State Senator Charged in Sting Steps Down
State Sen. John Ford has resigned after being placed under house arrest facing charges from a two-year FBI sting.
Ford, a Democrat, announced his resignation in a letter Lt. Gov. John Wilder read to the Senate. “I plan to spend the rest of my time with my family clearing my name,” he wrote.
A member of the Senate for more than 30 years, Ford was arrested Thursday following the sting operation nicknamed Tennessee Waltz. He is charged along with four other current and former state lawmakers with taking payoffs, and he is also accused of threatening to kill a witness.
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