What was the outcome of the case involving the death of Brent Cole, the man from DeQuincy who was killed in Baton Rouge several years ago?

The case remains open, said Hillar Moore, East Baton Rouge Parish district attorney.

Brent Cole, 39, was shot on March 15, 2008, on Goodwood Boulevard in Baton Rouge and later died at Our Lady of the Lake Medical Center.

Cole, a musician, was in town to perform during a church service the next day and was lost and trying to find his way back to his hotel when he was shot.

James Barrow Jr., 21, and Michael Smith Jr., 20, surrendered to authorities two months later and were charged with principal to second-degree murder and illegal use of a dangerous weapon.

Moore said the case was presented to the grand jury “some time ago” but that grand jurors pretermitted, or took no action on it.

Neither Barrow, the son of a state lawmaker, nor Smith has since been charged with killing Cole. But both men are incarcerated in the East Baton Rouge Parish jail on other charges.

Barrow and Smith were arrested again in January 2011 on armed robbery charges after they allegedly stole a backpack from a pedestrian on Nicholson Drive.

“Barrow has remained in jail since his armed robbery arrest. Smith posted bond on the same armed robbery arrest as Barrow. Smith is currently in jail from a misdemeanor conviction for damaging property belonging to one of his children’s mother,” Moore wrote in an email.

“Both are scheduled for trial on Monday for the armed robbery. Barrow was on probation for a previous conviction (for burglary), at the time of the armed robbery arrest. He still faces possible revocation on that charge.

“Chronologically the burglary charge occurred before the murder of Cole, but the conviction was not until after the murder.”

Online: www.ebrso.org.

Arch design result of national contest

What is the history of the St. Louis arch?

The Gateway Arch, part of the Jefferson National Expansion Memorial, was designed by Eero Saarinen, who won a national architectural contest in 1947.

The arch is 630 feet tall and stretches 630 feet — from the base of one leg to the other — along the west bank of the Mississippi River. The monument honors Thomas Jefferson, an early proponent of westward expansion, and the pioneers.

Facts on the arch, from the National Park Service’s Jefferson National Expansion Memorial Web page:

Construction began Feb. 12, 1963, and ended Oct. 28, 1965.

The arch cost $13 million to build — 75 percent of the money came from the federal government and the rest from the city.

The arch can withstand an earthquake and was designed to sway up to 18 inches.

Online: www.nps.gov/jeff.

The Informer answers questions from readers each Sunday, Monday and Wednesday. It is researched and written by Andrew Perzo, an American Press staff writer. To ask a question, call 494-4098, press 5 and leave voice mail, or email informer@americanpress.com

Brent Cole and his wife Karen. (From www.facebook.com/pages/Justice-for-Brent-Cole / Special to the American Press)