Bob Filner agrees to resign
Updated 8:20 PM ET
After six weeks of heated controversy over the sexual harassment charges against him, San Diego Mayor Bob Filner has agreed to resign, CBS News' Ben Tracy confirms.
The San Diego City Council on Friday voted 7-0 to accept Filner's resignation as part of a deal his lawyers struck with the city attorney over a sexual harassment suit against him. As part of the deal, Filner will stay in office until Aug. 30.
As many as 18 different women have publicly accused the mayor of groping, forcible kisses, and unwanted touching. After Filner last month declined to resign -- instead opting to spend two weeks at a behavioral counseling clinic -- the public pressure against the mayor intensified. San Diego residents have started a recall campaign, while the Democratic National Committee on Friday unanimously voted to demand Filner's resignation.
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Before its closed-door meeting, the San Diego City Council heard from dozens of San Diego residents who came to address the controversy in a special meeting. Some expressed their support for Filner, while others spoke out against him, and still others criticized the council for its handling of the controversy.
"I came down here today just to let you know how determined our gatherers and voters are to get this predator permanently out of this building," said Julie Adams.
Irma Valdez was one of the few who spoke in Filner's favor.
"We're not fooled. We know this is a circus to get a good man out of office," said Valdez.
Some citizens asked the City Council to reject the deal and let the recall effort against Filner to move forward, rather than agree to a settlement covering any of Filner's legal fees. Other recall supporters, however, said that Filner needed to be removed from office as soon as possible.
The city is expected to be paying at least some of Filner's legal expenses, while one of his accusers is suing the city itself.
City council president Todd Gloria will now become acting mayor. He told CBS News' Tracy that negotiating Filner's resignation and covering some of his legal costs was a necessary evil.
"What I know is each day that passes this man is mayor more bad things are happening to our city, less services getting done, fewer businesses coming to San Diego, and our national reputation continues to be drug through the mud," Gloria told Tracy.
Filner, 70, took office last year as San Diego's first Democratic mayor in 20 years. Before becoming mayor, Filner served 20 years in the U.S. House of Representatives, where he served as chairman of the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs and cast himself as a champion of female veterans.
Meanwhile, CBS News has learned that Filner is the focus of a California attorney general criminal investigation. A spokesman for the attorney general's office said: "I can confirm a criminal investigation is underway. I cannot comment further."
A source close to the investigation told CBS News correspondent Bigad Shaban: "This is certainly not over, the criminal investigation is under way, Mr. Filner's resignation does not change that."
