Wash. politician Jim West dies at 55

SPOKANE, Wash., July 23 (UPI) -- Jim West, the former Spokane, Wash., mayor and gay rights opponent driven from office by a gay sex scandal, has died of cancer at the age of 55.

The Spokane Spokesman-Review reported on the complex life of the political tactician.

Born in Salem, Ore., West joined the military after high school, returning to Spokane to pursue a law enforcement career. Later, at the age of 28, West became the youngest councilman in city history, the newspaper said.

West continued to rise in the political ranks and spent two decades in the Legislature, was state Senate Health Committee chairman and helped create the state's Department of Health.

West was known for being bold and fearless, the newspaper said.

However, shortly after West was diagnosed with cancer in 2003, it was revealed that he had been using the computer to contact young men on the Internet. He was allegedly offering them gifts or city jobs in exchange for sex, a report in the Spokesman-Review said.

Although West refused to immediately resign, the scandal ruined his political life. Voters turned him out on a recall vote.

After the cancer had spread from his colon to his liver, West fought with chemotherapy and surgery but eventually lost. He died at University of Washington Medical Center Saturday with his family and pastor by his side.

Funeral arrangements are pending.