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This archival content was originally written for and published on KPCC.org. Keep in mind that links and images may no longer work — and references may be outdated.

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Ex-San Bernardino County official arrested for alleged drug use

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Ex-San Bernardino County official arrested for alleged drug use
Ex-San Bernardino County official arrested for alleged drug use

Former San Bernardino County Assessor Bill Postmus was arrested Thursday after allegedly showing up for a court hearing under the influence of drugs. It's just the latest legal trouble for a once promising young county leader.

Postmus, 39, is already mired in a corruption scandal that shook up the County Assessor’s office two years ago. He was in court for a preliminary hearing in that case. Postmus got through the hearing, but was apparently a little unsteady on his feet.

A bailiff gave him a field sobriety test — he failed. It’s the third drug bust in two years for the former county assessor and board of supervisors chairman. Last year, Postmus publicly admitted to a long battle with substance abuse.

During the county assessor’s scandal in 2008, Postmus was arrested for possession of methamphetamine and ecstasy. He also faces multiple counts of grand theft, misappropriation of public funds and perjury related to his tenure in the county Assessor’s office and on the Board of Supervisors.

It’s been a long, precipitous decline for the once promising Republican leader. Postmus won a board of supervisor’s seat ten years ago at the age of 29, and he was once considered a shoe-in for higher office.

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