Woman sentenced for attempting to deal meth at hospital

A Washougal woman was sentenced Monday in Clark County Superior Court to five years in prison for attempting to deal methamphetamine from her hospital bed.

Karin Renae Cole, 47, had pleaded guilty July 30 to two counts of possession of methamphetamine with intent to deliver; one of those charges stemmed from an earlier drug case.

Cole was apparently out on bail in connection with a different drug case when a criminal informant told authorities that she was a patient at PeaceHealth Southwest Medical Center in Vancouver and was still trafficking drugs, according to a probable cause affidavit.

Camas police served a search warrant at the hospital on April 16 and recovered 6½ grams of meth, a digital scale, drug packaging materials and other drug-related paraphernalia, all hidden in a closet in the hospital room, Camas police Sgt. David Chaney said.

The criminal activity did not draw the attention of hospital staff, authorities said.

Cole had been arrested in January on suspicion of dealing methamphetamine out of her home on K Street in Washougal, according to the affidavit.

Judge Robert Lewis ordered Cole serve 60 months for each count to run concurrent. She was given credit for some time served in each case.