http://www.breaking911.com/just-in-rep-michael-grimm-has-decided-to-resign-from-congress/#.VKIBqG3zcAY.facebookJUST IN: Rep. Michael Grimm Has Decided To Resign From Congress
By: Grant (Breaking911 Newsroom)
December 29, 2014 | 8:31 PM
The Daily News is reporting the decision amid Grimm’s guilty plea to tax evasion charges.
If confirmed, Rep. Michael Grimm’s resignation means NY Gov. Cuomo has to call a special election to fill the seat.
http://www.nydailynews.com/michael-grimm-reportedly-decided-resign-congress-article-1.2060152Michael Grimm has decided to resign from Congress days after pleading guilty: sources
EXCLUSIVE: The Staten Island Republican, who won reelection in the fall, has decided to vacate his seat after speaking with Rep. John Boehner.
BY DAN FRIEDMAN NEW YORK DAILY NEWS Published: Monday, December 29, 2014, 8:04 PM Updated: Monday, December 29, 2014, 8:04 PM
WASHINGTON — Rep. Michael Grimm has decided to resign from Congress in the wake of his guilty plea on a felony tax evasion charge, sources told the Daily News Monday night.
Grimm (R-S.I.) said after he entered his plea last week that he planned to continue serving in the House.
But he reversed course after speaking Monday to House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio), who has taken a hard line on GOPers facing ethics charges.
Grimm plans to announce his resignation on Tuesday or Wednesday, sources said.
Boehner spokesman Michael Steel declined to comment.
"We do not discuss private conservations the speaker has with members," Steel said.
Before his plea, Grimm had been scheduled to go on trial Feb. 2 on charges of evading taxes by hiding more than $1 million in receipts and wages at Healthalicious, a Manhattan restaurant he owned before he was elected to Congress in 2010.
Despite the charges, Grimm easily won reelection on Nov. 4, beating Democrat Domenic Recchia 55% to 42%.
Grimm said during that campaign that he would resign his seat if a conviction left him "unable to serve." Although he could have a last-minute change of heart, sources said Monday he realizes his position is untenable.
Grimm's resignation will mean Gov. Cuomo has to call a special election to fill the seat.
GOP candidates could include Staten Island District Attorney Daniel Donovan, who has faced scathing criticism over the failure to hand down an indictment in the Eric Garner case, along with Assemblywoman Nicole Malliotakis and state Sen. Andrew Lanza.
Democratic contenders could include former Rep. Michael McMahon and Assemblyman Michael Cusick.
Grimm's sentencing is not scheduled until June 8.
Though sentencing guidelines recommend up to three years for tax evasion, Grimm's lawyers are expected to ask the court to limit the penalty to probation.
In last Tuesday's hearing before Judge Pamela Chen, Grimm pleaded guilty to one count of aiding in the filing of a false tax return in 2009.
In a document submitted to the court, he admitted to all the illegal conduct alleged in his 20-count indictment, including hiring undocumented immigrants and lying under oath in a deposition in 2013, when he had been in Congress for two years.
