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2 days ago
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More Indianapolis City-County councilors calling for Mayor Joe Hogsett to resign
The list of Indianapolis City-County councilors and lawmakers calling for mayor Joe Hogsett to resign is growing.
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3 days ago
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Hogsett says he won't resign as fallout continues from investigation, late-night texts to women
Indianapolis Mayor Joe Hogsett said June 10 he has no intention of stepping down despite calls by multiple members of the City-County Council for his resignation. The mayor is dealing with fallout from an investigation about how he handled sexual harassment allegations in his office by his former chief of staff, and a revelation about his own late-night, personal texts to two younger women who said they felt uncomfortable receiving the messages. Hogsett spoke with IndyStar over the phone the day after an explosive City-County Council meeting where his former deputy campaign manager Lauren Roberts was forcibly dragged out of council chambers by sheriff's deputies while trying to speak during the public comment portion of the meeting. Roberts has alleged Hogsett's former right-hand-man Thomas Cook sexually harassed and abused her about a decade ago while the two worked on Hogsett's first mayoral campaign. Two other women have said they were sexually harassed or assaulted by Cook, who served as chief of staff and helped lead Hogsett's campaigns, while he was their boss over the period of about a decade. More: 'I kept saying no': Women accuse top Hogsett aide of preying on subordinates for years Cook also had a relationship with another subordinate city worker, which led to him resigning from the city back in 2020. Hogsett allowed Cook to stay on for 68 days and resign despite a recommendation from the city's human resources director that he be fired immediately. Hogsett responded to several questions IndyStar raised, including about the texts he sent to younger women, which he acknowledged made them uncomfortable. In the same conversation, he categorically denied a city-county councilor's allegation that he was "visibly impaired" during a meeting in 2024. The mayor also said people have lost sight of the most important issues that he wanted to tackle during the remainder of his third term, which ends in 2028. The transcript of the interview is below. It's been edited for brevity and clarity. IndyStar: Three councilors at this point have called for your resignation. Do you think you can effectively lead the city under these circumstances? Hogsett: Yes I do, and I certainly have no intent to resign. We just have still so much important work to do, not only to ensure the confidentiality and the safety of every employee, but my focus and that of the administration for the remainder of my term will be on the promises that we made to create economic and social vitality and growth for the people of Indianapolis. So there's a lot more that needs to be done, and I'm ready to roll up my sleeves and get about the business of the next two and a half years. IndyStar: You recently said that Cook didn't work with anyone on your 2023 mayoral campaign, but Mirror Indy reported that there's evidence that Cook did work with people directly during your campaign. Why did you say the opposite? Hogsett: Well, I think what I said was that Thomas Cook was an unpaid political adviser on my campaign until I became aware of Caroline Ellert's concerns and her complaints about Thomas Cook. My comment was about his contact with city employees after we removed him in September of 2023. IndyStar: You indicated to Fisher Phillips investigators that you didn't know any personal details about Lauren Roberts, but the text messages between the two of you make it appear that you do know personal details about her, including her then-partner's name and calling her "feisty." What happened there? Hogsett: I didn't recall during the course of my conversation with the folks from Fisher Phillips. I didn't recall. It's been, with respect, 12 years ago or 11 years ago, and how I answered that question in the conversation and the interview that they conducted with me, I stand corrected obviously. But my point is this: I did not intentionally mislead anyone. I may not have recalled it during the course of the interview. The interview itself was over five hours long, so there was a lot of questions and answers in that interview. But that would be my explanation for whatever discrepancies may appear after the fact. IndyStar: Do you think that you acted over the line with Lauren Roberts or Caroline Ellert in the text messages that they provided to investigators? Hogsett: Um, well, I would respond to that question by saying that governing a city and campaigning for that matter has become a 24-hour endeavor. And frankly, I think it has become easier to develop a casual conversation style with those who you happen to work very closely with. And I worked very closely with Caroline Ellert, certainly, during the course of my awareness and knowledge of her. She was an adviser to me. She was the Marion County Democratic Party executive director, so I relied on her and asked for her advice probably with some frequency. Now, I want to be clear, I do understand — even though it was not my intention to make anyone uncomfortable — I do understand now how my words could have been taken out of context. IndyStar: Did you have a habit of texting younger employees personal matters? Are these the only text messages out there, or do you think there are other instances in which you texted other younger women about things such as poetry or their boyfriends? Hogsett: I did not make it a habit of texting anybody in particular at any particular point in time. I'm simply underscoring the fact that I think that most people who work in government and who work on campaigns in particular are used to a 24-hour cycle. That may strike others who go to bed every night at 9 o'clock and get up at 7 o'clock in the morning, that may strike them as odd, but it was not my intent to cause anybody any discomfort or make them feel uncomfortable. It was simply, at least in the case of Caroline Ellert, that I have a greater memory of because it is more recent, it was never my intent to make her feel uncomfortable. But I do in retrospect understand how that may have been something that I change. IndyStar: One of the big points that Fisher Phillips noted was that Cook was allowed to resign more than two months after a recommendation that he be fired back in 2020. Why did you allow him to resign after 68 days? Hogsett: It was based on the information that I was working with at the time. That's the way all my decisions as it related to Thomas Cook's engagement, either in my office or with the campaign, they were always made with what I knew at the time. If I knew then what I know now, perhaps my decision — in fact my decision would have been different. But I was operating with what I knew at the time. IndyStar: Councilor Joshua Bain raised an allegation that you appeared to be visibly impaired in a May 15, 2024, meeting with him. He said he witnessed you stumble into a room, have trouble sitting down. Do you dispute the accuracy of that incident, and were you impaired? Hogsett: No, I was not. I categorically deny that. IndyStar: This is not the first time that allegations of substance abuse have been made. Have you ever been impaired or under the influence while serving as mayor? Hogsett: No. IndyStar: Have you ever sought any treatment for substance abuse? Hogsett: No. We're collectively losing sight of what is most important, and that's continuing to create a safer, more accountable working environment for all city employees. That is my focus. That is my standard. And that's what I'll stick to. IndyStar: You agree that a safe working environment is important. Many people who attended last night's council meeting have said that with you in a leadership position, they feel like it would be impossible to have a safe working environment. I wonder how you'll deal with those concerns and those doubts moving forward. Hogsett: Well, what happened last night was regrettable. But to reiterate something I said just a moment ago, we've lost sight of the most important thing here. We have already made strides in continuing to approve and strengthen city policies and training to create a safer and more accountable work environment for all city employees. It's something my administration has already been taking steps to do, and we will redouble and continue. Email IndyStar Reporter Jordan Smith at JTsmith@ Follow him on X: @jordantsmith09. Contact senior government accountability reporter Hayleigh Colombo at hcolombo@ Sign up for our free weekly politics newsletter, Checks & Balances, by IndyStar political and government reporter. This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Mayor responds to texts: 'It was not my intent to make anyone uncomfortable'
