American Oversight, based in D.C., filed the lawsuit Thursday in the 250th District Court in Travis County. The lawsuit argues that Abbott and Paxton have withheld documents they ought to have released in response to public information requests the group submitted.
Among the documents American Oversight has requested are Abbott’s communications with the National Rifle Association and other gun advocacy groups after a mass shooter killed 21 people, including 19 children, at Robb Elementary in Uvalde on May 24.
In a statement, American Oversight noted that Abbott had canceled his scheduled appearance at the NRA convention in Houston the weekend following the Uvalde massacre, instead sending a prerecorded video address. Abbott's office claimed there were no relevant communications with the NRA at the time, the statement added.
The suit also calls for the release of Paxton’s emails related to rallies in D.C. on Jan. 6, 2021, when supporters of former President Donald Trump stormed the U.S. Capitol and attempted to prevent the certification of the November 2020 presidential election results. Earlier that day, Paxton had delivered a speech at the “Stop the Steal” rally in the nation’s capital."American Oversight is suing to discover just what the governor and attorney general are so intent on hiding and whether they are using personal email addresses and text messages to evade transparency." - Melanie Sloan, American Oversight
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Paxton's office refused to release emails and texts in response to the watchdog's public information request, as it had with several Texas-based news outlets. The Travis County District Attorney's office said in January that Paxton had violated open records laws by refusing to release the documents, but the attorney general defied that order, as reported by Texas Tribune.
“Governor Abbott and Attorney General Paxton have repeatedly withheld records in contravention of Texas law by claiming attorney-client privilege protects an overly broad swath of records,” Melanie Sloan, senior advisor at American Oversight, said in a press release about the suit.
“American Oversight is suing to discover just what the governor and attorney general are so intent on hiding and whether they are using personal email addresses and text messages to evade transparency,” Sloan added in the release.
Thus far, the group said in the statement, they’ve been denied communications for seven different records requests spanning a 15-month period. They have requested work-related emails and text messages from both personal phones and email accounts.
"Paxton has, implausibly, withheld nearly all records responsive to these requests as attorney-client privileged," the group said in a statement.
Other requests include documents of communications between Paxton and Texas Solicitor General Judd Stone, including any messages or emails regarding the U.S. Capitol riot and Paxton’s speech in D.C. that day. (Stone had not yet become solicitor general.)
Neither Abbott’s nor Paxton’s spokespersons responded to the Observer’s request for comment.
