The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals this week refused Attorney General Ken Paxton's last-ditch effort to get felony security charges against him thrown out.

That means the state's top law enforcement official — whose job requires him to uphold the laws and Constitution of the state — likely will be on trial as early as the spring on charges of breaking the law himself.

If there was any question before, it's clear now that Paxton is in for a battle. He could go to prison if convicted on his three charges — two first-degree felonies for security fraud felonies and one third-degree felony for failing to register with the state as an investment adviser representative. The maximum sentence for each first-degree felony charge is 99 years, 10 years for the third-degree felony.

It's imperative that Paxton put the integrity of his office first. If he isn't considering resignation — and all signs indicate he is not — he should at least delegate major prosecutorial decisions to senior assistants.

He owes it to the morale of his legal officers, and to the citizens he represents as he focuses more attention on his defense.

How can he adequately lead a department of lawyers in upholding state laws with the cloud of his own charges hanging over them?

Paxton was indicted in July 2015 in Collin County, accused of duping people into investing in the Servergy technology firm without telling them the company paid him to do so when he was a member of the state House. Paxton maintains his innocence.

Paxton defenders have dismissed these charges as part of a political witch hunt against the staunchly conservative Republican attorney general. But the lead investigative agency was the Texas Rangers; the grand jury that issued the indictment came from conservative Collin County. And it was a Republican-dominated high appeals court that refused to throw out these criminal charges.

As Paxton is almost assuredly headed for a felony fraud trial, we expect him to devote his time and attention preparing for trial. He owes Texans assurances that their needs will be taken care of by others in his office while he does so.