On Monday, the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors voted unanimously to place Assessor Paul Petersen on unpaid suspension for a period of 120 days. Petersen is currently in federal custody for his alleged involvement in an adoption fraud scheme involving pregnant Marshallese women flown to Arizona to put their babies up for adoption.
ARS 11-664 gives the Board of Supervisors the authority to suspend a county assessor or treasurer for neglect of duty.
According to the motion approved by the Board, “Mr. Petersen’s failure to meaningfully oversee the operations of his office for an extended period and repeated misuse of county resources to conduct his private law practice constitutes neglect of duty.”
An internal audit, requested by Board of Supervisors Chairman Bill Gates, found that Mr. Petersen had hundreds of private business documents on his county-issued desktop computer.
With Petersen suspended, the Board is now required to appoint a person to fill the position. County Treasurer Royce Flora asked presumed Corporation Commission candidate Rodney Glassman to step up and run for Assessor instead, arguing that Glassman’s focus on ethics, integrity, and taxpayer protection was equally well suited to the Assessor’s office and that the need on the County-level was greater at this time.
Politicos say Glassman can raise the money needed to keep the office in GOP hands and has picked up several quick endorsements, including Senate President Karen Fann and former Senate President Russell Pearce. One GOP advisor said he expects the current Chief Deputy Assessor to get the temporary nod “since he’s the one running the office right now anyway.”
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