Colo. Sen Baumgardner Steps Down From Committee, Won't Resign

DENVER, CO -- Faced with allegations of sexual harassment found "credible" by an independent investigation, Colorado State Sen. Randy Baumgardner (R-Hot Sulphur Springs) agreed to step down from chairmanship of the Senate transportation committee and undergo training.

But that didn't satisfy Democrats, who want Baumgardner expelled from the Senate.

Senate President Kevin Grantham and Sen. Majority Leader Chris Holbert asked Baumgardner to walk away from chair of the committee. They also told him he must attend sensitivity training by March 16th.

An unnamed legislative aide filed an official complaint against Baumgardner last year alleging the lawmaker slapped and grabbed her buttocks multiple times during the 2016 legislative session.

A second woman, former intern Megan Creeden, who was 25 at the time, announced she would be filing a formal sexual harassment complaint against Baumgardner. Creeden said Baumgardner pressured her to drink alone in his office and made lewd comments in 2016. Six other women, who remained anonymous, told KUNC in November that Baumgardner had harassed them.

The two top Senate Republicans complained in a letter that they believed the investigation process by contractor the Employers Council was filled with “inaccuracies, bias, conflicts of interest, and inconsistencies.” However, they said Baumgardner should vacate the transportation committee and attend the training “in the interest of moving forward.”

As for Baumgardner, he denied the women's allegations, saying he had been quiet about them since November because the process required confidentiality.

"[T]he allegations made against me are not true," he said. "Despite the findings of the investigation, I find it to be flawed, inaccurate, incomplete and biased,” Baumgardner said.

Regarding Creeden, Baumgardner said he knew her socially and respected her. " I want to take this opportunity to say that…if I did anything at all that was offensive to you…I want to apologize,” he said.

Colorado Democrat lawmakers are calling for Baumgardner to be expelled from the Senate.

Sixteen members of the Senate’s Democratic caucus called for Baumgardner to resign entirely.

"Victims and the public at large deserve swift, deliberative, and transparent action in response to these allegations. Instead, despite having access to the independent investigation’s findings for weeks, Senate GOP leadership has taken no action and said that the public may never know what happens," a statement from the Democrats said.

Senate Minority Leader Lucia Guzman, who said last week she no longer wanted any part of the deliberations to punish Baumgardner, announced in a turnaround that she would move forward with a resolution to expel him.

"Efforts to impugn the investigative process are completely inappropriate. House and Senate leadership agreed to use these third-party investigators just a few months ago," Sen. Guzman said, according to Channel 7. "Baselessly undermining an independent investigation because it doesn't tell you what you want to hear calls the integrity of the Senate into question and sends a horrible message to other victims considering coming forward."

said the Democratic caucus was moving forward with a resolution to expel Baumgardner

Baumgardner has no intention of stepping down from

Senate President Kevin Grantham said in a letter to Baumgardner that he questioned the process of the independent contractors Employers Council was flawed

Baumgardner said he would not resign.

Four other state lawmakers were accused of sexual harassment in the Capitol in November.

Read More on Patch:

Who's Accused? Colorado Lawmaker Sex Harassment Roundup