Prosecutor seeks to revoke release for Baker City crash defendant

Prosecutors are asking Baker County Circuit Court to revoke the release of Izek Matthew Cleveland, the 19-year-old Baker City man accused in a crash that injured six teenagers and set one of the county’s most closely watched felony cases on a new procedural track.

The request comes as Cleveland’s trial date approaches on June 22. He is scheduled to face two counts of second-degree assault and four counts of third-degree assault over the Dec. 23, 2024 crash in southwest Baker City, where police said his 2008 Ford Escape struck a tree after traveling south on 17th Street near Grace Street around 1:20 a.m.

All six passengers in the car, who were ages 18 or 19, were hurt. Cleveland told police he had consumed alcohol and cocaine before the crash, and officers reported his blood alcohol level was 0.12. He was released from jail on Christmas Day 2024 after posting $6,000, which was 10% of his bail.

The release arrangement has already tightened once. On Feb. 24, 2025, Judge Matt Shirtcliff added a no-driving condition. The latest push to revoke release signals that the state wants the court to take a harder line as the case moves closer to trial, with the defendant’s status in the community now part of the broader safety question surrounding the prosecution.

The case has also carried unusual legal weight because Baker County District Attorney Greg Baxter recused himself after a personal conflict of interest tied to earlier conversations with Cleveland that were aimed at helping him. Two Oregon Department of Justice attorneys have handled the prosecution since then. Under Oregon’s Measure 11 law, second-degree assault carries a mandatory minimum sentence of 5 years and 10 months.

By May 6, the defense was still pressing to shape what jurors may hear, including asking for permission to use certain evidence, such as some hearsay, to argue that Cleveland was not indifferent to human life. That issue goes to the center of the case, because the defense says Cleveland’s state of mind before and after the crash will determine whether jurors can find the extreme indifference needed for the more serious charges.

The courtroom fight has moved through other stages as well, including a May 14, 2025 hearing that touched on a possible settlement conference and the prospect of charge reductions depending on the severity of the injuries. Prosecutors have maintained the charges reflect the seriousness of the crash and the harm to the six young passengers.

With a revocation request now before the court, the case has entered another consequential phase. The judge’s ruling will decide whether Cleveland remains on release or returns to jail while Baker County prepares for a felony trial with Measure 11 consequences still hanging over it.