Alabama governor resigns amid sex scandal

Alabama Governor Robert Bentley resigned the office Monday in order to avoid being impeached for covering up a sex scandal he initially denied.

Bentley was earlier booked into the Montgomery County jail where he pleaded guilty to charges related to his coverup of the scandal. He was accused of using state law enforcement officers to "intimidate staffers and suppress news of his affair" with a former aide.

He addressed his constituents today in the state capitol's chamber, saying, "There have been times that I have let you and our people down and I'm sorry for that."

"The time has come for me to look at new ways to serve the good people of our great state," he explained. "It's time for me to step down as Alabama's governor."

Bentley was re-elected as governor in a landslide in 2014, but his wife of 50 years divorced him after discovering salacious messages written to his mistress.

The former governor struck a deal with prosecutors over his two campaign finance violations:

Bentley will serve two years probation, perform 100 hours of community service and give up the balance of the money in his state campaign account. In return, the state attorney general will not pursue felony charges, according to Ellen Brooks, the prosecutor who oversaw the investigation.

"I'm leaving this office that I have held, that I have respected, that I have loved for seven years, to focus on other and possibly more effective areas of service," Bentley continued. "I will be leaving the office today, April the tenth."