Texas AG Ken Paxton broke state law by refusing to turn over messages about his travel to a Jan. 6 Trump rally, DA's office says
- Texas newspapers requested records of Paxton's travel to a pro-Trump rally in DC that preceded the Capitol riot.
- A Texas county DA said Paxton broke the law by not sharing details of his travel to DC.
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton broke the state's law by refusing to turn over his communications about traveling to a pro-Trump rally in Washington, DC, on January 6, 2021, a state district attorney's office said.
Jackie Wood, director of public integrity and complex crimes at the Travis County District Attorney's Office, told Paxton in a Thursday letter that he had broken the law by either not sharing his records about his rally attendance or not keeping records in the first place.
The Trump rally on January 6 had preceded the Capitol riot.
The letter said Paxton would be given a lawsuit if he doesn't turn over the records of his communications within four days of receiving the letter. The Texas Tribune and the Houston Chronicle reported that the letter was hand-delivered to Paxton.
The DA office's decision came after the editors of five of Texas' biggest newspapers — the Austin American-Statesman, The Dallas Morning News, the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, the Houston Chronicle and the San Antonio Express-News — brought a complaint that said Paxton was refusing to share records that should be made public, the Houston Chronicle reported.