Lebanon, Oregon’s Cole Allen charged with manslaughter, assault, DUII, reckless driving

Marion Johnson of Albany, Linn County, Oregon, United States has died. He was 69.

Cole Russell Allen

Cole Russell Allen, 32, of Lebanon, Linn County is currently in jail. In 2018, he pleaded guilty to reckless driving and driving under the influence of intoxicants (DUII) with a .23% blood alcohol content (BAC) and completed a diversion program.

On the evening of June 12, 2025, Allen drove a grey 2014 Dodge Ram pickup truck. He was the only occupant in the truck.

That evening, Marion drove a black Chevrolet Tahoe with his wife Valda Johnson, 67, as a passenger. He approached the stop sign at the intersection of Lacomb Drive and Bond Road in Lebanon.

When Marion proceeded through the stop sign, his car was hit by Allen’s Dodge Ram pickup truck. Moments before the crash, the Lebanon man was driving at a high rate of speed, witnesses told Linn County Sheriff’s Office deputies.

At 7:32 p.m., the dispatch center of the Linn County Sheriff’s Office received a 911 call about the crash. Another caller reported that power lines were on top of the vehicles involved in the accident, which started a small brush fire and caused both power and internet outages in the area.

Just after 7:30 p.m., Linn County Sheriff’s Office deputies and Lebanon Fire Department personnel arrived. They extricated Marion and Valda from their vehicle after disconnecting power with the help of the Linn County Road Department and Pacific Power.

Marion suffered life-threatening injuries and died at the scene. Ambulance transported Valda, who sustained serious but non-life-threatening injuries, to Good Samaritan Hospital in Corvallis, Benton County, Oregon.

Investigators determined that Allen was driving under the influence of alcohol at the time of the crash. By 3:00 a.m. on June 13, 2025, power was restored in the area where the crash happened.

Allen was arrested and booked into the Linn County Jail in Lebanon. He was charged with DUII, reckless driving, recklessly endangering another person, second-degree criminal mischief, second-degree manslaughter and third-degree assault.