State Senator Stanley Resigns

According to an update on the online version of The Tennessean, State Senator Paul Stanley (R - Germantown) resigned this afternoon in the wake of a scandal involving a former intern, the intern's boyfriend, and an apparent relationship between the intern and the Senator.

The intern, McKensie Morrison, is a 22-year-old student at Austin Peay State University. Morrison graduated from a Florida high school, and the Orlando Sentinel has an in-depth story on her previous encounters with law enforcement in the Sunshine State. According to the story, Morrison has drug-related arrests (crack cocaine) and a HUSBAND currently serving a seven-year prison sentence for beating a 75-year-old with a hammer and fracturing his skull. Morrison and the incarcerated husband filed for divorce one month ago.

While Senator Jack Johnson (R-Brentwood) has not issued a statement on Stanley's resignation, Lt. Gov. Ron Ramsey issued the following brief statement:

Senator Paul Stanley has resigned from the Senate effective August 10th. I have received his letter of resignation and forwarded it to Secretary of State Hargett and Governor Bredesen.