Prosecutors
Houston DA Resigns to Stop Probe, Cites Prescription Drug Impairment
Posted Feb 19, 2008, 06:41 am CST
By Debra Cassens Weiss
Embattled Houston District Attorney Chuck Rosenthal has agreed to resign to stop an investigation into improper use of office computers. His resignation letter says his judgment was impaired by prescription drug use.
"Although I have enjoyed excellent medical and pharmacological treatment, I have come to learn that the particular combination of drugs prescribed for me in the past has caused some impairment in my judgment," Rosenthal wrote. His letter says that because of his resignation, the Texas Attorney General will not proceed with an action to remove him from office.
The resignation came Friday, the same day that a plaintiff in a civil suit who obtained embarrassing e-mails from Rosenthal filed a petition seeking Rosenthal’s removal from office, Texas Lawyer reports. The suit said Rosenthal should be removed on grounds of official misconduct, incompetency or intoxication, the Houston Chronicle reports.
Rosenthal was embroiled in controversy over the e-mails, which showed him making off-color jokes, using racial slurs and writing amorous notes to a former secretary. He still faces a contempt hearing next week that will probe his deletion of more than 2,500 other e-mails requested in the civil suit.
County Attorney Mike Stafford had sought the attorney general inquiry to investigate whether Rosenthal violated the law by using his office computer to work on his re-election campaign, according to the Houston Chronicle.
Rosenthal's resignation letter said release of the e-mails had "brought a lot to bear on my wife and children. I have been trying to restore my family as a unit, but the constant media pressure has made that restoration more difficult."
Comments not appearing after a few seconds? Try emptying your cache ("Temporary Internet files"), making sure Javascript is activated, and refresh this page.