COLUMBUS, Ohio -- State officials have asked Attorney General Marc Dann to resign after he admitted to having a romantic relationship with one of his employees and amid an investigation into sexual harassment involving his aides.

Gov. Ted Strickland released the letter on Monday, which read, in part, "We write to you tonight to ask that you resign your position as Attorney General of the State of Ohio."

Strickland, in a impromptu news conference on the statehouse lawn Monday, said he hadn't spoken with Dann that day but had twice Sunday.

"I told him that I had been conferring with our statewide office holders, and after much discussion after looking at the Espy report and looking at transcripts, we had concluded that he should step down as attorney general," Strickland said.

Dann told Strickland that he didn't intend to step down, according to Strickland.

So I constructed the letter Friday night, and that's where we are, Strickland said.

When asked if there were anything specific that caused Strickland to come to this conclusion, he said there were a number of things.

"Any one of them may have been serious enough to cause me to ask him to step down," Strickland said. "Certainly, taken together, there seemed to be a pattern of unacceptable behavior, of mismanagement, of failure to manage that caused me to conclude that he was not able to effectively carry out the duties of attorney general.

What incidents stood out?" one reporter asked.

"There were what I believe to be some inconsistencies in the testimony. A failture to recognize the seriousness of things that had happened. A failure to exercise proper oversight and management of the office," Strickland said.

MORE: Strickland's Letter | Dann's Response
RELATED: Women React To Dann's Refusal To Resign

Monday morning, Dann sent an e-mail to all office staff members that read, "I wanted to share with you what I told the Governor.

"I told him that he and the other officeholders, as well as the members of the legislature, should continue to expect that we will continue to provide high-quality legal services to all of them. I told the Governor that we will continue to make our law enforcement partnerships work to protect the people of the State of Ohio.

"I am in the office, have rolled up my sleeves and am working on behalf of the people of State of Ohio."

"I think that there is a great chance that we can continue to do great work for the people of the State."

The results of the sexual harassment investigation were released on Friday, and Dann held a news conference following the announcement, NBC 4 reported.

During Dann's news conference, he said he was taking full responsibility for the hostile work environment under his watch and for having an affair with a staffer.

Dann stopped short of resigning or any form of self-punishment other than admitting what he calls mistakes.

"I was elected by the people of the state of Ohio. We have done great legal work in this office," he said.

Franklin County Prosecutor Ron O'Brien said the highway patrol and Ohio Ethics Commission are investigating Dann's office.

Once those investigations are complete, O'Brien will meet with the organizations about potential charges.

Strickland's office said that if Dann is removed or decides to resign, the governor will appoint someone to attorney general.

If the appointment occurs prior to Sept. 25, there is an automatic special election in November.

BACKGROUND: Timeline Of Events

CAUTION: THE COMPLAINTS BELOW INCLUDE STRONG LANGUAGE.
STANKOSKI COMPLAINT: Page 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8
STOUT COMPLAINT: Page 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5
Complaint Explanation | Letter Regarding Documents

DOCUMENTS: Investigation Findings | Exhibits
INTERVIEW TRANSCRIPTS: Stout 1 | Stout 2 | Stankoski 1 | Stankoski 2 | Gutierrez | Dann 1 | Dann 2 | Utovich | Jennings | Saxton | Rosol | Polster | Miller | Mash | Haske | Ford | Demers | Botts | August | Armbrust | Urban | Taylor | Smedlund | Simpson 1 | Simpson 2 | Chapple | Aranda

Stay tuned to NBC 4 and refresh nbc4i.com for more information on this developing story.

To send a news tip or submit a story idea, e-mail stories@nbc4i.com.

PREVIOUS STORIES:
May 4, 2008: Scandal In Attorney General's Office Reaches Back 7 Months
May 2, 2008: 2 Fired In AG Office Investigation
May 2, 2008: Dann Admits To Romantic Relationship With Staff Member
April 29, 2008: Ohio Attorney General's Office Considering New E-mail Policy
April 29, 2008: Did Accuser In AG Investigation Get Job Because Of Car Crash?
April 25, 2008: Scandal Reveals Lack Of Restraint At State Office
April 24, 2008: Patrol Investigates If State Vehicle Were Crashed
April 22, 2008: Police: Criminal Charges Will Not Be Filed Against State Aide
April 22, 2008: NBC 4 Investigates Attorney General's Inbox
April 21, 2008: NBC 4 Awaits E-mails From Attorney General's Office
April 18, 2008: Criminal Complaint Filed In AG Investigation
April 17, 2008: Investigators Search For State Employee's Phone Messages
April 16, 2008: Officials Release Sexual Harassment Complaints
April 15, 2008: NBC 4 Gets Details In AG's Office Sexual Harassment Claim
April 14, 2008: 2nd Top Administrator Placed On Leave
April 7, 2008: State Employee On Leave Amid Sexual Harassment Allegations