Weekly News Round Up Of The State’s Top Law Enforcement Officer – Texas Attorney General

To fulfill these responsibilities, the Office of the Attorney General serves as legal counsel to all boards and agencies of state government, issues legal opinions when requested by the Governor, heads of state agencies…

 


Texas Attorney General, Ken Paxton is the lawyer for the State of Texas and is charged by the Texas Constitution to:

  • defend the laws and the Constitution of the State of Texas
  • represent the State in litigation
  • approve public bond issues

To fulfill these responsibilities, the Office of the Attorney General serves as legal counsel to all boards and agencies of state government, issues legal opinions when requested by the Governor, heads of state agencies and other officials and agencies as provided by Texas statutes, sits as an ex-officio member of state committees and commissions, and defends challenges to state laws and suits against both state agencies and individual employees of the State.

 

WEEKLY NEWS ROUND-UP OF THE STATE’S

TOP LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICER…

THE TEXAS ATTORNEY GENERAL



AG Paxton Congratulates Former Texas Deputy Solicitor General Andrew Oldham on His Confirmation to the 5th Circuit

Release Date: July 18, 2018

AUSTIN – Attorney General Ken Paxton today congratulated former Texas Deputy Solicitor General Andrew Oldham after he was confirmed by the U.S. Senate to a seat on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit. Oldham is President Trump’s sixth pending or confirmed judicial nomination of a current or former staffer with the Texas attorney general’s office.

“Andy Oldham is principled, smart and will faithfully interpret the rule of law, not legislate from the bench,” Attorney General Paxton said. “I’m confident Andy will make an extraordinary appellate judge and serve honorably in his new role.”

Oldham is the general counsel to Governor Greg Abbott. He succeeded Jimmy Blacklock, whom Abbott named to the Texas Supreme Court to replace Don Willett after President Trump nominated Willett to the 5th Circuit, which handles cases from Texas, Louisiana, and Mississippi.

Oldham served as then-Attorney General Abbott’s deputy solicitor general and represented Texas in federal courts across the country, including two U.S. Supreme Court cases. The Harvard Law School graduate also worked in private practice, served as a law clerk to Supreme Court Justice Samuel A. Alito, Jr., and was an attorney-adviser in the Office of Legal Counsel at the U.S. Department of Justice.



AG Paxton Commends Department Of Labor For Heeding His Request To Rescind The Unlawful Obama-Era Persuader Rule

Released Date: July 17, 2018

AUSTIN – Attorney General Paxton today commended the U.S. Department of Labor after it rescinded the Obama-era Persuader Rule, which violated the federal Labor-Management Reporting and Disclosure Act.

In November 2016, Attorney General Paxton won a permanent nationwide injunction against the Persuader Rule, when a federal judge ruled that it was unlawful and would have required attorneys to make public confidential information protected by attorney-client privilege. A month later, Texas and a coalition of 10 states won a final judgment in the case. Last August, Attorney General Paxton led a 17-state coalition asking the Labor Department to rescind the rule.

“The Persuader Rule is among the Obama administration’s most outrageous and unlawful attempts at federal overreach,” Attorney General Paxton said. “The rule would have made it more difficult and expensive for small business owners to obtain legal advice, interfering with attorney-client privilege, which is one of our most basic rights. It’s gratifying to know that the Texas-led coalition of states prevailed in its fight to do away with the onerous rule for good.”

The Obama administration’s reinterpretation of the Persuader Rule upended five decades of established federal labor policy and would have made it more difficult and expensive for small businesses to obtain legal advice. Attorney General Paxton’s lawsuit kept the Department of Labor from ever enforcing the rule.

View the U.S. Department of Labor’s announcement here: https://www.dol.gov/newsroom/releases/olms/olms20180717.



AG Paxton Defends Constitutionality Of Texas Law On The Humane Disposition Of Fetal Remains

Release Date: July 16, 2018

AUSTIN – Attorney General Ken Paxton said he’s confident that by the end of an expected weeklong trial that began in U.S. District Court today, lawyers from his office will firmly establish the constitutionality of a Texas law that provides new rules on the humane disposition of fetal remains.

