Judge Blocks Texas AG's Bid to Access Criminal Prosecution Files

A Democratic state district judge in Travis County has temporarily denied Republican Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton's attempt to force district attorneys to grant him access to criminal prosecution files.

District Judge Catherine Mauzy called the attorney general's March order "troubling at best," according to Bloomberg Law, which first reported the ruling Monday. Mauzy granted a temporary restraining order in the lawsuit brought by seven counties, including Travis and Bexar, which have called the reporting requirements unnecessarily onerous and alleged they threaten to compromise sensitive case information.

Paxton, the state's top lawyer since 2015, issued the rule to require county and district attorneys in counties with populations greater than 400,000 to provide his office with "access to detailed report information upon request" regarding criminal matters. Under the Texas Constitution, the attorney general's office deals mostly with civil matters but may assist local prosecutors upon their request.

Bexar County District Attorney Joe Gonzales praised Mauzy's ruling, saying in a statement Tuesday that it affirms his belief that Paxton's proposed rule "is a clear overreach of authority and a constitutional violation of the separation of powers doctrine."

"This ruling ensures that our collective offices will continue to focus on public safety instead of wasting valuable time preparing unnecessary reports," he said. "It also avoids a huge expense to our taxpayers, and helps preserve prosecutorial discretion, which is a cornerstone of our criminal justice system."

Democratic Travis County District Attorney José Garza did not respond Tuesday to an email seeking comment.

Travis County Attorney Delia Garza, a Democrat who is not related to the DA, in a statement called the judge's order a victory, albeit a temporary one.

"We are grateful that the rule of law prevailed in (Monday's) hearing and we can now fully focus our resources on the public safety of this community instead of politically motivated attacks on prosecutorial independence and discretion ... for now," she said.

When Paxton announced the rule March 31, his office said the information sought would "assist citizens in determining whether their local elected officials are inadequately prosecuting" lawbreakers or "releasing dangerous criminals back into the community" thereby threatening public safety.

"District and County Attorneys have a duty to protect the communities they serve by upholding the law and vigorously prosecuting dangerous criminals," Paxton said in a news release at the time. "In many major counties, the people responsible for safeguarding millions of Texans have instead endangered lives by refusing to prosecute criminals and allowing violent offenders to terrorize law-abiding Texans. This rule will enable citizens to hold rogue DAs accountable."

The rule would apply to 13 counties: Travis, Williamson, Harris, Dallas, Tarrant, Bexar, Collin, Denton, Fort Bend, Hidalgo, El Paso, Montgomery and Cameron.

In the lawsuit filed last month, the local prosecutors challenged the legality of Paxton's move.

The action "invades the separation of powers between the Executive, Legislative and Judicial Branches of Texas government and violate(s) citizens’ rights to privacy protected by multiple state and federal statutes," the suit alleged.

Williamson County District Attorney Shawn Dick, a Republican, is part of a separate but related legal action against Paxton's rule. He told Statesman last month that Paxton's proposal was an "unconstitutional overreach."

Paxton's office did not respond to a message inquiring whether he planned to appeal Mauzy's order.