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The embattled Mayor of San Diego Bob Filner is set to resign after more than a dozen women accused him of sexual harassment, reports NBC San Diego.
Here’s what you need to know.
1. Filner Has Agreed To Resign
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#BREAKING: Embattled San Diego Mayor Bob Filner resigns amid sexual harassment scandal
— NBC Los Angeles (@NBCLA) August 22, 2013
Filner is reported to have agreed to resign after meeting with city officials since his return to San Diego from a two-week therapy stint. After three days of negotiations in a downtown San Diego office, officials finally came to an agreement on the situation.
The now former-mayor was seen leaving city hall with packing boxes on Wednesday night, according to NBC. This comes just a day after the democratic party began publicly pressuring him to resign.
2. 18 Women Have Reported Sexual Harassment Claims Against Fulner
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18 women have come forward since July 10 claiming varying degrees of sexual harassment by the mayor, including former employees and an Iraqi war veteran. The harassment acts include instances of intimidation, inappropriate touching, grabbing and conversation.
NBC has a pretty conclusive timeline of the events leading up to today. You can check that out here.
3. Filner Originally Refused To Resign
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Filner previously refused to resign but agreed to go to therapy as he admitted his problems with “intimidating” and “disrespecting” women. On July 26, Filner’s office held a press conference announcing that he will enter a two-week treatment program for “an undisclosed disorder or illness.”
“It is simply not acceptable for me to try and explain away my conduct as the product of standards of a different generation,” Filner said.
4. Filner Is Also Under Investigation for Inside Deals With City Developers
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He is also under investigation for payment deals with developers in the city. According to NBC, Filner is accused of dealing with “pay to play” schemes with local developers. He claimed to be returning a $100,000 “gift,” according to 10News, because he did not know it was meant as a quid pro quo. The money from Sunroad Enterprises was in exchange for the rights to public land so that the company could complete a project in an area called Kearney Mesa.
5. Todd Gloria Will Be The Interim Mayor
City Council President Todd Gloria would take up the mantle of mayor in the interim. Gloria has been on the city council for multiple terms, representing District Three. He is known for his work in creating “sexy” smooth streets, led the way for San Diego’s first permanent year-round homeless service center, was a leading advocate for transportation options (including a stronger public transit system) and pedestrian and bicycle projects, and authored Proposition C, which updated the City’s veterans hiring policy.
NBC reports that there could be one preliminary election in the next 60-90 days.