Live: Day 6 impeachment witnesses testify Ken Paxton handed his AG office to Nate Paul

Hours of witness testimony during Day 6 of suspended Attorney General Ken Paxton's impeachment trial came to close shortly after 7 p.m., ending a day in which former office employees, attorneys sought by Paxton to help in an investigation of law enforcement and the CEO of the company that expected to foreclose on Nate Paul, a former real estate developer and Paxton campaign donor, continued to make the case that Paxton handed the keys of his office to Paul.

Closing the day, Darren McCarty, former deputy attorney general for civil litigation for the attorney general's office, testified that he was surprised Paxton showed such an interest in lawsuit with the Mitte Foundation, which involved Paul.

"We are weaponizing the criminal process to aid a civil litigant, and that is a big no no," McCarty testified about the lawsuit that Paxton and Paul harped on at the sacrifice of other litigation in the attorney general's office.

His testimony followed that of Kendall Garrison, president and chief executive officer of Amplify Credit Union, who said a late night opinion letter that mandated a pause of foreclosures came as three of Paul's properties were coming into foreclosure.

"This was highly unusual," Garrison said. "And I am in my 44th year of banking and this is the first time I've seen something of this nature."

Earlier in the day, Brandon Cammack, who Paxton hired to investigate Nate Paul's corruption allegations, said he was excited to be asked to help Paxton with the investigation.

However, that feeling shifted as he received a cease and desist from attorney general's office deputies in realtion to subpoenas he'd issued in response to Paul's complaint.

Cammack testified that during a meeting at a Starbucks attended by Paxton, Paxton's new first assistant at the time, Brent Webster, said his contract to serve as a special prosecutor was not valid and that he would not be paid his $14,000 fee. "I was insulted," Cammack said.

The trial, which ended abruptly without any word from presiding officer, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, is anticipated to begin at 9 a.m. Wednesday, although Patrick did not clarify at day's end.

Dick DeGuerin, attorney for the House managers, said while leaving the Senate chamber his side has around six hours remaining on the clock. It is unclear how much time Paxton's team has to present evidence after starting the day with over 12 hours on the clock, and splitting the nine hour session with House prosecutors. Each side had a total of 24 hours at the outset of the trial and will have an additional hour for closing arguments.

Details of Tuesday's action can be found in the live blog below:

'We are weaponizing the criminal process'

In the final testimony of Tuesday's trial session, Darren McCarty, former deputy attorney general for civil litigation for the attorney general's office, thought it was unusual the amount of interest suspended Attorney General Ken Paxton showed in a lawsuit involving the Mitte Foundation and Nate Paul.

"General Paxton wanted to be kept abreast of any developments in the Mitte Foundation lawsuit," McCarty said as he testified late in the afternoon Tuesday.

McCarty said he and others involved with the lawsuit were being pushed by Paul in addition to Paxton's interest in the lawsuit.

"Vigorously complaining in really sort of a demeaning fashion about our work in the Mitte Foundation lawsuit and demanding we do more in the lawsuit," McCarty said of Paul's communications with the office. "Sort of taking a tone of directing us."

Even being expected to respond to a litany of emails from Paul, which McCarty called "wholly inappropriate," was something that surprised McCarty.

"We are making decisions about what is in the public interest in the charity, not somebody who's working against the charity in a lawsuit," McCarty said.

The lawsuit in question, in which Paul was accused of fraud, stoked the ire of Paxton, who expressed frustration toward the Mitte Foundation and even offered to personally argue the case in Travis County District Court.

McCarty said he talked Paxton out of showing up in court.

"What I thought about it was that it was a terrible thing for him to do," McCarty testified. "For him to make an appearance in that type of hearing sends a very odd message."

A $10.5 million settlement for Paul to buy out the foundation's interest in Paul's business, World Class Holdings, ultimately failed as the payment was never made, breaching the settlement, McCarty testified

McCarty called the office's involvement in the Mitte lawsuit unethical, against statute and possibly corrupt, expressing concerns of how Paxton characterized the foundation's complaint as "overly zealous" and "wasteful."

"We are weaponizing the criminal process to aid a civil litigant, and that is a big no no," McCarty testified.

