SANDPOINT - Counsel for a former East Hope councilman accused of punching the city's mayor might seek a change of venue in the case.

Daniel Burton Shanahan's defense attorney, Michael G. Palmer, advised Judge Robert Caldwell during a pretrial conference on Tuesday that he's contemplating a motion to shift the trial to Kootenai County because of publicity in Bonner County, court records show.

Shanahan, 35, is charged with battery for allegedly striking 78-year-old Mayor Jake Both in the chest during a confrontation about a newspaper delivery tube on public property on July 12.

The confrontation occurred after Shanahan reportedly stormed out of City Hall and slammed the door, prompting Both to follow him outside and admonish him for the outburst.

Witnesses said Shanahan approached Both in an aggressive manner, causing the mayor to raise his arms up to stop Shanahan from running into him. Shanahan then allegedly slugged Both.

Shanahan disputes that account, according to another attorney who spoke on his behalf immediately after the clash. Shanahan contends Both assaulted him and grabbed him under his armpits and that Shanahan simply pushed the mayor off of him.

Shanahan is pleading not guilty to the misdemeanor offense and a trial is pending in magistrate court.

Caldwell, a Kootenai County jurist, was appointed to hear the case because magistrate court judges in Bonner County self-disqualified.

Shanahan's spouse is a deputy public defender in Bonner County, a circumstance which prompted Prosecutor Louis Marshall to move for the appointment of a special prosecutor from Kootenai County.