SAN BERNARDINO — A scathing report released Tuesday details years of alleged crime, fraud and sordid activities inside the San Bernardino County assessor's office, prompting the county to file suit against six former employees in an effort to recoup hundreds of thousands of dollars.
According to the 30-page document, unqualified people were hired to do nothing, time cards were falsified, unauthorized political campaigning was common and former Assessor Bill Postmus was so strung out on drugs that his assistant said he "looked like he fell off a park bench."
At one point colleagues suspected Postmus, later arrested on suspicion of possessing methamphetamine, was huffing canisters of DVD cleaner.
"People were asking, 'What's wrong with Bill? Is he stoned again?' " according to witness interviews in the report.
The investigation, done at the request of the San Bernardino County Board of Supervisors, was compiled by former federal prosecutor John Hueston, best known for successfully pursuing Enron's Ken Lay and Jeffrey Skilling. Hueston is now in private practice.
After reviewing the report, the board voted Tuesday to sue Postmus along with five other former employees of the assessor's office -- James Erwin, Adam Aleman, Rex Gutierrez, Michael Richman and Gregory Eyler.
"As a taxpayer and as a public official, I find the activities detailed in the report deeply disturbing," said board Chairman Gary Ovitt. "There is certainly enough information in this report to compel the Board of Supervisors to pursue legal action against these individuals and seek damages for the taxpayers."
Three of those named in the suit have been arrested and are out on bail. Postmus resigned in February, shortly after being arrested on drug charges the month before. His former deputy, Aleman, has been charged with six felonies, and former assistant assessor Erwin is facing 10 felony counts, most for allegedly failing to properly report gifts received while in office.
Of those mentioned in the report, only Erwin could be reached for comment Tuesday.
"I testified before a grand jury, went to the district attorney and laid out all of this a long time ago," Erwin said. "I tried to do something about it, and now I feel like I am being retaliated against for being a whistle-blower."
Hueston said Postmus was elected assessor in 2006 bent on creating his own personal political machine complete with "superfluous" staff and supported by taxpayers.