"We were not helping," he said.

In cross examination, Paxton's attorney Tony Buzbee, railed against McCarty, and other whistleblowers, for hiring legal counsel and to this point not paying for the service. He also went through a litany of charges levied against Paxton, to which McCarty had limited information and knowledge.

Buzbee tried to paint Paxton as a cool customer, not an angry conservative ideologue that barked orders. McCarty declined to agree with that description.

"I believe that it had been turned over by Attorney General Ken Paxton to a private citizen to do his bidding," McCarty said of the attorney general's office. "And it was acting against the interests of the state of Texas."

A midnight letter

Kendall Garrison, president and chief executive officer of Amplify Credit Union, testified Tuesday afternoon about his bank's relationship with Nate Paul, an Austin real estate developer and Paxton campaign donor, which held a number of loans with Garrison's company.

Garrison's testimony largely focused on a "midnight letter" issued by Paxton's office that put a moratorium on foreclosure sales in Texas as three of Paul's properties were set for foreclosure.

Previously, Garrison said, the bank had been in communication with Paul's team about the foreclosure and possible avenues to avoid the action.

"We had issued a demand letter, and as much as those loans were delinquent, and were working their way toward foreclosure," Garrison testified.

Then, a much discussed letter which led to Paxton's impeachment trial came into play. The opinion was requested by Sen. Bryan Hughes, R-Mineola, a juror on the case.

The opinion was issued hours before foreclosure sales were set for the following morning.

"This was highly unusual," Garrison said. "And I am in my 44th year of banking and this is the first time I've seen something of this nature."

"We had no choice other than to pull those foreclosure filings," he continued.

In cross examination from Paxton's attorney, Mitch Little, the defense walked through records related to the properties in question, confirming that Garrison's bank did not lose money on any of the deals impacted by the midnight ruling.

Little also argued that the unprecedented late night ruling came in an unprecedented time, during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. Little argued that other guidance through the federal CARES Act put a moratorium on foreclosures and eviction.

"What was surprising about this?," Little asked about the opinion letter. Garrison responded that it was the timing of its release.

When asked by House prosecuting attorney Erin Epley as to who benefitted from Paxton's late night notice, pausing foreclosure sales in Texas, Garrison said it was Paul.

"Nate Paul and the World Class entities." Garrison testified.

'Stuff hit the fan'

Beginning at the start of October of 2020, Brandon Cammack, an outside lawyer hired by Paxton to investigate a search warrant that Nate Paul says was altered to his detriment, received the first of two letters from high ranking deputies in the attorney general's office asking him to stop his investigation.

That came as a big surprise to Cammack, he said Tuesday afternoon shortly before he concluded his testimony, reflecting on his regular communication with others in the attorney general's office during the period he was working to fulfill a request that deputies in Paxton's office did not want to touch.

"I just felt like the rug had been pulled out from under me, it just seemed like it came out of nowhere," Cammack testified.

In responding to questions from Paxton's attorney, Dan Cogdell, Cammack confirmed that he felt he was handling a legitimate request to investigate investigators, not conducting a search that was born out a conspiracy theory that former attorney general's office deputies and other witnesses have testified to earlier in Paxton's impeachment trial.

"At least in your mind Mr. Cammack, they were well aware of who you were and what you were doing, right?," Cogdell asked, clarifying to Cammack's confirmation that Paxton had not asked him to conceal, hide or do anything illegal through the roughly month-long period in handling Paul's request.

"I was not hiding," Cammack said.

Cammack said following the letters from Paxton's former first assistant, Jeff Mateer, and Mark Penley, a former criminal justice deputy in the office, he was caught by the publicity of the situation as eight employees from the office had already approached the FBI about Paxton and Paul's conduct.

"There were a lot of articles written, and I read a couple of them, and then chose just to put that out of my scope of view and to just move on with my life," Cammack said.

Despite Cammack's disappointment in how the situation ended, which saw him let go from the position in a brief meeting with Paxton at a Starbucks, Cogdell's take away was that Cammack was not pressured by Paxton to do anything illegal.

