Was Daniel Patterson “Forced to Resign”?

State Representative Daniel Patterson resigned from the House yesterday, before a vote on his expulsion could take place.

The House Ethics Committee unanimously voted earlier yesterday to boot Patterson, which was apparently enough of an indication for Patterson to just take off early.

“I have been forced to resign due to the fact that the House has become a very hostile work environment for me,” Patterson said in his resignation letter. “Due to this I am no longer able to serve my constituents in the way they deserve.”

Just an hour before House Speaker Andy Tobin accepted Patterson’s resignation, Patterson took to Twitter — where he’s routinely posted responses during the ethics investigation process — saying the “Fix was in.”

Patterson’s decried pretty much every aspect of the investigation since day one.

Even on the day the ethics complaint was filed against Patterson — February 27 — he denied the allegations to New Times. He continued to issue denials throughout the entire process.

Patterson’s continued to insist that he deserves a full hearing with witnesses testimony and the whole bit, calling for “proper due process,” but he obviously didn’t get what he wanted.

“The unfair Ethics Committee violated House Rules, my constitutional rights to due process, and would not even allow me a real hearing to defend myself and question accusers,” Patterson wrote in his resignation letter. “The rights of Arizona voters and constituents in Tucson LD29 have been badly disrespected by the Ethics Committee. The will and decision of voters has been violated again by the House.”

This morning’s question: Was Patterson “forced to resign”?

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