“Texas has chosen to respect unborn life by adopting rules requiring the dignified treatment of fetal remains, rather than allow health care facilities to dispose of the remains in sewers or landfills,” Attorney General Paxton said. “At the trial, we’ll demonstrate that the rules are constitutional and do not impact the abortion procedure or the availability of abortion in Texas. I’m confident in our arguments and look forward to the courts ultimately upholding Texas law.”

The U.S. Supreme Court has repeatedly recognized that states have an interest in the lives of the unborn. Last session, the Texas Legislature enacted a law (Senate Bill 8) that, among other things, prohibits health care providers from disposing fetal remains in sewers or landfills and instead to treat their remains in more dignified fashion such as burial, cremation or the spreading of ashes. Previous law permitted fetal remains to be discharged into a sewer system or sent to a landfill.

During the trial, lawyers for the attorney general’s office will present evidence and expert witness testimony to bolster Texas’ case against challenges to the law. They’ll argue that if the law takes effect, women will continue to have the same access to abortion that they previously had and it will not violate any patient’s constitutional rights.

In January, a U.S. District Court judge temporarily blocked the law from taking effect, ruling that it was likely to impose “significant burdens on abortion access,” but held off on a final ruling until the trial this week to fully consider the law’s impact. 



AG Paxton Commends Fifth Circuit Ruling Upholding First Amendment For The Texas Catholic Conference of Bishops

Release Date: July 13, 2018

AUSTIN – Attorney General Ken Paxton praised today’s ruling by the U.S. Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals upholding the First Amendment rights of non-party Texas Catholic Conference of Bishops regarding its internal communications.

“The Fifth Circuit correctly protected the Texas Catholic Conference of Bishops, a non-party, from an overly broad demand by an abortion group for internal communications that were not only irrelevant to the subject of this case, but invaded the faith group’s treasured First Amendment right to be free from courts prying into their religious beliefs” Attorney General Paxton said. “In making such an erroneous demand, abortion advocates succeeded only in demonstrating that they are willing to violate the Constitution to further their pro-abortion agenda and attempt to silence those offering a respectful burial to unborn children.” 

The Texas Catholic Conference of Bishops offered assistance to healthcare facilities, including abortion clinics, regarding the respectful disposition of fetal remains at Catholic cemeteries, undermining plaintiff Whole Woman’s Health’s argument against the legal Texas requirement.

Without any proof of their relevance to the case, Whole Woman’s Health subsequently demanded that Texas Catholic Conference of Bishops produce its protected internal communications.

They threatened to pursue this clear violation of Texas Catholic Conference of Bishops’ First Amendment rights unless the Executive Director of the Texas Catholic Conference of Bishops agreed not to testify about the faith group’s charitable offer to assist.

View today’s ruling here: https://bit.ly/2zCH5GD



AG Paxton Issues Consumer Alert On Misleading Homestead Tax Exemption Offers

Release Date: July 13, 2018

AUSTIN – Attorney General Ken Paxton today warned consumers to beware of businesses that are sending misleading letters to Texans offering a “designation of homestead” if they pay a fee. Counties make the standard homestead tax exemption available for free to property owners.

To date, the Consumer Protection Division of the attorney general’s office has received more than 100 complaints from individuals who received solicitations for these designations and, in some cases, sent back money for a homestead exemption.

“My office is actively reviewing all of the complaints and we will take whatever legal steps are necessary to stop unlawful activity by any company trying to take advantage of Texans,” Attorney General Paxton said. “I urge anyone who has received a solicitation offering a ‘designation of homestead’ that they believe is deceptive to please call my office’s consumer hotline at 800-621-0508 and report it.”

Texas consumers can also always report suspicious or fraudulent activity by filing a complaint with the attorney general’s office online at https://www.texasattorneygeneral.gov/cpd/file-a-consumer-complaint.



AG Paxton Joins 26-State Coalition Urging Prompt Senate Confirmation Of Judge Kavanaugh To The U.S. Supreme Court

Release Date: July 12, 2018

AUSTIN – Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton today joined a 26-state coalition in urging U.S. Senate leaders to promptly confirm the nomination of Judge Brett Kavanaugh to the U.S. Supreme Court.

