Utah Attorney General John Swallow has submitted his letter of resignation to Governor Gary Herbert and will leave his office on December 3rd.
John Swallow said he decided to resign from office because the pressure on his family from the several ongoing investigations into his conduct had just become too strong. He said he’s spent nearly $300 thousand of his own money in his defense and that he couldn’t see an end in sight.
“If we were to wait two or three more months, would things improve or would things get worse," he said. "Facing another million and a half or two million dollars in budget from the house, we concluded that two months from now all we would do is further drain our resources.”
Swallow also criticized the work of the House Investigative committee. He said he believes the investigation was a calculated move to force him from office.
“And I’m deeply disappointed that what I believe is the agenda of political enemies and people with a personal agenda to hurt me or to help themselves at my expense has led to the resignation of the Attorney General duly elected by the people in the fall of 2012,” Swallow said.
But House Investigative Committee Chair Jim Dunnigan says there’s been no malice involved with any of the committee’s actions.
“Some or much of the cost, of the expense of the committee’s work, was because we wanted to be even handed and fair and thorough,” Dunnigan says.
Dunnigan says the committee will follow through with the charge the House gave them, which is to report on the facts and recommend legislation. Governor Gary Herbert will appoint an interim Attorney General who will serve until a special election can be held in November 2014.
