Crook County, Ore. – Brian Barney has been appointed to fill a vacancy on the Crook County Court.
Barney, 62, is a fourth-generation Prineville native who has worked as a farmer and a rancher and owned construction and excavation companies. The Bulletin reports that he’s served as a member of the elected Ochoco Irrigation District Board for 16 years, and in an appointed role on the Pioneer Memorial Hospital Board for the last 21 years, along with a number of other volunteer roles in the community.
Eleven people asked to be considered to fill the position, which became vacant when Seth Crawford defeated Ken Fahlgren in the race for county judge in November. Although Crawford and Fahlgren were both members of the commission at the time of the election, Fahlgren’s term was coming to an end while two years remain in the term won by Crawford in 2014.
Barney joins Crawford and Jerry Brummer on the three-member court, which functions as the county’s board of commissioners.
Barney said he’s looking forward to working closely with the Crook County Health Department and on economic development issues as his term begins.
He said he also expects to be deeply involved in law enforcement issues — early in his career, he served as a Deschutes County sheriff’s deputy and as a reserve deputy in Crook County — but intends to let Crawford take the lead in developing a plan for the new Crook County jail.
In November, Crook County voters approved at $10 million bond to build a 76-bed jail, which would replace the aging 16-bed jail currently operated by the county.
