Prosecutors are expected to ask for a continuance Tuesday in former Fort Bend County Judge KP George’s misdemeanor social media hoax trial, hoping to postpone the matter until after George is sentenced June 16 in a separate felony money laundering case.
Jury selection was expected to begin at 9 a.m. May 5 in County Court at Law Judge Teana Watson’s courtroom and the matter remains on the docket, but a spokesman for the DA’s office said Monday there will be no trial.
“Ideally, [we’ll] continue it past the felony sentencing date,” said Wesley Wittig, an assistant DA and spokesman for the office, adding that George’s attorney Jared Woodfill has not returned calls, “so it’s more challenging to reach a resolution.”
The DA’s office has previously suggested that it could drop the misdemeanor charges since George has already been convicted of the more severe money laundering crime, for which he faces up to 10 years in prison.
The former county judge, who was removed from office last month, has maintained his innocence in both cases. Woodfill did not respond to requests for comment Monday from the Houston Press.
The misdemeanor identity misrepresentation charge stems from claims that George schemed with a former staffer to create fake social media accounts under the name Antonio Scalywag to win favor with voters. The former staffer, Taral Patal, is on the witness list and was expected to testify against George.
George was convicted on March 20 of stealing from campaign donors to cover personal expenses and tampering with financial documents to cover his tracks. Specifically, George was found guilty of taking more than $46,000 out of his campaign funds to buy a new home and pay property taxes, among other things.
Woodfill has said that George repaid himself for personal loans he made to his re-election campaign, a practice the lawyer says is legal and common. The defense attorney also has alleged that District Attorney Brian Middleton is pursuing a political vendetta, a claim the DA has refuted.
George has opted for District Judge Maggie Jaramillo, a Republican seeking re-election in November, to decide his punishment next month in the money laundering case, rather than the jury that convicted him.