Despite the unfair treatment, which Cogdell apologized to Cammack for during their exchange focused on when "stuff hit the fan" related to the investigation's end in early October, Cammack viewed the situation in its aftermath as legitimate even though he was never paid.

"Zero dollars," Cammack said of the $14,000 he was owed by the attorney general's office but was never paid. "I haven't received any benefit from any of this."

Briefly taking the stand, Joe Brown, a former U.S. District Attorney of the Eastern District of Texas, said he was also approached by Paxton's office to conduct the job Cammack ultimately received.

After hearing Paul's complaint that the search warrant for his home and office was altered, possibly part of conspiracy involving multiple law enforcement agencies at the state and federal level,

"Red flags are going off," Brown recalled of the accusation.

Brown was ultimately not contacted for the job and the discussion fizzled as Paxton's office utilized Cammack's services.

Cammack took direction from Wynne, Paul's attorney, felt 'insulted' when Paxton said his contract was invalid

Brandon Cammack, who Paxton hired to investigate Nate Paul's corruption allegations, testified Tuesday afternoon that he often acted at the behest and direction of Paul's attorney, Michael Wynne, exposing what prosecutors say was a unique and problematic relationship.

He also said that he routinely briefed Paxton about all the steps he took during the investigation.

Cammack issued 30-40 subpoenas — all based on names Wynne provided.

Cammack also described how when he began the work of personally delivering subpoenas to banks and other financial institutions, Wynne insisted on accompanying him.

"I said, 'You don't really need to do that. I don't think it is appropriate. He said I am Nate Paul's lawyer, and it is important for me to be there,'" Cammack said.

"I felt a little pressure to say 'OK,' and he went along with me. I wanted to do a good job, and I trusted Michael," Cammack said.

House prosecutor Rusty Hardin said that it is potentially illegal for the attorney of a complainant to accompany a special prosecutor in serving subpoenas and participate in a case at that level.

At one point, Cammack visited the widower of a federal clerk who had died after Nate Paul suggested she died under suspicious circumstances.

Cammack also revealed how Paxton and Wynne seemed to be working collaboratively, including a description of a time when he was summoned to a meeting at Paul's home.

When he walked in, Paxton was there wearing running shoes and athletic shorts.

Days later, Cammack said he was unceremoniously terminated from the contract by Paxton's new first assistant, Brent Webster.

During a meeting at a Starbucks attended by Paxton, Webster said that the contract to serve as a special prosecutor was not valid and that he would not be paid his $14,000 fee. "I was insulted," he said.

Cammack begins a probe into Paul's claims, sets up new phone solely for Paxton

Attorney Brandon Cammack remembers meeting Michael Wynne, an attorney for Austin real estate developer and Paxton campaign donor Nate Paul, through the Houston Bar Association and Houston Rotary Club, saying they became acquaintances.

Later in 2020, Wynne informed Cammack that suspended Attorney General Ken Paxton wanted to contact him about a potential investigation, Cammack testified to start Day 6 of Paxton's impeachment trial, which started about an hour late at 10 a.m. after House and defense attorneys worked through some logistical issues.

Before attending a meeting with Paxton in his Austin office in late August of 2020, Cammack met with Paul and Wynne to discuss the base accusation for Cammack's hire: that a federal search warrant had been altered as part of an unlawful search of Paul's home and business.

“I was convinced by what I was shown,” Cammack recollected of Paul’s search warrant presentation. "If what he's showing me on how the search warrant was altered is true, this is a big deal."

During that meeting as he was introduced to Paul, Cammack testified that he remembered Paul as speaking with conviction and that he came across as energetic with an aggressive attitude.

“Nate Paul did most of the talking, and it was just a lot of information given to me in a short time period,” Cammack testified, saying the meeting was like "drinking from a firehose."

Shortly after, Cammack met with Paxton, who expressed his desire to see the investigation conducted despite his office deputies' unwillingness to approach the matter.

“He made a comment that you need to have some guts to work on a case like this and I was fired up about the opportunity to do it," Cammack said of Paxton and his excitement to help the attorney general's office.

