John Conyers Announces Retirement Amid Allegations of Sexual Misconduct

Michigan Congressman John Conyers has announced he will retire from his seat after several female staffers have come out claiming he exercised inappropriate behavior toward them in a sexual manner during his stint in public office. “I am retiring today,” Conyers said on a radio program called “The Mildred Gaddis Show.” The 88-year-old Conyers, the longest-serving current member of the House, has denied the allegations, which include touching female staffers inappropriately and propositioning them for sex, according to various news outlets. He repeated that denial Tuesday and said the allegations were “not accurate, adding, “I can’t explain where they came from.” He told Gaddis his legacy “can’t be compromised or diminished in any way” by the allegations, arguing it will continue through his children. “This too shall pass,” he said. Conyers has endorsed his son, John Conyers III, to succeed him in Congress, reports the Huffington Post.  Conyers previously announced that he would temporarily step down as the top Democrat on the House Judiciary Committee, pending the results of a House ethics investigation into the allegations. Conyers was recently hospitalized after experiencing “lightheadedness and shortness of breath,” according to Arnold Reed, his attorney. A family friend told The Detroit News that Conyers felt under “tremendous stress.”