SAN BERNARDINO – (INT) – Former county supervisor and one-time assessor Bill Postmus plans to appeal his prison sentence in a long-running criminal case.

Postmus failed to convince Superior Court Judge Michael Smith Thursday to withdraw his 7-year-old guilty plea in a drug case.

At stake were 15 charges that stemmed from a plea bargain in which Postmus agreed to turn state’s evidence and testify for the prosecution during the marathon Colonies trial in exchange for probation. The 2017 trial spanned 7-months and ended with the acquittal of three defendants and dismissal of all charges against a fourth. Postmus argued that he was coerced into signing the plea agreement.

Before handing Postmus the prison sentence, Judge Smith dismissed most of the charges partly in the ‘interest of justice’, according to court documents.

Smith chose a middle term of 3-years for perjury and embezzlement by a public official. Postmus was given 3-days credit for incarceration.

Postmus was ordered to surrender in Judge Smith’s courtroom November 30th to begin his sentence.

Story Date: November 19, 2018