AUSTIN, Texas (AP) _ A Travis County jury continues deliberations in the record-tampering and perjury trial of a South Texas lawmaker accused of selling access to the legislature.
Jurors began deliberating the fate of state Rep. Kino Flores, 52, on Tuesday in Austin. Flores is charged with nine counts of tampering with a government record and two counts of perjury. He faces up to two years in prison if convicted.
Travis County prosecutor Gregg Cox told the jury during closing arguments that Flores, who isn’t seeking re-election, “was selling his influence.”
Attorneys for Flores, who has served in the Legislature since 1996, denied allegations of bribery and ridiculed what they described as a thin criminal case hinging on clerical errors in required financial filings with the Texas Ethics Commission.
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