Coroner: Mark Ponder's death appears accidental, no foul play
| Thursday, Jul 23 2009 12:12 PM
Last Updated Thursday, Jul 23 2009 12:12 PM
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Jenn Ireland / The Californian A billboard advertising Mark Ponder's real estate business sits on the south side of Rosedale Highway just west of the Gibson Street intersection.
Jenn Ireland / The Californian A billboard advertising Mark Ponder's real estate business sits on the south side of Rosedale Highway just west of the Gibson Street intersection.
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The cause of death for real estate broker Mark Ponder is pending further toxicology reports, but an autopsy Thursday morning showed no signs of foul play, the Kern County coroner’s staff reported.
It’s possible Ponder drowned in the Kern River, Supervising Deputy Coroner John Van Rensselaer said.
“It’s an apparent accidental death” at this point, but further toxicological tests are needed to determine the cause and manner of his death, he said.
Ponder, 38, whose face on billboards was familier to Bakersfield, was found dead Wednesday afternoon in the Kern River near Manor Street.
In other developments, Ponder’s colorful past may have caught up with him in a way that threatened his career, documents show.
State real estate regulators wanted to revoke or suspend the license of the 38-year-old Bakersfield broker, who was found dead in the Kern River Wednesday, because he failed to disclose criminal convictions as required by law.
An accusation by the Department of Real Estate filed March 11 said omissions in Ponder’s renewal application constituted “fraud, misrepresentation, or deceit” and created cause to deny his license renewal.
The application required disclosure of misdemeanor and felony convictions in the past six years.
The accusation listed misdemeanor convictions for drunk driving and other charges in 2008, 2005 and 2004 that Ponder “concealed and failed to disclose.”
Two charges on May 23, 2008 — driving under the influence and with a suspended license — were crimes that bear “a substantial relationship” to a real estate professional’s qualifications and duties, the accusation alleges.
Similar charges in February 2005 and November 2004 were aggravating factors in regulators’ eyes.
Check back later for updates.
