US mayor resigns after 'accidentally' sending masturbation video to attorney
What's the story
Tom Ross has resigned as mayor of Minot, North Dakota, after texting a video of himself masturbating on his lunch break to a city attorney in January. Although he claimed the video was sent by accident, he took full responsibility for the incident and decided to resign from his position. "I do take responsibility for this mistake. I tried to immediately correct it and was unable," he said in a statement to KFYR-TV.
Official response
Ross's statement on his resignation
He said his decision to resign was in keeping with "all my work on behalf of the City of Minot." City Attorney Stefanie Stalheim said she had spoken to Ross about a cop's suicide right before receiving the graphic video. Stalheim said Ross told her he had recorded it during his lunch break for his girlfriend, and accidentally sent it to her as his girlfriend's name also started with 'C.'
Details of the case
He asked her to delete the video
He also asked her to delete the video and keep the matter between them. Two weeks after the incident, Stalheim filed an official harassment complaint against Ross, asking for a formal apology and his resignation. The investigation found that Ross had "directly caused Stalheim's inability to work in an environment free from unreasonable sexual harassment and created an offensive work environment."
Future
What happens next
Minot citizens will now have 15 days to petition for a special election. If no such petition is filed, the Minot City Council will pick a mayor from within the governing body. Minot, North Dakota's fourth-largest city, is only 50 miles from the Canadian border and has a population of 47,000 people.