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CITY, N.D. (NewsDakota.com) Valley City Commissioner Richard (Rick) Ross tendered his resignation on January 4th 2017 following what he said where threats of violence against him and his family over the course of several weeks by a few individuals who live in Barnes County.

Ross gave this statement and answered a few questions from the Valley City media on January 4th.

Valley City Mayor Dave Carlsrud said it’s a sad day for Valley City when a few citizens can intimidate a city commissioner to resign.

Valley City Administrator David Schelkoph said we should not allow a small group of individuals to bully anyone out of office.

Schelkoph said city residents should call him to get the facts about what is going on in the city and don’t believe rumors posted on social media.

Valley City Attorney Russell Myhre had this response to the citizens of Valley City concerning the resignation of city commissioner Rick Ross.

The following is a letter issued by Rick Ross to his fellow city commissioners and the citizens of Valley City.

Six months ago, I was elected to serve as a city commissioner. I had a strong desire to work within the system to bring change to city hall and potentially implement new and positive initiatives to make our community a better place to live, work, play and raise our families.

Unfortunately, I have twice found myself falsely accused of abhorrent behavior, have been threatened with physical violence, have found myself in court twice and have had my personal vehicle vandalized.

These incidents have caused my family a great deal of angst, have affected my personal health and well-being and frankly, given the failure of our legal system to effectively deal with the people involved and now threaten my financial well-being.

I am a firm believer in the value of healthy debate and I’ve had many conversations with Valley City residents pro and con, relative to the positions I’ve taken on a variety of issues. I am unwilling, however, to participate in a process dominated by threats and intimidation and therefore, to live in fear of harm to myself and my family. As a result, it is with deep regret that I announce that I am tendering my resignation from the Valley City Commission effective immediately.

I want to thank the citizens of Valley City for the trust they put in me and ask for their empathy and understanding as I make my family, my faith, my health and my existing career the focus of my future.

Richard (Rick) Ross

Meanwhile, the Valley City commission will officially approve the resignation of Valley City Commission Rick Ross at their next regular meeting on January 17th.

Ross is the 5th Valley City official or employee to retire or resign from their position over the last 7 months.