Ken Paxton's fraud trial will get underway in April after a Harris County judge refused to drop felony fraud charges during his court appearance in Houston on Friday.
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton was seeking to get felony fraud charges against him dismissed. He argued the long delay in getting him into court violated his constitutional right to a speedy trial, but the judge rejected the argument allowing the trial to move forward.
He was indicted 9 years ago for securities fraud, accused of courting investors for a Collin County tech company without disclosing that he was on the payroll. He's also accused of funneling clients to a friend’s investment firm without registering with state regulators.
A court date has been set for April 15. Paxton is charged with two counts of felony securities fraud and one count of failing to register with state securities regulators. If convicted he faces up to 99 years behind bars.