A motion has been granted to quash indictments against District Clerk Edith Wagner Harrison for misapplication of fiduciary property over $30,000 but less than $150,000.
Visiting Judge James E. Morgan on Monday notified defense attorneys and prosecutors from the Lampasas County/District Attorney’s Office that he was entering an order of dismissal for indictments in each case against Harrison.
Cheyenne Minick, attorney at law with the Barnhill Law Firm that is representing Harrison, told the Dispatch Record: “We feel grateful for the judge’s ruling.”
Lampasas County/District Attorney Jessica Guy issued a statement Wednesday that said: “To be clear, the hearing was not about whether Mrs. Harrison is guilty or not. The hearing was about the statute that governs misapplication of fiduciary property.”
Harrison offered her comments to the Dispatch Record.
“I never did anything wrong; I followed the statutes,” she said.
Added Harrison: “I was very relieved that he [Morgan] took everything into consideration and that there was not a case there.”
The district clerk said she identifies with President Donald Trump who has long said he was the target of expensive and time-consuming lawfare engineered by his political opponents who did not want him to be elected president.
“It’s the same thing; it’s the same thing,” Harrison said. “It’s a Trump deal. I was wrongly charged. They [people in other Lampasas County offices] don’t want me in office because I ask too many questions.
“I’ve been told to stop asking questions, but I will continue to ask questions for the benefit of people in Lampasas County.”
During a Jan. 22 pretrial hearing in 27th District Court here, Morgan heard from both Guy and defense attorney Bryon Barnhill.
At the time, the senior visiting judge from Meridian said he wanted to review the matter further before he issued a ruling.
No one knew exactly when Morgan might make a decision on the motion to quash, but his announcement came just four days later.
A Lampasas County grand jury indicted Harrison in September on two third-degree felony charges. The indictments center around what she did with checks for two individuals – then minors – as part of a financial settlement in a civil case. That case involved a vehicle crash Jan. 21, 2023, in the county.
The checks totaled more than $100,000, Barnhill told a reporter.
In comments after the hearing, John Greenwood – an investigator with the county attorney’s office – said the insurance settlement amount awarded to each of the minors was over $30,000 but less than $150,000.
Harrison had been instructed by the court to place the minors’ settlement checks in an interest-bearing account, but she failed to do so.
Barnhill said Harrison – upon receipt of the settlement checks – immediately deposited the funds into an account the county has with a local bank.
Harrison’s lead defense counsel told the judge the accounts are federally insured, there was no possibility the principal was at substantial risk of loss, and no amount of the interest lost rises to a felony level.
Guy, however, indicated this may not be the end of the case after the dismissal by the judge.
“The state respectfully disagrees with his interpretation of the law and intends to appeal the court’s ruling in hopes that the Third Court of Appeals can provide guidance on the statute.”
Said Minick: “The state has given notice of appeal, and we look forward to our next day in court.”
Harrison’s second term of office ends in December of this year. She is now in a three-person race for the Republican nomination for county judge. David Millican, an insurance company owner, and Jo Ann San Miguel, a local attorney, also are seeking the GOP nod.
Voters will make their decision in the March 3 Republican primary.