AG Paxton charged with fraud

[Lynyrd]

http://trailblazersblog.dallasnews.com/ ... robe.html/

I neither support him, nor am against him. But he has some trouble facing him.

[joe817]

Yup. Looks like he's in for some difficult times.

[baldeagle]

Criminal charges from the state and civil from the feds. Lots of ways to look at this one, but time will tell if there's anything to it. One thing's for sure. He'll have some huge legal bills to pay.

[OneGun]

From reading these media accounts of what happened, it may not be a clear right / wrong issue. If Paxton received his shares as a gift, there may not be a violation. If the shares were indeed compensation, then there may be a problem. If Paxton knew he would receive a commission on his sales, but failed to disclose, that is another problem. On the other hand, he may have done nothing wrong and his political foes are creating a scandal in the court of public opinion. It is difficult to comprehend that the chief prosecutor for the state would not know the securities laws and choose to violate them.

I suspect there is a whole lot more to this story. Could the SEC be a weapon of the Obama administration just like the IRS' targeted Conservative groups?

[KLB]

Undisclosed commissions are a huge no-no under securities law. If he took them, then he deserves to be in big trouble.

If I were on the jury, I would be highly skeptical of the argument that the alleged commissions were really a gift. People don't gives gifts like that in connection with business transactions. My <malarkey> meter would red line.

[baldeagle]

Texas has a recent history with trying to snag Republicans with the law. There was the Tom Delay "scandal" that ended up with him being acquitted on appeal. Then there was the ridiculous case against Rick Perry that ended up being thrown out. So I'll withhold judgment on Paxton's problems until the so-called justice system completes its process.

[ScottDLS]

Maybe he'll get caught like Martha Stewart....convicted for lying about something she didn't do that wasn't illegal.

[OneGun]

Texas has a recent history with trying to snag Republicans with the law. There was the Tom Delay "scandal" that ended up with him being acquitted on appeal. Then there was the ridiculous case against Rick Perry that ended up being thrown out. So I'll withhold judgment on Paxton's problems until the so-called justice system completes its process.

Foxnews had a recent opinion piece on this very topic: http://www.foxnews.com/opinion/2016/04/ ... s-why.html

[KLB]

It is difficult to comprehend that the chief prosecutor for the state would not know the securities laws and choose to violate them.

Not really. The law encompasses many complex areas. No one can know it all, and securities law is among the more complex. That said, I long ago learned that securities law is one of the few areas where a lawyer documenting a deal can go to jail. I always took it very seriously when I ventured into the area. But Paxton may not have known much and may not have wanted to know, because the money was nice. He's surely entitled to a trial, but from what I've read, it looks bad for him.

[dhoobler]

Judge tosses civil fraud charges against Attorney General Ken Paxton
http://www.dallasnews.com/news/texas-po ... ken-paxton

[mojo84]

Alao, in the criminal case, the prosecution has or will requested a change of venue. I think this case is going to call apart.

Also, Byron Cook, one of the main guys behind this Paxton attack also has his own legal issues.