“A pattern of deceit” indeed.
Best mugshot ever
Attorney General Ken Paxton’s role in promoting Frederick “Fritz” Mowery’s investment firm helps prove a pattern of deceiving clients and covering up financial troubles, the Texas State Securities Board said Friday.
Last month, two judges assigned to help the board decide whether to take away Mowery’s ability to advise Texans on investment opportunities said while Mowery did deceive clients and securities board staff, his state registration should not be revoked.
In a 62-page response to the judges’ recommendation filed Friday, board staff disagreed, saying Mowery repeatedly “acted with intent to deceive clients and the public” by handing over false documents to state investigators and misleading his clients by lying about a past bankruptcy, among other things.
Paxton’s role in Mowery’s firm helped prove this pattern of deceit, the filing added.
[…]
This pattern caused the board to question whether any of Mowery’s alleged oversights were truly unintentional, the filing adds. Mowery had told staff, in his attempts to retain his registration, that he did not realize he had failed to disclose an earlier bankruptcy to potential clients until he was being investigated by the agency.
“These facts fit a pattern common to Respondents and their disclosure practices. As soon as there is ‘heat’ around an issue, suddenly the necessary disclosure is made,” the board’s filing states.
“Given this pattern, the (judges) should not assume that the misrepresentation about the bankruptcy was an innocent oversight. The timing and Mowery’s pattern of conduct would suggest otherwise.”
See here, here, and here for the background. As I said before, I think Mowery’s punishment needs to include being put out of business, so I agree with the Securities Board. Everyone who voted for Ken Paxton needs to read those quoted bits. You want a Republican Attorney General, fine, that’s your choice. Do you really want someone who is deliberately and habitually this dishonest in his business dealings, especially with clients who are friends and colleagues? Do you really want to go to the mats for someone who is being propped up by wealthy interests who care more about their own access to power than anything else? You tell me. Mowery can respond to this response, and then the judges may alter their recommendations or not as they see fit. I’ll keep an eye on it.
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