Cole court hearing delayed

A court appearance scheduled today for Brian Cole, a former Baker County commissioner charged with furnishing alcohol to a minor, has been postponed.

“We have asked for a new court date,” said Tony Green, a spokesman for the Oregon Department of Justice. “We were not ready to go to court yet because the investigation is ongoing.”

Sean Riddell, who heads the DOJ’s district attorney assistance program, will prosecute the case because of potential conflicts of interest with the Baker County District Attorney’s office and other local law enforcement agencies.

In addition to serving as County Commission chair from 1999 to 2002, Cole worked in economic development for the city, county and state. And he has continued to provide consulting and grant-writing services to government agencies through his private company.

Cole, 47, was cited on the furnishing charge, a Class A misdemeanor, at about 8:30 p.m. Oct. 31 after a Baker County deputy stopped to check on a car parked at the Baker Rural Fire District’s Pocahontas Road station about two miles west of Baker City. Sheriff Mitch Southwick said the deputy discovered Cole in the vehicle with a 17-year-old girl. Cole was cited on the furnishing alcohol charge and released.

The girl was taken to the sheriff’s office where she was cited on a charge of minor in possession of alcohol and released to her parents, Southwick said.