CINCINNATI (AP) — The mayor of a small southeastern Ohiocommunity resigned Saturday over
accusations that she repeatedly called agay police officer queer in front of his colleagues and created
ahostile work environment, at one point saying, "I don’t like a queerworking for the
village."Mary McAngus, the 78-year-old mayor ofthe Village of Pomeroy, submitted a letter of
resignation as mayor ofthe town of 2,000 along the Ohio River just across from West Virginia,said Jackie
Welker, the village council president and now-acting mayor."Itjust seems so absurd, even in our
town in Appalachia, that this couldstill happen," Welker told The Associated Press. "Hopefully
thisresignation will start the healing."McAngus did not immediately return a call to her home for
comment Saturday.Herresignation as mayor comes on the heels of police Chief Mark Proffitt’swarning to
the council this week that McAngus’ alleged comments couldopen the village to a lawsuit.He said McAngus
made the firstremark a few weeks after 21-year-old Officer Kyle Calendine was hired,telling Proffitt
that she had heard the officer was openly gay."Idon’t like a queer working for the Village,"
she said, according to asix-page statement Proffitt sent to village council this month. "I mightbe
old-fashioned but I don’t like it."On Jan. 31, McAngus usedthe word several times while meeting
with the chief and another officer,the statement said. The officer "advised he was caught off guard
and hecouldn’t believe she was talking so bad about a village officer."Proffitt believed the mayor
didn’t want Calendine hired as a full-time officer because he is gay, the statement said.Proffittsaid in
an interview with the AP on Friday that he supports gay rightsand was upset about the hostile work
environment the situation hascreated."Gay people have rights like everyone else,"
saidProffitt, police chief since 2000, who said he has an openly gay nieceand nephew.The mayor also
complained about Calendine’s partnercoming to the police department and wanted him kicked out, according
tothe statement.Proffitt said family members frequently visit all employees at the
department.Calendinesaid Saturday that he is considering a lawsuit because of how difficultthe situation
became and to teach McAngus a lesson."For someonein a place of power to say something like that,
that’s shocking," hesaid. "She needs to know that she done wrong and in a way, she needs tobe
punished for what she’s done because it was completely out of line…. My rights were violated."He
said that when he heard McAngus resigned, "it took a lot off my shoulders.""Peopledon’t
want to be pulled aside and asked, ‘Are you gay?’ and be judgedfor that," said Calendine, who said
he’s the first openly gay man a lotof people in his area have met. "I want to go to work, do my job
and gohome. That’s all I’m here to do."Calendine has worked for theAthens County Sheriff’s Office
and the Jackson and Glouster policedepartments. He was hired in Pomeroy in September.McAngus is aformer
bank teller and had served on Pomeroy’s council for at least oneterm before she was sworn in as mayor
just over a year ago.___Follow Amanda Lee Myers on Twitter at https://twitter.com/AmandaLeeAP and Andrew
Welsh-Hugginsat https://twitter.com/awhcolumbus .
Welsh-Huggins reported from Columbus.Copyright 2013 The Associated Press.