Category Archives: Scandalized!

DeLay gets off

Posted on October 2, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Sure is nice to have friends in high places. Siding with a decision made a year ago by a lower appeals court, the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals on Wednesday refused to reinstate money-laundering convictions against former U.S. House Majority … Continue reading →

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Abbott’s Enterprise Fund issues

Posted on September 30, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

It’s a bit of a problem for him, isn’t it? While critics were hounding Gov. Rick Perry a decade ago about his job-luring Texas Enterprise Fund, his lawyers went to Attorney General Greg Abbott to block the release of applications … Continue reading →

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Perry doesn’t have to show up at his court hearing

Posted on September 29, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

He’s excused this time. But don’t push it. Gov. Rick Perry does not have to appear at an Oct. 13 court hearing in his case, but that does not mean he has a pass to skip all future hearings, Visiting … Continue reading →

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McCrum slaps back at Perry

Posted on September 25, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Interesting legal strategy. The special prosecutor in the criminal case against Rick Perry said Tuesday that the governor is asking for “special favors” and that his activities, including a rally when he was booked, are making a mockery of the … Continue reading →

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McCrum asks for help

Posted on September 22, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Because many against one is not a fair fight. The special prosecutor in the case against Gov. Rick Perry is asking for some help. San Antonio lawyer Michael McCrum, who guided the case to last month’s indictment, filed a motion … Continue reading →

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Lawsuit filed to get Paxton records from State Securities Board

Posted on September 19, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

From the Lone Star Project on Wednesday: Today the Texas Coalition for Lawyer Accountability (TCLA) filed suit against the Texas State Securities Board to obtain documents linked to Republican attorney general candidate Ken Paxton’s admitted felony violation of state securities … Continue reading →

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Perry’s lawyers ask again for indictments to be tossed

Posted on September 10, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Stop me if you’ve heard this one before. Attorneys for Gov. Rick Perry, indicted last month on charges related to his veto threat of money for the Travis County District Attorney’s office, have filed another request for a judge to … Continue reading →

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Complaint filed against Whitmire

Posted on September 5, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

I think this is more a political stunt than anything else, but we’ll see. A conservative group has filed a criminal complaint against state Sen. John Whitmire, accusing him of coercion in an exchange of text messages with University of … Continue reading →

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Now how much would you pay for Rick Perry’s lawyers?

Posted on September 1, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

The tab has gone up. Gov. Rick Perry has billed taxpayers $133,000 to hire several lawyers to defend him against public corruption allegations, his office confirmed Friday. That’s more lawyers and more state money spent than previously disclosed. After Perry … Continue reading →

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More about TPJ

Posted on August 29, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

The Chron profiles Texans for Public Justice, the group that filed the complaint that led to Rick Perry’s indictments. [Craig] McDonald’s Texans for Public Justice, which operates out of a small office west of the University of Texas-Austin campus and … Continue reading →

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Rick Perry was actively searching for Rosemary Lehmberg’s replacement

Posted on August 26, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

The plot thickens. Gov. Rick Perry personally called a well-known Austin Democrat to discuss her interest in replacing Travis County District Attorney Rosemary Lehmberg days before the public learned Perry was threatening to withhold state funding from Lehmberg’s office unless … Continue reading →

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Perry’s legal team to try to get indictments tossed

Posted on August 25, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

It’s what any defense attorney would try to do. A lawyer for Gov. Rick Perry said Friday he will challenge felony charges that the governor overstepped his authority when he said he would veto state funding for Travis County prosecutors … Continue reading →

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Perry will pay for his own defense

Posted on August 22, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Wise decision, something our Governor is not known for. Gov. Rick Perry, who has been using taxpayer dollars to pay his defense lawyers, will tap campaign funds from now on to compensate the attorneys who are fighting his felony indictments, … Continue reading →

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Possibly the last thing I’m going to say about the Perry indictment for now

Posted on August 20, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Certainly not the last thing I’ll ever say, since there’s a vast amount of the story left to be told, and I reserve the right to change my mind. But for now, since the indictment came down on Friday there’s … Continue reading →

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Look behind the scenes

Posted on August 19, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

There’s another angle to consider the Perry indictment saga, which is that the indictment isn’t so much about what Rick Perry said publicly regarding Rosemary Lehmberg and the Public Integrity Unit but what he was saying behind the scenes. Erica … Continue reading →

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On Mike McCrum and Pa Ferguson

Posted on August 18, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

There were two stories from Sunday about special prosecutor Mike McCrum that were worth flagging. First, here’s the Express News with an angle that I think has been underappreciated. People who know McCrum said he is not the type to … Continue reading →

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More on the Perry indictment

Posted on August 17, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Just some more thoughts and links relating to the big story that turned a relatively quiet Friday into one of the busiest news day of the year so far. Let’s start with a reality check from Harold Cook. First of … Continue reading →

