Feds drop investigation of former California Assemblyman Mike Duvall

Former California State Assemblyman Mike Duvall of Orange County appears to be off the legal hook for his recorded boasts of exploits with two female lobbyists. KPCC’s Julie Small says federal authorities announced Monday they won’t file charges against Duvall.

Mike Duvall resigned from his California Assembly seat in September after a hot microphone in a committee hearing recorded his bragging about sexual encounters with two female lobbyists. The remarks circulated widely in the press.

The U.S. attorney and the FBI looked into the matter. Both concluded that there wasn’t enough evidence to prove that Duvall or the lobbyists broke any laws.

California’s attorney general and the Fair Political Practices Commission have recently reached the same conclusion.

An Assembly ethics committee that was to investigate the matter could only do so while Duvall was still in the legislature. Because Duvall’s resigned, that committee took no further action.

One of the utility company lobbyists journalists had identified as former Assemblyman Duvall’s mistress denied any wrongdoing Monday and said she may sue for defamation of character. The woman’s employer, Sempra Energy, said she’s back on the job.