Cammack went ahead with his new charge, setting up a new cell phone specifically for conversations with Paxton and sought badges and credentials for official documentation from the office as they would be necessary as he issued subpoenas and conducted work on behalf of the attorney general, Cammack testified.

"That way, I knew when that phone rang, that was Mr. Paxton calling," saying that Paxton used two cell phones, not issued by his office, to contact him.

As he continued looking into the matter, suggesting to Paxton that they conduct a grand jury to gain information about Paul's claim, which Paxton agreed to, Cammack felt that others in the office had no interest and that the case was nearly a pet project for Paxton.

“I'd say, you know, kind of just like it was Mr. Paxton’s own deal that he was focused on,” Cammack said, referencing the disinterest in the case from Paxton's former first assistant Jeff Mateer.

Cammack also had issue receiving credentials for his new post asking multiple times for a badge, never receiving one.

"I think I asked probably four or five times over the course of this three and a half week period when this all happened," Cammack testified. "I knew I would need it, when it came to issuing subpoenas and things like that."

As he looked into the original claim, Cammack was handed another investigative thread, also tied to Paul, in which he was asked to look into potential mortgage fraud, tied to a claim that lenders were wrongfully foreclosing on Paul's properties and trying to sell at auction.

Cammack will continue his testimony following a lunch break that will end at 1 p.m., returning to take questions from prosecutor Rusty Hardin. Cross examination from Paxton's team has not yet occurred.

Paxton's impeachment trial set to start for Day 6

In a day filled with testimony about the unusual hiring of outside counsel, which suspended Attorney General Ken Paxton is said to have put in place to investigate federal and state authorities conducting a probe into Nate Paul, an Austin real estate developer and campaign donor, and the impact on moral Paxton's extramarital affair had on his office, Day 6 of Paxton's impeachment trial is about to get underway.

Starting at 9 a.m., Tuesday's session will continue in previous fashion as more witnesses are expected to testify on the relationship between Paxton and Paul, which witness have so far described as potentially corrupt, confusing at times and overall inappropriate for the office.

Much of those concerns stem from Paxton's unrelenting desire to see Paul's claim that federal authorities had altered a search warrant and conducted an illegal raid of his home and business investigated by deputies in his office and other prosecutors, former employees in the office and former Travis County prosecutors testified Monday.

"I thought 'Why is is the attorney general involved in this? Why is he wanting me to know about this? This is not a state matter from what I can tell,'" said Mark Penley, a former criminal justice deputy in the attorney general's office.

"Mr. Paul acted like we didn't understand who the real boss was," Penley said. "It wasn't the attorney general, it was him."

Outside of the whistleblowers, several other high interest witness have been subpoenaed to testify, including Houston lawyer Brandon Cammack, who's named in an impeachment article for issuing nearly 40 subpoenas against Paul's adversaries at Paxton's request; Drew Wicker, a former Paxton confidante who says he overheard a conversation that suggested Paul may have paid for a Paxton home remodel; and Laura Olson, a woman with whom Paxton had an alleged extramarital affair.

Katherine "Missy" Minter Cary, Paxton's former chief of staff, testified about the affair Monday, saying she found out after a woman was speaking about Paxton in public and a conversation with Paxton in which he lied to her about the woman's identity. The affair toll it took on his travel and security personnel on account of long hours and travel to unofficial locations, she testified. After a confrontational meeting in which Cary told Paxton to confess to the affair, high ranking deputies in the office had a meeting in which Paxton and his wife state Sen. Angela Paxton, R-McKinney, addressed the affair.

"My heart broke for her," Cary said of Sen. Paxton, who is mandated to attend the trial without the ability to vote on the outcome, which requires 21 of 30 senators to convict on any of the 16 impeachment charges Paxton faces.

As day six is set to begin, House managers have 9 hours and 19 minutes remaining on the clock to present evidence with Paxton's team sitting with 12 hours and 14 minutes. Each side had a total of 24 hours at the outset of the trial and will have an additional hour for closing arguments.

Patrick in both opening and closing the trial session on Monday told senators, who are sitting as Paxton's jury, and spectators to expect today's proceedings to also run into the evening until around 7 p.m.

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This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Live updates: Day 6 of Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton impeachment