GOP Member Asks Rep. Patterson To Step Down

BOISE, Idaho (AP) — A state senator Tuesday called for Republican leaders from Boise to seek the resignation of Rep. Mark Patterson after his failure to disclose his guilty plea in a 1974 rape case led to revocation of his concealed weapons permit.
Sen. Fred Martin, R-Boise and one of District 15's precinct committee members, said he expects officials from the southwest Boise district will assemble next Tuesday to discuss Patterson's future in the Legislature, less than a month before the 2014 session begins.
However, another official in District 15, which Patterson represents, said the situation is "fluid" and no meeting has been finalized.
Patterson has been the focus of attention since the Idaho Statesman in November reported he failed to disclose the 39-year-old guilty plea in a Florida rape case when he applied for a permit to carry a concealed weapon, first in 2007 and again in 2012. Ada County Sheriff Gary Raney revoked Patterson's permit in late October. Raney has said Patterson's record makes him ineligible for a concealed weapons permit in Idaho. Patterson’s only media interview since the controversy came up was with Kevin Miller on 580 KIDO.

In an interview Tuesday, Martin said he remains hopeful Patterson would resign voluntarily. If he doesn't, however, Martin said a resolution has been drafted that demands the first-term Republican lawmaker quit.