Ok, now Marc Dann is stepping aside despite the fact that he hasn’t been named as a person of interest. Kind of makes you think about his office’s desire to get rid of he harasser w/out a formal investigation. Somewhere, there’s a very large problem that will bubble up to the surface. Can’t wait to see the text messages and email records on this one…

The Democratic attorney general’s “only concern … is to have a thorough investigation no matter where it leads” — even if that’s to Dann himself, Jennings said.Normally, the attorney general has the final say on discipline resulting from harassment and other workplace complaints. Dann’s aides said the attorney general rarely exercises that authority, most often leaving decisions to Thomas R. Winters, his top legal aide, and Edgar Simpson, his top nonlegal aide.

In the current investigation, Winters — a longtime Columbus lawyer and sometime Democratic lobbyist — will make the final call. Unlike Simpson, Jennings and Gutierrez, Winters is not connected to Dann by friendship. Winters did, however, contribute to Espy’s unsuccessful 2006 Supreme Court campaign.

Read the Rest…