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Perry indicted

Posted on August 16, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Wow. A grand jury indicted Gov. Rick Perry on Friday on charges of abuse of power and coercion as part of an ethics inquiry into his veto of funding for the state’s public integrity unit. The inquiry began last summer … Continue reading →

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DeLay gets his day before the CCA

Posted on June 20, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Looks like he might have had a pretty good day, too. Oral arguments in Tom DeLay’s decadelong legal fight with the Travis County District Attorney’s office heated up Wednesday as Republican judges on the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals questioned … Continue reading →

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Today’s the day for Tom DeLay at the CCA

Posted on June 18, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Apologies for the excessive alliteration. I got on a roll and couldn’t stop. DeLay’s appellate lawyer, Brian Wice of Houston, and Travis County prosecutor Holly Taylor will argue Wednesday before the state’s highest criminal court in Austin over whether the … Continue reading →

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Steve Stockman ethics update

Posted on June 14, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

He still doesn’t have any, but I’m talking about the investigation into his highly questionable campaign finance activity. The House Ethics Committee extended its probe into U.S. Rep. Steve Stockman on Wednesday, releasing a report detailing allegations that he tried … Continue reading →

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TPJ files amicus brief in DeLay appeal

Posted on June 7, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

It’s almost time for Tom DeLay to go to court again. A government-watchdog group on Tuesday petitioned the state’s highest criminal court to reinstate the money-laundering and conspiracy convictions of former U.S. House Majority Leader Tom Delay, moving to join … Continue reading →

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Stockman being investigated for ethics issues

Posted on April 28, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Raise your hand if you’re the least bit surprised by this. The House ethics committee is inquiring into the campaign finances of Rep. Steve Stockman, the Clear Lake Republican who has been questioned repeatedly over the last year about misreported … Continue reading →

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DeLay wants to sue

Posted on September 25, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Whatever you say, dude. Former House Majority Leader Tom DeLay, reveling in victory Thursday against Texas prosecutors in a money-laundering case, said his political career is over but he’s eager to return to the courthouse. If he can find a … Continue reading →

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DeLay gets off

Posted on September 20, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Bummer. Former U.S. Rep. Tom DeLay’s political money laundering conviction was overturned by the state’s 3rd Court of Appeals on Thursday. “Based on the totality of the evidence, we conclude that the evidence presented does not support a conclusion that … Continue reading →

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Abercia takes a plea

Posted on August 31, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Good. Former Harris County Precinct 1 Constable Jack Abercia told investigators he performed illegal background checks to raise money, in part, for an elevator at his home, federal prosecutors said Thursday. Abercia pleaded guilty Thursday to 11 counts of exceeding … Continue reading →

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A constituent’s letter to Rep. Reynolds

Posted on April 6, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

I was forwarded the following email to Rep. Ron Reynolds: Dear Representative Reynolds, I wanted to believe you when I voted for you in 2010 despite knowing that you had been sanctioned twice by the State Bar, and subsequently had … Continue reading →

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Rep. Reynolds indicted for barratry again

Posted on March 30, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Sheesh. Dozens of law enforcement officers simultaneously raided multiple law offices and two chiropractic clinics Monday morning for their alleged involvement in a kickback scheme to sign up clients, according to an I-Team review of court records. In all, arrest … Continue reading →

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Feds get involved in Dewhurst campaign embezzlement case

Posted on February 11, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

The plot thickens. The campaign manager for Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst, already facing a state investigation over allegations of theft from Dewhurst’s political account, has been accused of also taking at least $1 million from the Republican’s U.S. Senate campaign … Continue reading →

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Dewhurst campaign aide accused of stealing contributions

Posted on December 29, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Oops. Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst’s campaign manager is under criminal scrutiny, suspected of stealing at least $600,000 — and possibly more than $1 million — from the Republican’s political accounts over the past several years. Kenneth “Buddy” Barfield, a longtime … Continue reading →

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Can you believe it’s been ten years?

Posted on December 3, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Ten years (and one week) ago, four defeated Democratic candidates for the State House filed a lawsuit against the Texas Association of Business, claiming that TAB funneled illegal corporate contributions into state legislative races in the 2002 election. As you … Continue reading →

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Constable Trevino’s day in court

Posted on November 30, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

It went about as you’d expect. Precinct 6 Constable Victor Trevino and his attorney said Tuesday they expect the longtime law enforcement officer to be cleared of any wrongdoing in connection with allegations he abused his official role and used … Continue reading →

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Constable Trevino indicted

Posted on November 18, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Lovely. Longtime Precinct 6 Constable Victor Trevino was indicted Friday, accused of failing to report cash campaign contributions, diverting money from his youth charity for personal use and using deputies to serve eviction notices and then keeping the delivery fees. … Continue reading →

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Colyandro takes a plea

Posted on November 13, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Missed this on Friday. It took five minutes for Capitol figure John Colyandro to end a decade-long saga that swept his boss, former U.S. House Majority Leader Tom DeLay, out of Congress and politics altogether. Colyandro, the last individual with … Continue reading →

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