SAN DIEGO -- A tearful Deputy Mayor Michael Zucchet proclaimed his innocence Tuesday while announcing his resignation, a day after he and a fellow councilman were convicted in the "stipper-gate" federal corruption trial.

"I announce today my resignation as a member of the San Diego City Council," Zucchet said at a late afternoon news conference. "I believe this decision is in the best interest of my City Council district and the city of San Diego."

Michael Pancer, Inzunza's attorney, said his client will submit his letter of resignation to the clerk's office on Thursday.

Zucchet and Ralph Inzunza were automatically suspended from office after their convictions yesterday on conspiracy, wire fraud and extortion charges.

The verdicts came on the day when Zucchet was to have become interim mayor.

If they did not resign, the councilmen would technically remain in office until a final judgment is entered and they are sentenced.

Jurors found that the councilmen took money from strip club owner Michael Galardi in exchange for help in repealing San Diego's "no-touch" nude dancing ordinance, which was never changed.

With his wife by his side, Zucchet made his announcement outside City Hall flanked by staffers and a cadre of firefighters.

Zucchet said he was "shocked" and "devastated " by Monday's verdict.

"My wife and I have endured two years and two months of pure hell. What kept us going was the belief that justice would be served in the end," he said.

"Being wrongly accused for so long was extremely difficult to endure," Zucchet said. "But being wrongly convicted was even more painful and numbing."

Zucchet staunchly defended his innocence.

"For two years and two months, I have vigorously rejected the idea of resigning from any part of the job that I was elected to do," he said.

"I feel the same way today, but my sincere interest to somehow stay in office while continuing to fight this injustice no longer seems possible. It pains me greatly that some people will infer that I am somehow giving up or making an admission of some kind," Zucchet said. "Nothing could be further from the truth. I simply believe my council district needs full representation."

Zucchet said an election to fill the vacant seats should be held on Nov. 8. That date would coincide with a possible runoff election to replace Dick Murphy, who resigned as San Diego's mayor last Friday.

"I believe the special election to replace me should be consolidated with the already scheduled Nov. 8 statewide election," Zucchet said. "Stepping down now will allow that to happen.

"The city of San Diego needs to get on with its business," he added.

"Council District 2 needs a new representative, and my family and I need to begin to heal and move on with life."

Eleven candidates are running in the July 26 special election to replace Murphy. If no one candidate receives more than 50 percent of the vote, a runoff election would be required.

Assistant City Clerk Joyce Lane issued a memo that said the City Council has until Aug. 12 to submit items to the San Diego Count Registrar of Voters for placement on the Nov. 8 ballot.

The convictions and Murphy's departure leave only six council members to deal with a mounting pension debt, federal investigations and a myriad of other fiscal problems.

Councilwoman Toni Atkins was appointed mayor pro-tem for the City Council's meetings this week. The panel will vote next week to appoint a permanent mayor pro-tem until a new mayor is sworn in.

If the councilmen hadn't resigned, Aguirre said the council could have voted to declare Zucchet and Inzunza's seats vacant due to missed meetings.

"Under our state law, they are suspended from holding and participating in any of the offices that they have been elected to," he said. "Once they have missed 50 percent of the meetings that have been scheduled in the month of July, the council is required to remove them."