San Francisco Mayor says he'll suspend Mirkarimi as Sheriff
I'm glad he's not waiting.
Mayor says he'll suspend Mirkarimi as sheriff
Rachel Gordon
(03-20) 17:27 PDT San Francisco -- Mayor Ed Lee is suspending Sheriff Ross Mirkarimi from his post, the first step toward removing him from office permanently for official misconduct.
"He has chosen not to resign and now I must act," Lee said in a 5 p.m. news conference today. He said the sheriff's actions "fell below the standard of decency and good faith" needed for public officials.
Mirkarimi pleaded guilty last week to a misdemeanor charge of false imprisonment for an incident involving his wife on New Year's Eve.
Lee named Vicki Hennessy to serve as interim sheriff. Hennessy last ran the Department of Emergency Management after a career in the Sheriff's Department, where she retired as chief deputy.
Lee told Mirkarimi Monday afternoon that he had 24 hours to resign voluntarily, but the embattled sheriff, who was elected in November and sworn in Jan. 8, refused the request and will fight the official misconduct charge.
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2012/03/20/MNKP1NNI9F.DTL