HUNTINGTON -- Cabell County Commission President Scott Bias on Wednesday said his May 2009 arrest at Myrtle Beach International Airport resulted from nothing more than an honest mistake.

It occurred May 17, 2009, as Bias went through federal airport screening. The X-ray machine detected a handgun in his possession, according to Bias and court documents filed in Horry County, S.C.

"It was just a plain old, honest mistake, and now it's just mudslinging in the election," Bias said Monday.

Local authorities in South Carolina charged Bias, who this year is seeking his second term in office, with misdemeanor unlawful carrying of a pistol.

Horry County prosecutors dismissed the charge two months later.Bias then paid a civil fine assessed by the Transportation Security Administration. He estimates the fine exceeded $100.

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