San Diego Mayor Bob Filner said he would enter a clinic for two weeks of "intensive therapy," ignoring escalating calls for his resignation after seven women publicly accused him of sexually harassing them.
"I must take responsibility for my conduct by taking action so that such conduct does not ever happen again," Mr. Filner said Friday afternoon at a highly anticipated news conference.
Gregory Bull/Associated Press San Diego Mayor Bob Filner speaks during a news conference at city hall Friday.
Mr. Filner, a Democrat, said he would enter the clinic Aug. 5 and return to the city full-time Aug. 19. A representative for Mr. Filner didn't immediately respond to requests for comment Friday. Mr. Filner said previously that he didn't believe the sexual-harassment claims are valid and intends to defend himself.
A spokeswoman for the mayor told reporters Friday the mayor wouldn't take questions. Mr. Filner left immediately after making his statement.
The allegations against the mayor set off a political uproar in San Diego, where even many of Mr. Filner's former political allies are urging him to resign. A group of political opponents said they would press ahead with an effort to recall him if he doesn't quit.
The mayor's former director of communications, Irene McCormack Jackson, has filed a lawsuit against him, alleging he put her in "a headlock" and made sexually suggestive comments to her.
Mr. Filner, 70 years old, was elected in November and is the city's first Democratic mayor in 20 years. He was a member of the U.S. House of Representatives for 19 years before that At least one woman said Mr. Filner made advances toward her while he was in Congress.
When the allegations first emerged earlier this month, Mr. Filner apologized and acknowledged he had "failed to fully respect the women who work for me." Supporters of Mr. Filner's showed up at a flurry of news conferences over the past week holding signs demanding "due process" for the mayor.
Prominent Democrats remained largely silent on the issue at first. But as accusers came forward in recent days, calls for his resignation grew louder. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, a U.S. representative from Florida and the chairwoman of the Democratic National Committee, called for his resignation Friday. On Thursday, the San Diego County Democratic Party voted in favor of calling for Mr. Filner's resignation.
But far from stepping down, Mr. Filner said Friday he would be "briefed on city activities" every morning and evening, even while at the clinic full time. Mr. Filner on Friday apologized for his behavior, but he didn't acknowledge that he sexually harassed women.
"Let me be absolutely clear. The behavior I have engaged in over many years is wrong," Mr. Filner said, adding that when he returns to the city "my focus will be on…doing right by this city in terms of being the best mayor I can be and the best person I must be."
Write to Tamara Audi at tammy.audi@wsj.com
A version of this article appeared July 26, 2013, on page A4 in the U.S. edition of The Wall Street Journal, with the headline: Embattled Mayor to Seek 'Therapy'.
