a legal Hail Mary, the attorneys appointed to prosecute Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton implored the state’s highest criminal court to take the unusual step of considering their case again because … Continue reading →

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Paxton prosecutors want another shot

Posted on December 6, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Good luck. The attorneys appointed to prosecute Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton indicated in a court filing this week that they aren’t giving up a long-running fight to take the state’s top lawyer to court — at least not yet. … Continue reading →

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CCA may have killed the Paxton prosecution

Posted on November 22, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Ugh. Just, ugh. The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals on Wednesday potentially imperiled the long-delayed criminal prosecution of Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, ruling that payments to special prosecutors were outside legal limits. If they cannot get paid, the prosecutors … Continue reading →

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An update on the close races

Posted on November 16, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Good news from Harris County. Fresh tallies of absentee and provisional ballots narrowed state Rep. Dwayne Bohac’s margin over Democrat Adam Milasincic to 47 votes, while incumbent Republican Mike Schofield of Katy trailed Democratic challenger Gina Calanni by 113 votes. … Continue reading →

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Projecting Tuesday turnout

Posted on November 4, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Here’s the statewide view. By the time the polls closed Thursday, 33.7 percent of registered voters in Bexar County had voted, well past the 17.3 percent turnout at the same point in 2014, the last midterm, and close to the … Continue reading →

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The meta-campaign for Senate

Posted on August 12, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Let’s talk about what we talk about when we talk about the Senate campaign. It’s the most backhanded of compliments. U.S. Rep. Beto O’Rourke’s campaign for U.S. Senate has caught so much fire throughout the state that the new favorite … Continue reading →

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Don’t expect a Ken Paxton trial to happen this year

Posted on June 30, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Delays, delays, nothing but delays. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton was indicted for fraud nearly three years ago but is unlikely to go on trial before Election Day. Paxton’s trials are on hold while the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals decides whether the prosecutors on the case are … Continue reading →

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Self-driving car service coming to North Texas

Posted on May 13, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

Coming to the city of Frisco in July, a public-private venture pairing up with a California-based outfit called Drive.ai, for something that’s a little like shuttle service and a little like mass transit on a small scale. The initial service … Continue reading →

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No Paxton trial till prosecutor pay case resolved

Posted on January 3, 2018 by Charles Kuffner

It’s not on the court calendar at this time. Attorney General Ken Paxton’s fraud trials have been put on hold as the lawyers pursuing the criminal charges against him fight for years of back pay. Judge Robert Johnson has taken … Continue reading →

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CCA to review Paxton prosecutors pay case

Posted on December 21, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Good. The state’s highest criminal court agreed Wednesday to take a closer look at prosecutors’ long-running fight to get paid for their handling of the securities fraud case against Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton. The move by the state’s Court … Continue reading →

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TCDLA pulls Paxton prosecutors brief

Posted on November 3, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Get your act together, y’all. A leading organization of criminal defense lawyers on Tuesday withdrew its legal brief in support of prosecutors who are fighting to get paid for work on the criminal case against Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton. … Continue reading →

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In support of the Paxton prosecutors

Posted on October 31, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Good to see. In an unusual step, six prosecutors and Texas’ criminal defense attorneys association have joined a continuing legal storm over how much the special prosecutors overseeing the criminal case against Attorney General Ken Paxton should get paid. Preventing … Continue reading →

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More on the Paxton bribery investigation

Posted on October 26, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

It’s good to have rich friends. Attorney General Ken Paxton says the man who shelled out the most money to help him combat securities fraud charges is a “family friend,” but a review of campaign finance records show his main … Continue reading →

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Paxton trial delayed again

Posted on October 5, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

This will happen some day. I hope. Attorney General Ken Paxton’s trial has been put off for a third time. The judge in the securities fraud case against Paxton sided Wednesday with prosecutors who had been pushing for another trial … Continue reading →

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CCA stays Paxton prosecutor pay ruling

Posted on September 27, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

A bit of sanity at last, though we’re not out of the woods yet. Texas’ highest criminal court has stepped into the long-running dispute over the prosecutors’ pay in the securities fraud case against Attorney General Ken Paxton, putting on … Continue reading →

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Paxton prosecutors officially petition the CCA over their pay

Posted on September 21, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Last chance. The special prosecutors in the securities fraud case against Attorney General Ken Paxton are asking the state’s highest criminal court to help them get paid. On Tuesday, the prosecutors asked the Court of Criminal Appeals to reverse a … Continue reading →

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Collin County wants its pay back

Posted on September 3, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Of course they do. Collin County is about to start another fight over the prosecution of indicted Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton. Since 2015, the county has been billed more than half a million dollars to prosecute Paxton, who faces … Continue reading →

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Paxton prosecutors to petition CCA

Posted on August 28, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Last chance to get paid. The state’s highest criminal court will get a chance to decide whether the special prosecutors appointed in the criminal cases against Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton can be paid the $300-an-hour rate they were promised. … Continue reading →

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5th Court of Appeals screws Paxton prosecutors

Posted on August 23, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Ugh. The prosecutors pursuing charges against Attorney General Ken Paxton haven’t been paid in more than a year and a half — and they will continue to wait on a payday. On Monday, the 5th Court of Appeals in Dallas … Continue reading →

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The rural/suburban tradeoff

Posted on August 10, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Martin Longman returns to a point he has been making about the way the vote shifted in the 2016 election. Let’s try to be clear about what we mean. Hillary Clinton won a lot of votes in the suburbs from … Continue reading →

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Paxton’s trial date set

Posted on July 28, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Mark your calendars. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton will face trial in December for the first of three criminal charges, a Houston judge ruled Thursday. Jury selection will begin Dec. 1 and testimony will start on Dec. 11 for the … Continue reading →

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First Paxton trial hearing in Harris County

Posted on July 3, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Not much happened, but there are some big questions to address. The securities fraud case against Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton kicked off Thursday in Harris County with no new trial date being set. Instead, the new judge in the … Continue reading →

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Another look at redistricting in Texas

Posted on June 28, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

We’re in the spotlight right now. The odd shapes tell the story. A huge Republican majority in the Houston-area 2nd congressional district represented by Ted Poe curls around the region from Lake Houston, northeast of the city, makes a meandering, … Continue reading →

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Collin County would like us to pick up the Paxton prosecutor tab

Posted on June 17, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

I’ll bet they would. As Attorney General Ken Paxton’s legal troubles head into their third year, there’s another question aside from whether he’ll beat the rap — who will pay for it all? Taxpayers in Collin County, where Paxton was … Continue reading →

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We have the Paxton case

Posted on June 11, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

By “we”, I mean Harris County. Attorney General Ken Paxton’s criminal case is officially moving to Harris County. In an order signed Friday morning, Judge George Gallagher vacated several previous orders scheduling hearings in the case and directed the Collin … Continue reading →

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CCA declines to get involved in Paxton judge dispute

Posted on June 8, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

That’s that, then. Texas’ highest criminal court has declined to intervene in the dispute over the judge in Attorney General Ken Paxton’s securities fraud case. On Friday, prosecutors asked the state Court of Criminal Appeals to reverse a lower appeals … Continue reading →

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