Oregon lawmaker facing harassment allegations, risk of expulsion, resigns

(The Center Square) — Diego Hernandez has relinquished his House seat days before his peers were set to hold a historic vote on his expulsion over a string of harassment allegations.

The Portland Democrat announced the news to Oregon Public Broadcasting on Sunday night following the conclusion of a nine-month investigation into his past conduct with five women who worked with and around him at the state Capitol.

A 33-page report commissioned by the Legislative Equity Office released to the in January substantiated that Hernandez harassed, intimidated, and threatened four of the five women interviewed by investigators.

Earlier this month, a four-member House Conduct Committee upheld most of the report’s findings. It concluded Hernandez’s behavior with three of the women violated the state Legislature’s Rule 27 related to maintaining a safe workplace.

Hernandez, who has faced hundreds of calls to resign, saw his final attempt to block the vote in federal court fail last week.

In a temporary restraining order filed on February 12, the former state lawmaker claimed the vote would incur “immediate and irreparable injury” by harming his reputation, career, and financial outlook.

U.S. District Court Judge Ann Aiken contended in her opinion issued on Saturday that the former state lawmaker had offered proof the vote would not go his way.

“However, plaintiff has not plead any facts that his expulsion is certain or even likely to occur,” Aiken wrote. “In order to forestall the possibility of this uncertain outcome, the Court would need to intrude on the prerogatives of the Oregon Legislature, ordering, as (Hernandez) requests, that the House of Representatives not even consider a resolution submitted by its own members.”

A two-thirds vote by 40 members of the House would have been needed to expel Hernandez from his seat, which would have made him the first in state history to see such action by the chamber.

Hernandez claims a vote would be invalid based on the House Conduct Committee’s exclusion of text messages between him and the women from public hearings. The content of those messages, according to him, prove his innocence. Per Rule 27, victims are guaranteed anonymity in public proceedings.

The former state lawmaker also alleged he had not been given the opportunity to defend himself despite issuing remarks to the House Conduct Committee this month through his attorney. On February 12, he excused himself from a live floor session for “physical and mental health reasons.”

Hernandez has denied the allegations against him on social media and claimed that his race and ethnicity invited disproportionate scrutiny compared to white men accused of similar misconduct.

His Facebook page, where he admitted to throwing a phone during an argument, was down Sunday night. That post was not a factor in the House Conduct Committee’s decision, House Speaker Tina Kotek, D-Portland, wrote in a court response to the restraining order.

In her opinion, Aiken wrote that Hernandez had offered no proof that his race and ethnicity were factors in the House Conduct Committee’s decision.

“The Legislature has been subject to similar scandals in past years, and it may be, as (Hernandez) alleges, that some transgressors were able to resign or reach some other settlement prior to facing expulsion,” Aiken wrote. “However, the public has interest in beginning to address these inequities at the highest levels of state government and ensuring that harassment is no longer tolerated or excused.”

Hernandez is also pursuing a lawsuit against the state Legislature for $1 million in damages for emotional distress on top of his legal fees.

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