Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton will have his felony securities fraud charges dismissed in exchange for doing 100 hours of community service and meeting other requirements, according to a last-minute deal announced Tuesday.
The agreement requires Paxton, 61, to complete 15 hours of legal ethics classes and pay about $300,000 in restitution to the victims. Over the coming 18 months, Paxton cannot violate the law or he could again face trial, and he will have to check in with special prosecutors every 60 days in a virtual appointment.
All in all, the resolution—which was declared, signed, and filed during a seven-minute court session in Houston—marks the abrupt end of a legal dispute that has shadowed the third-term Republican lawmaker’s position as the state’s top attorney and threatened to derail his political aspirations. The lawsuit began almost ten years ago. It also occurs less than a year after he escaped an attempt to remove him from office on other corruption charges that the FBI is allegedly still looking into.
With his attorneys by his side, Paxton was present on Tuesday and silently observed as the Harris County judge approved the terms, stating nothing more than that he would sign off. He is not required by the agreement to acknowledge any wrongdoing.
“I’m happy we were able to come to an arrangement and put this issue behind me so I can return to the work as the Texas state representative,” Paxton stated in a statement on Tuesday.
