Rusty Hardin Hired for Regent Impeachment Proceedings

By Dorothy Guerrero in Promote & Protect, Special on August 23, 2013 at 4:49 pm | 1 Comment

A Texas House government transparency committee has hired Rusty Hardin, the renowned Houston attorney, to oversee its investigation of UT System Regent Wallace Hall.

Hardin is one of the most prominent civil and criminal attorneys in the country—perhaps best known nationally for defending high-profile figures like Roger Clemens, ’78, and the estate of Texas millionaire J. Howard Marshall against Anna Nicole Smith.

The committee’s investigation into the possible impeachment of Hall began in June after state Rep. Jim Pitts (R-Waxahachie) filed a resolution after months of debate over the regent’s ongoing records requests of UT-Austin. Pitts announced this week that he will not seek re-election.

Hall faces the threat of impeachment for what many legislators perceive as inappropriate scrutiny of UT-Austin and its leadership, notably President Bill Powers. Pitts has argued that Hall falsified his application to be a regent, and that the omissions (since corrected) might be grounds for impeachment.

Hardin, in his role as special counsel to the committee, will assist in preparing articles of impeachment if the committee finds that grounds for impeachment do, in fact, exist.

In a press release about the appointment, Rep. Dan Flynn (R-Canton), the committee’s co-chair said, “The University of Texas System is one of the state’s greatest resources, which is why it is imperative that the System is governed appropriately. Mr. Hardin is a highly respected attorney who will help ensure that our investigation is fair and thorough.”

Rep. Carol Alvarado (D-Houston), co-chair of the committee, said, “The serious nature of this investigation requires the use of a respected, accomplished attorney like Mr. Hardin. I have full confidence that he will carry out his work with integrity and professionalism.”

Hardin is the founder of Rusty Hardin & Associates and served as an assistant district attorney in Houston for more than 15 years. In 1994 he worked under Bob Fiske and Ken Starr in the Independent Counsel’s Office during the Whitewater scandal. Last year, he was appointed special prosecutor in a Williamson County court of inquiry that examined the prosecutorial misconduct in the highly publicized murder trial of Michael Morton in 1987.

Top: Creative Commons photo courtesy Definitive HDR Photography. Hardin photo courtesy Rusty Hardin & Associates.

Tags: board of regents, Carol Alvarado, Dan Flynn, Jim Pitts, Rusty Hardin, texas legislature, ut system, wallace hall