Texas Gov. Rick Perry goes to court to fight abuse-of-power charges

Two days after he addressed a Republican victory party here before cheering crowds, outgoing Gov. Rick Perry, the longest-serving governor in Texas history, made another appearance Thursday — in court.

Perry was indicted in August by a Travis County grand jury on two felony counts of abusing his official capacity and coercing a public servant. This was the first court hearing he has attended, sitting stoically through most of the heated arguments from lawyers.

Perry’s attorneys argued that the case should be quashed on technicalities, including whether its special prosecutor was properly sworn in.

The Republican governor’s attorney, Tony Buzbee, sometimes glared at Michael McCrum, the special prosecutor. Perry watched with little emotion, occasionally looking down at the table in front of him.

Buzbee argued that McCrum should be disqualified: “Game over.”

McCrum countered, “Mr. Perry, through his attorneys, can’t create or invent Texas law that’s not there.”

The charges stem from his veto of state funding for public corruption prosecutors.

After avoiding the main entrance and the media before the hearing, Perry emerged smiling and defended his veto power, which he has been accused of wielding as a political weapon.

“I took an oath as governor to uphold the constitution of Texas. That same constitution upholds the right of any governor to veto,” Perry said, addressing a bank of cameras outside the courtroom, “I stand by my authority, and I would do it again. I stand behind my veto.”

He is the first Texas governor in nearly a century to face criminal charges. He was fingerprinted and had his mug shot taken. Perry has worn the charges like a badge of courage, smiling for his mug shot, joking about the case to conservative crowds. He has traveled to Europe in recent months, held briefings about the Dallas Ebola crisis and celebrated the victory of his successor, Texas Atty. Gen. Greg Abbott.

“I’m able to multitask pretty good,” he said after Thursday’s hearing.

McCrum, a San Antonio lawyer and former federal prosecutor, dismissed allegations by Perry and his “army of lawyers” that he was incorrectly sworn in and that documents concealed, “a red herring” designed “to get the attention of the electorate.”

“The judge won’t fall for it,” McCrum said. “The facts are there to support the charges.”

The judge, a Republican just elected to the state court of criminal appeals, said he plans to rule by Nov. 13.

During the hearing at the district court just blocks from the governor’s mansion, Perry repeatedly whispered with his attorneys and occasionally smiled.

The charges stem from allegations that Perry used his veto power to threaten and then cut funding to Dist. Atty. Rosemary Lehmberg, a Democrat who leads the state’s public corruption unit, pressuring her to resign after her arrest for drunk driving last year. Lehmberg had been caught by sheriff’s deputies with an open vodka bottle in the front of her car in a parking lot, pleaded guilty and served 45 days in jail. She has refused to resign.

She was accustomed to investigating powerful Republican lawmakers, including the 2005 indictment of former U.S. Rep. Tom DeLay for violating campaign finance laws. At the time of Perry’s veto last year, the unit had been investigating the Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas, one of Perry’s signature state agencies accused of mismanagement and corruption.

The criminal investigation into Perry began when a nonprofit government watchdog group, Texans for Public Justice, filed a complaint last June. The judge appointed the special prosecutor and the grand jury began hearing the case in April. Perry did not testify before the grand jury.

The charge of abuse of official capacity carries a prison sentence of five to 99 years; the charge of coercion of a public servant carries a two- to 10-year prison sentence.