Marc Dann
COLUMBUS — Two years after his stunning crash and burn at the attorney general’s office, Democrat Marc Dann is expected to face multiple misdemeanor criminal charges today, May 7, in Franklin County Municipal Court, said Franklin County Prosecutor Ron O’Brien.
The statute of limitations for misdemeanor charges against Dann expires May 14 — the two-year anniversary of his resignation from the attorney general’s office.
O’Brien declined further comment on Thursday.
Dann held the attorney general’s office for just 17 months before his administration was embroiled in a sexual harassment scandal, Dann admitted he was unprepared for the office, and Dann confessed to an extramarital affair with a junior staffer.
The scandal triggered investigations by state Inspector General Tom Charles and the Ohio Ethics Commission.
Last June, the Ohio Elections Commission struck a deal between Dann and the inspector general. Dann and his campaign paid $2,000 in fines and Charles agreed to drop a host of allegations against the former attorney general and his wife and former staffers.
But the Ethics Commission investigation proved more fertile for prosecutors. Dann’s estranged wife, Alyssa Lenhoff, his former chief of staff Edgar Simpson, his former communications chief Leo Jennings III, and his former general services director Tony Gutierrez all pleaded guilty to criminal charges.
Dann rode into the attorney general’s office in 2007 after campaigning against Republicans’ ethical troubles. His tenure was almost immediately marked by gaffes and later a full-blown scandal that led his fellow Democrats to threaten impeachment if he didn’t resign.
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