From corruption to murder trials, Ken Paxton impeachment trial lawyers have worked high-profile cases

As suspended Attorney General Ken Paxton's impeachment trial continues in the Texas Senate, legal titans in the prosecution and defense teams are dueling as they lay out their cases on whether Paxton should be removed from office.

The trial has state senators effectively serving as jurors, leaving them to decide if Paxton is guilty of any of the 16 impeachment charges levied against him. If Paxton is found guilty on any one charge, he'll be removed from office. Senators then can take a vote to bar Paxton from ever holding elected office in Texas.

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The four primary lawyers on the case — Tony Buzbee and Dan Cogdell for the defense, and Rusty Hardin and Dick DeGuerin as prosecutors — have been involved in several high-profile cases in Texas. Here's a look at a few of those past civil and criminal proceedings:

Tony Buzbee and Rusty Hardin both litigated Deshaun Watson sexual assault case

In 2021, then-Houston Texans quarterback Deshaun Watson was sued by more than two dozen massage therapists for sexual assault and harassment. Watson denied any wrongdoing, and his lawyer, Hardin, said the women were lying and out for money, and there were “sometimes consensual encounters."

But Buzbee, a lawyer for the plaintiffs, disputed that.

"Deshaun Watson has denied he acted intentionally; we believe strongly that we will prove he did," Buzbee said.

Ultimately, Buzbee's side prevailed with settlements being reached with nearly all the plaintiffs. In a recent court filing, the lawyer said Watson’s representatives offered each woman $100,000 to settle, but the terms of the settlements are not publicly known.

Meanwhile, Watson didn't play for Houston in the 2021 season. Instead, he faced a $5 million fine that was used as part of the settlement and a multigame NFL suspension. He then signed a five-year, $230 million contract with the Cleveland Browns. At the time, it was one of the biggest contracts in league history.

Rusty Hardin won Victoria Osteen, wife of pastor Joel Osteen, case involving alleged assault of flight attendant

In 2005, a flight attendant alleged that Victoria Osteen, the wife of Houston megachurch Lakewood Church pastor Joel Osteen, hit her and others after a spill occurred onboard the plane. Osteen and her husband denied the assault took place.

The case went to trial in 2008. Sharon Brown was seeking $405,000 in damages, but the jury decided that what happened on the plane was not an attack but a disagreement between a passenger and one or more flight attendants.

Rick Perry has corruption charge dismissed with Tony Buzbee on defense team

Toward the end of Rick Perry's third and final term as Texas governor, he was indicted by a Travis County grand jury in 2014 over accusations that he abused the power of his office.

The jury found that in 2013, Perry threatened to veto $7.5 million in state funding for the Public Integrity Unit of the Travis County district attorney’s office on the condition that Rosemary Lehmberg, a Democratic district attorney, step down after her drunken driving conviction. She refused to resign, and Perry carried out his veto threat.

Perry pleaded not guilty, and, after he had already left the governor's office, his indictment was dismissed. Buzbee was the lead lawyer on Perry's defense team.

Robert Durst beats murder charge after Dick DeGuerin's defense; 'Jinx' documentary results in suspected serial killer indicted

Robert Durst was arrested in Galveston in 2001 in the death of his neighbor, Morris Black. In 2003, Dick DeGuerin defended him in court, claiming self-defense after a struggle over a pistol.

Durst admitted during the trial that he dismembered Morris, but a lack of evidence via forensics of Morris' body contributed the jury's unanimous decision to acquit Durst that year.

Fast forward to 2015, when a documentary titled "The Jinx" was released on HBO. Durst was interviewed for the program and was heard speaking on a live microphone during a bathroom break about his role in his wife Kathleen McCormack's disappearance and longtime friend Susan Berman's killing.

That piece of evidence was central to Durst being arrested in 2015 for Berman's murder and facing trial in 2020 with DeGuerin again as his lawyer. He was convicted by a jury in 2021 and sentenced to life in prison. Months later, he died of cardiac arrest after a lengthy battle with cancer and other health issues.

In aftermath of federal siege on Waco sect, Dan Cogdell helped acquit former Branch Davidian leader Clive Doyle

In 1993, federal agents served a warrant at a religious sect's compound near Waco that was believed to be storing and modifying illegal weapons and explosives. The ensuing siege, which spanned 51 days, resulted in the deaths of 76 people, including four federal agents, 28 children and the leader of the Branch Davidian sect, David Koresh.

Among the survivors was Clive Doyle, who faced federal murder conspiracy charges with several other members of the group. With Dan Cogdell as his lawyer, Doyle and two other defendants were acquitted on all counts.

Doyle died in 2022 after a battle with pancreatic cancer.

This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Tony Buzbee, Rusty Hardin: Famous Paxton impeachment trial lawyer cases