El Paso and Travis counties are suing Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton over new administrative rules that would give his office access to files kept by district and county attorneys – including internal operational records and the private information of law enforcement officers, crime victims and criminal defendants.
“It appears to be a political maneuvering in certain counties,” El Paso County Attorney Christina Sanchez said during a news conference in Travis County Friday. “We’re concerned about state overreach, but also about the financial implications.”
Filed in Travis County state court Friday, the 47-page lawsuit challenges the constitutionality of the rules, argues they invade privacy rights of third parties, and alleges they violate the separation of powers outlined in the state Constitution. Travis and El Paso counties and their respective county and district attorneys are seeking a temporary injunction and hearing, followed by a permanent injunction to stop the implementation of the rules.
Paxton, a Republican, implemented the new mandate “to ensure accountability and promote public safety,” according to a March news release from the AG’s Office. The rules apply to district and county attorneys in only 13 of the state’s 254 counties – most of them Democratic leaning.
“This lawsuit is about protecting confidential information of our most vulnerable population and unconstitutional overreach,” Travis County Attorney Delia Garza said during the news conference. “It’s about keeping our promise to the residents of our jurisdictions and respecting the rule of law.”
The prosecutorial reporting rules – part of the Texas Administrative Code that compiles administrative rules and regulations adopted by state agencies – were introduced by the AG’s office in September and adopted in March. The code already required some quarterly and annual reports from county and district attorneys, although those reports are mostly statistical in nature.
The new reporting mandates are the latest move by the AG’s Office to investigate organizations and governments whose work conflicts with conservative political views and to obtain internal and typically confidential records from them. Paxton has used consumer protection laws in attempts to shut down organizations such as the Annunciation House migrant shelter network and Las Americas Immigrant Advocacy Center, both El Paso-based organizations that provide services to migrants.
Sanchez said that the new rules conflict with the mission of local prosecutors to ensure that the Texas Constitution and state laws are followed by everyone.
“Every minute that local prosecutors take to try and comply with these vague rules takes away valuable staff time and resources from where they are supposed to be, and that’s serving our victims, that is responding to law enforcement questions, that’s working with our law enforcement partners and ensuring that justice is done in each of our individual communities,” Sanchez said.
In a March news release, Paxton said the new rules demand greater transparency to allow citizens to determine whether local officials are “inadequately prosecuting certain categories of crime, releasing dangerous criminals back into the community, engaging in selective prosecution, or otherwise failing to uphold their obligations.”
The lawsuit also challenges that portion of the rules, saying they “undermine the political will of communities” that elect district and county attorneys and creates a process where the AG’s Office investigate and micromanage their prosecutorial strategies and decisions.
The rules also outline consequences such as lawsuits, misconduct allegations and even removal from office for “rogue” district attorneys who violate the enhanced reporting requirements.
They also create an oversight committee comprising AG Office employees appointed by the attorney general that could request additional information from county and district attorneys.
A 55-page supplemental brief submitted by the counties as part of the lawsuit calls the committee “one of the most concerning encroachments” of the rules, stating that the committee could demand that county and district attorneys release materials on ongoing law enforcement investigations and criminal prosecutions.
Sanchez said the new rules also place an “extreme financial burden” on the impacted counties. She cited having to hire personnel for the additional administrative tasks, as well as upgrading and maintaining technology as costs the counties would need to take on under the rules.
“We stand ready to fight this particular rule, we stand ready to respond,” Sanchez said.
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