Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton makes deal to end securities fraud charges weeks before trial

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton on Tuesday agreed to pay nearly $300,000 in restitution under a deal to end criminal securities fraud charges that have shadowed the Republican for nearly a decade.

The announcement by special prosecutors in a Houston courtroom came less than three weeks before Paxton was set to stand trial on felony charges that could have led to a prison sentence. It was the closest Paxton — who was indicted in 2015 — has ever come to trial over accusations that he duped investors in a tech startup near Dallas.

Under the 18-month pre-trial agreement, the special prosecutors would drop three felony counts against Paxton, while he must pay full restitution to victims, and complete 100 hours of community service and 15 hours of legal ethics education.

Paxton was in the courtroom but made no comment other than affirming to state District Judge Andrea Beall that his signature was on the agreement.

If he had been convicted, Paxton could have been sentenced to life in prison. Paxton’s attorneys emphasized in a statement Tuesday that he made no admission of guilt under the agreement.