BREAKING:
via AL.com
United States District Court Judge Mark Fuller has given his resignation to the president and will step down from the bench Aug. 1.
Fuller's lawyer, Barry Ragsdale, confirmed that the judge sent a letter to the president this week.
Beyond that, Ragsdale said he could not comment and that the disciplinary procedures of the 11th Circuit are confidential.
Last August, Fuller was arrested in an Atlanta hotel room after a domestic dispute with his then-wife, Kelli Fuller. He was charged with misdemeanor battery, but he later entered into an agreement with the court there to have his record expunged upon receiving counseling and completing a domestic violence program.
Since his arrest, Fuller's caseload in federal court had been reassigned and he has been on paid leave. He will not be hearing cases between now and August, his lawyer said.
Multiple public officials, including both Alabama Senators and the state's congressional delegation, have called on Fuller to resign, and Rep. Terri Sewell has encouraged Congress to pursue his impeachment.
Friday night, Sewell, D-Birmingham, said news of Fuller's resignation was a "welcome outcome to a very painful breach of the public trust.
"Fuller failed to uphold our most fundamental values. Perhaps the only consolation is that he has chosen to spare his family and our nation of the expense of a drawn out impeachment process," she said.
A federal judge since 2002, Fuller presided over the public corruption trial of former Alabama governor Don Siegelman and former HealthSouth CEO Richard Scrushy.
Don E. Siegelman is the former progressive Governor of Alabama, Lt. Governor, Attorney General and Secretary of State. For more information about Don Siegelman see: Free-Don.org and watch our short, extremely compelling documentary trailer at Killing Atticus Finch: The Don Siegelman Story. Follow Gov. Siegelman on Twitter @DonSiegelman and Like his Facebook page at Free Don Siegelman
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