Texas Governor Appoints John Scott as Interim Attorney General After Paxton Impeached; 6 Texas AG Employees Take Leave of Absence to Defend Ken Paxton at Impeachment Trial

Texas governor appoints John Scott as interim attorney general after Paxton impeached:

Gov. Greg Abbott on Wednesday picked a longtime ally who oversaw Texas’ elections in 2022 to temporarily serve as attorney general following Republican Ken Paxton’s historic impeachment on allegations of misconduct and crimes.

John Scott, who stepped down as Texas Secretary of State last year, takes over as the state’s top lawyer on an interim basis while Paxton awaits a trial in the state Senate that could result in his permanent removal. The trial is set to begin no later than Aug. 28.

Paxton was impeached last weekend by the Texas House of Representatives, triggering his immediate suspension from office.

Abbott has kept silent about Paxton in the week since House Republicans began impeachment proceedings. The governor announced Scott’s appointment in a statement that did not mention Paxton or comment on the accusations against him.

“John Scott has the background and experience needed to step in as a short-term interim Attorney General during the time the Attorney General has been suspended from duty,” Abbott said.

Scott has been a trusted hand of Abbott’s for more than a decade. He served as a state litigator when Abbott was attorney general, and when Abbott’s pick for secretary of state in 2019 was derailed after a bungled review of voter rolls, the governor turned to Scott instead. —>READ MORE HERE

6 Texas AG employees take leave of absence to defend Ken Paxton at impeachment trial:

The defense team includes the agency’s chief appellate lawyer and head of its general litigation division.

Six top officials and employees at the Texas attorney general’s office have taken a leave of absence to help defend suspended Attorney General Ken Paxton in his impeachment trial this summer.

Those employees are solicitor general Judd Stone, the agency’s top appellate lawyer; assistant solicitors general Joseph N. Mazzara and Kateland Jackson; Chris Hilton, chief of the general litigation division; senior attorney Allison Collins; and executive assistant Jordan Eskew.

The news was first reported by the conservative website The Daily Wire. Jarrod Griffin, a spokesperson for the attorney general’s office, confirmed the report to The Texas Tribune.

Prior to Tuesday, it was unclear who would serve as Paxton’s lawyers in the impeachment trial before the Texas Senate.

The embattled three-term Republican became Texas’ first statewide office holder to be impeached in more than 100 years on Saturday when the Texas House voted 121-23 to adopt 20 articles of impeachment. The articles, which included allegations of bribery, abuse of office and obstruction of justice, were presented Monday to the Senate. …>READ MORE HERE

Source