Texas Attorney General ran away when served with court papers over abortion rights lawsuit, affidavit says
Rights groups are suing Ken Paxton over stringent new anti-abortion laws, and the attorney general went to great lengths to avoid a subpoena.
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- An official attempted to serve Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton with a subpoena.
- But Paxton fled his home in his wife's truck to avoid being served, an affidavit says.
- The process server said he shouted out but Paxton ignored him and continued to flee.
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton fled his home when faced with a subpoena following a lawsuit by abortion rights groups, according to an affidavit by the man trying to serve it.
According to the affidavit, first obtained by the Texas Tribune, Paxton escaped in a truck driven by his wife, Texas state Sen. Angela Paxton after the process server, Ernesto Martin Herrera, arrived at his home.
The subpoena required Paxton to give evidence Tuesday in a lawsuit filed by several abortion rights groups, who are seeking protections against legal threats made against them for helping women travel to other states to get abortions.
Texas has enacted tough new restrictions on abortion following the Supreme Court's decision to overturn the Roe v. Wade ruling earlier this year.
In his affidavit, Herrera said he parked outside Paxton's address on Monday and saw a man he recognized as Paxton. He approached the front door and saw him turn around and walk away when he saw Herrera.
The door was answered by Sen. Paxton, who said her husband was on the phone and in a "hurry to leave."
Herrera said he had already spotted Paxton inside the house, so he went and waited for an hour.
He then saw Paxton emerging from a garage, but when Herrera called out Paxton's name, he "RAN back inside the house," Herrera said in the affidavit.
Shortly after, Sen. Paxton emerged from the property, got into a black truck parked in front of the house, and opened the passenger side back door, at which point "Mr. Paxton ran from the door inside the garage towards the rear door behind the driver side," said Herrera.
The process server added: "I approached the truck, and loudly called him by his name and stated that I had court documents for him. Mr. Paxton ignored me and kept heading for the truck."
Herrera said he left the subpoena documents by the truck, but the Paxtons sped away "leaving the documents on the ground."
Responding on Twitter to media reports about the incident, Paxton, who is is up for re-election in November's mid-terms, said he fled because he feared for his family over a "stranger lingering outside my home."
—Attorney General Ken Paxton (@KenPaxtonTX) September 27, 2022
He said: "The media wants to drum up another controversy involving my work as Attorney General, so they're attacking me for having the audacity to avoid a stranger lingering outside my home and showing concern about the safety and well-being of my family."