COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Legislators weighing whether state Attorney General Marc Dann should be impeached over a sex scandal may need help from an unlikely source, Ohio's House leader said Wednesday: the attorney general himself. The House isn't well equipped to investigate whether Dann has committed any impeachable offenses and could be helped by an independent investigator, Speaker Jon Husted, a Republican, said. The attorney general, a Democrat, would be most able to make such an appointment quickly and efficiently, Husted said. Dann, the state's top attorney, admitted to an extramarital affair with an employee, something he said contributed to an atmosphere that led to sexual harassment claims against an aide in his office. Officials in both parties are calling for him to resign, but Dann has refused. Several investigations stem from the scandal. The information needs to be condensed and possibly combined with information yet to be gathered so the House can determine whether impeachment is warranted, Husted said. "Without having a mechanism to gather that information and to put that information together, we are at a distinct disadvantage in being able to make a responsible decision," he said. A spokesman for Dann said the attorney general did not foresee any limits to an independent investigation and reiterated his intent to remain in office. "Every day that goes on there's more questions about the impeachment and the implications, but one thing remains crystal clear, and that is the fact that the attorney general understands why the governor and so many other people are disappointed," spokesman Jason Stanford said. "The attorney general is committed to earning back their trust, and that's why he's staying in office," Stanford said. The two women who filed sexual harassment claims against Anthony Gutierrez, Dann's general services director, had 10 days from the release of the internal investigation Friday to file an appeal, which would lead to an independent investigation. Dann said during a news conference Friday that if the two women didn't appeal by the deadline, he would appoint an independent investigator himself. Husted suggested Wednesday that the same investigator could help the House determine whether it should go forward with impeachment. The investigation's integrity wouldn't be compromised if the appointment were made by Dann, he said. "I think that with consultation with the Legislature and the administration that we would certainly come up with somebody that we would all agree with," Husted said. The governor would not object, spokesman Keith Dailey said.
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