Hartford asks when will Perez leave

Hartford, Conn. (WTNH) - One big question lingers in the air in Hartford -- when will convicted Mayor Eddie Perez leave office.

Mayor Perez said he'd step aside after his conviction last week on all but one of the corruption charges he faced, but the city council is still waiting.

The capitol city has been without an effective leader for several days. All nine city council members have signed a statement saying if Mayor Perez doesn't go on his own they will force him out. Legally, that could take some time. Council members say they want this resolved and they want it done today.

"Even the lawyers don't know -- and I'm not even a lawyer -- exactly how to do this," council member Larry Deutsch said. "It has not happened before here in Hartford."

"It is a long process," council member Matt Ritter said. "By long it's not six months, it's also not one day. It does take a couple of weeks. There are obviously due process protections, implications, and you have to be mindful of those things."

Sentencing for Perez is not until September and he has vowed to appeal, and again, agreed to resign in the meantime.

"Our city has been hurting for a long time," Hartford resident Hyacinth Yennie said. "We need healing, and we need to start off with a positive attitude."

The city council has already named a replacement. The president of the council, Pedro Segarra, will serve out the remaining 17 months of Perez's term.

City council members said they may hold a meeting today and they may call for a hearing to bring formal charges against Mayor Perez and begin that process of removing the mayor, but really they just hope he'll do what he said he would and step down himself. Hopefully today.