The letter of support for Judge Kavanaugh from the coalition of state attorneys general was sent to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, Senate Judiciary Chairman Chuck Grassley and Senate Judiciary Ranking Member Dianne Feinstein.

“Throughout his career, Judge Kavanaugh has demonstrated an abiding commitment to the principles and freedoms on which our country was founded, and an unshakable respect for the proper role of the courts within our constitutional structure,” the coalition wrote. “The Senate should confirm President Trump’s choice without delay.”

In their letter, Attorney General Paxton and his counterparts emphasized that Judge Kavanaugh is particularly well suited to enforce the Constitution’s limits on federal overreach and protect the role of individual states.

“During the previous administration in particular, the executive branch placed onerous and unlawful regulatory burdens on consumers, employees, investors, and businesses,” the letter states. “Judge Kavanaugh will help reverse that trend by reviewing challenged laws and regulations with an eye to ensuring that all branches of our government act within their constitutionally assigned roles – regardless of which party is in power.”

The letter is signed by Attorney General Paxton along with the attorneys general of Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Kansas, Louisiana, Michigan, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Utah, West Virginia, Wisconsin and Wyoming.

To view a copy of the letter, click here: https://bit.ly/2LgCz24.



AG Paxton’s Office, Travis County DA Margaret Moore Obtain Conviction, 40-Year Prison Sentence In Sex Trafficking Case Involving A 14-Year-Old Victim

Release Date: July 12, 2018

AUSTIN – Resulting from a joint effort by his office, the Travis County District Attorney’s office, and the Texas Department of Public Safety, Attorney General Ken Paxton today announced that a Travis County District Court sentenced Kedrick Nelms, 28, to 40 years in prison for sex trafficking a 14-year-old girl. On June 20, a Travis County jury found Nelms guilty of trafficking of persons and of compelling prostitution of a minor, both first-degree felonies. Nelms opted to have the judge determine his punishment.

The attorney general’s Human Trafficking and Transnational/Organized Crime section, led by Deputy Criminal Chief Kirsta Melton and Assistant Attorney General Melissa Holman, assisted the prosecution of the case at the invitation of Travis County District Attorney Margaret Moore. They were joined at the trial by Travis County Assistant District Attorney Josh Reno. The Texas Department of Public Safety conducted the investigation that led to the successful prosecution of Nelms.

“As a result of this successful, first-of-its-kind partnership between my office, the Travis County District Attorney’s office and the Texas Department of Public Safety, a dangerous and despicable human trafficker has been brought to justice,” Attorney General Paxton said. “I’m grateful to the prosecutors and our law enforcement partners for their tireless work on this collaborative effort. My office will continue to work to protect victims from sex trafficking and prosecute those who profit from the exploitation of human beings.”

Travis County District Attorney Moore said: “I commend the attorney general and his assistants for this outstanding prosecution. I am proud to have partnered in this exemplary collaboration.”

Nelms used a social media app called Tagged to lure his underage victim into a relationship, then introduced her to his girlfriend, Kirsten Violette, who conspired with Nelms to traffick the girl for prostitution in Dallas, Austin and San Antonio in June 2016. It took a jury one hour to return guilty verdicts on both charges against Nelms. Separately, Violette pleaded guilty this week to trafficking of persons and faces a punishment hearing in August.

Attorney General Paxton has made combating human trafficking a top priority. Two years ago, he launched his office’s Human Trafficking and Transnational/Organized Crime section, which prosecutes human traffickers across the state. In April, the section’s prosecution of Backpage.com resulted in the company pleading guilty to human trafficking in Texas and its CEO, Carl Ferrer, pleading guilty to money laundering. The attorney general’s office also assisted the U.S. Department of Justice with permanently shutting down the website, which was considered the largest online sex trafficking marketplace in the world.

Earlier this year, Attorney General Paxton unveiled a powerful training video to teach Texans how to spot and report suspected human trafficking activity. “Be the One in the Fight Against Human Trafficking” is available for viewing online at https://www.texasattorneygeneral.gov/human-trafficking.



 

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