Mayor Resigns Under Cloud Of Poop-Throwing Scandal

Tens days after being caught on camera tossing a bag of dog poop onto the lawn of a man in his neighborhood, the mayor of an upscale Southern California town has tendered his resignation.

Back on June 7, Mayor Dennis Kneier of San Marino in Los Angeles County was walking home from the park with his wife when he claims he spotted a bag of dog feces resting against the lamppost of the house he was passing. Inexplicably, the mayor picked up the bag and then casually tossed it toward the front step of the home.

The homeowner caught the incident on his home security camera and contacted the police, who identified Kneier as the doodie-tosser.

The mayor then attempted to apologize to the homeowner, saying he made a mistake in picking up the poo in the first place.

“I should have walked on by or disposed of it properly,” he said at the time.

However, the homeowner was not impressed with the apology and alleged that the incident may have been a response to his opposition to the mayor’s plan for a dog park in San Marino.

Things got worse for the mayor when the story became national news. The Pasadena Star-News reports that around 100 people showed up at the June 11 city council meeting to discuss the incident.

Kneier provided the council with his resignation letter on Tuesday, saying he will step down from his position as mayor effective immediately but that he will continue his work as a councilman.

“I have apologized to my neighbor for my action, and I will pay a fine for littering,” the two-term mayor wrote. “These events continue to be embarrassing to me and to the city… I was elected to serve as a city councilman, and I will continue to serve in the position that I was elected. I’m not going to let the voters down. I’m not going to let our city down, and I think I can be an effective member of the city council.”

by Chris Morran via Consumerist