Assemblyman Matt Dababneh said Friday he is resigning from office at the end of the month, a decision that comes four days after he was publicly accused of masturbating in front of a lobbyist and other inappropriate behavior.
In a resignation letter, Dababneh said the allegations against him are untrue and said he expected a legislative investigation would “bring to light and into focus the significant and persuasive evidence of my innocence.”
Dababneh, a Democrat from Woodland Hills, told The Times that his resignation should not be construed as a tacit admission of wrongdoing.
“My stepping down isn’t out of guilt or out of fear. It’s out of an idea that I think it’s time for me to move on to new opportunities,” Dababneh said in an interview. He said that in the current environment, “it’d be very hard for me to represent my district and be able to pass the type of legislation that would be meaningful.”
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| His accussers |
Sacramento-based lobbyist Pamela Lopez publicly alleged Dababneh followed her into a bathroom, masturbated in front of her and urged her to touch him during a January 2016 party in Las Vegas.
Another woman, Jessica Yas Barker, alleged that Dababneh routinely spoke of his sexual exploits and made disparaging comments about women while she worked as his subordinate in Sherman’s office from June 2009 until December 2010.
Dababneh said both allegations are false. He said he would participate in an ongoing Assembly investigation into Lopez’s allegation that will be conducted by an outside firm.
“I look forward to a report coming out,” Dababneh said. “I was not the one that engaged in that type of activity.”
Dababneh’s attorney sent Lopez a cease-and-desist letter prior to her public accusation. The lawmaker said he has not decided if he will sue Lopez for damages as stated in the letter, saying he first wants to see the results of the investigation.
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