State v. Baker

902 So. 2d 1247, 2005 WL 1109614
CourtLouisiana Court of Appeal
DecidedMay 11, 2005
Docket39,696-KA
StatusPublished
Cited by3 cases

This text of 902 So. 2d 1247 (State v. Baker) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Louisiana Court of Appeal primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
State v. Baker, 902 So. 2d 1247, 2005 WL 1109614 (La. Ct. App. 2005).

Opinion

902 So.2d 1247 (2005)

STATE of Louisiana, Appellee
v.
Roosevelt BAKER, Appellant.

No. 39,696-KA.

Court of Appeal of Louisiana, Second Circuit.

May 11, 2005.

*1248 Louisiana Appellate Project by Peggy J. Sullivan, Monroe, for Appellant.

William Robert Coenen, Jr., District Attorney, Penny Wise Douciere, Kenneth Douglas Wheeler, Assistant District Attorneys, for Appellee.

Before STEWART, GASKINS and DREW, JJ.

DREW, J.

The defendant, Roosevelt Baker, was convicted of aggravated burglary and sentenced to 25 years at hard labor. He now appeals his conviction and sentence. We affirm.

FACTS

Mr. Baker began dating Carol McQueen in 1995, with cohabitation starting in 1996. After living together for a short time, Baker and McQueen moved to a house, rented in McQueen's name, on Scott Street in Rayville. The two lived there with the victim's teenage son for several years. Their relationship was, at best, stormy, with Baker moving in and out of the house in between frequent altercations.

In October 2002, McQueen broke off their relationship for good, asking him to move out. Since Baker refused to leave, McQueen called the Rayville Police, who observed Baker strike McQueen in their presence. It took five officers to subdue and remove Baker from the home. Baker was convicted of trespass, criminal damage *1249 to property, and resisting arrest, all relative to this incident.

For the next six months, Baker engaged in a pattern of continuous stalking of McQueen. Almost daily, Baker would harass her, either by incessant telephone calls or by breaking into McQueen's home, usually by forcing open or breaking down a door. Through the years, McQueen replaced five doors at her home, all broken by Baker. When she could no longer afford to replace the back door, she moved the icebox in front of it in an effort to keep Baker out of her home.

Rayville police officers were called to McQueen's house to remove Baker at least once a week during the six-month period preceding the instant offense. On some occasions, Baker was arrested on misdemeanor charges. On other nights, the police merely told Baker to leave and not return.[1] On November 14, 2002, following another altercation by Baker at McQueen's home, the police tried to get Baker to sign a "Notice of Restriction From Property" form, which would establish in writing that he was barred from the property and that if he entered the premises, he would face a trespassing charge. He refused to sign the document.

McQueen admitted that on two occasions during this six-month period (from November 2002 to April 2003), she invited Baker back to her home twice:

• once, to fix a plumbing problem; and
• second, to jump start her vehicle.

She further testified that she did not invite him back on any other occasion during this turbulent six months, nor was he ever allowed to move back into her home.

On March 29, 2003, Baker again broke into McQueen's home. McQueen, who was at work at the time, realized he was in her home when he called her on a phone inside the home. Again, the police responded and removed Baker from the home. This time, Baker agreed to sign a "Notice of Restriction From Property" form, which contained the following acknowledgment:

I Roosevelt Baker understand that as of the 29th day of March, 2003, I have been barred from [Scott Street] and that to return to such property, I will be arrested for Criminal Trespass.

On the evening of April 18, 2003, McQueen was at home, asleep in her bed. She had taken some medication which made her drowsy. She was awakened by the sound of Baker entering her bedroom. McQueen attempted to dial 911, but was unable to complete the phone call, as Baker straddled her and began hitting her in the face. As he was hitting her, Baker demanded that she admit that she was having an affair with a friend of his.

McQueen suffered these physical injuries:

• multiple breaks and fractures in her face and jaw;
• permanent nerve damage on one side of her face; and
• the loss of several teeth, as the underlying jawbone was broken so badly that it could no longer support the roots of those teeth.

Baker was arrested shortly thereafter and later charged by bill of information with aggravated burglary. After his arrest, and while incarcerated, Baker wrote numerous harassing letters to McQueen and her employer. Prior to trial, the state *1250 filed a notice that it intended to use the following as other crimes evidence at trial:

• Baker's trespasses and altercations at McQueen's home from November 1, 2002, to April 18, 2003;
• his forging some of her checks; and
• his writing numerous letters to her and her employers.

Additionally, the state also gave notice that it intended to offer, upon cross-examination of Baker, evidence of prior convictions, including the:

• 1988 conviction for sexual battery;
• 1989 conviction for remaining on premises after being forbidden; and
• 1993 conviction for possession of cocaine.

The state also filed a motion in limine, seeking to bar Baker from introducing any evidence that McQueen may have been having sexual relations with anyone just prior to the crime. The state also sought to bar Baker from telling the jury about any settlement negotiations or what sentence he might be facing.

Baker was tried by jury. Prior to the taking of evidence, the trial court held a hearing on the state's motions in limine. The trial court ruled that:

• Baker's acts against McQueen, during the six months prior to the present offense, were admissible;
• Baker could not raise issues of any relationships between McQueen and any other men, including the man whose name Baker asked her about as he was beating her on April 18, 2003; and
• Baker's lawyer could not tell the jury the maximum sentence exposure Baker was subject to, but allowed him to tell the jury about the minimum one-year sentence.

At trial, McQueen testified about:

• her unhappy relationship with Baker, leading up to its termination, at her request, in the fall of 2002;
• his continuing stalking of her, including breaking into her home, shattering her windows and doors and otherwise harassing her until April 18, 2003;
• Baker's breaking in and beating her on the night in question; and
• the fact that she denied inviting him into her home on April 18, 2003.

Her son, Cody McQueen, testified that:

• he locked and bolted the front door lock before going to sleep on the evening of April 18, 2003;
• he was awakened by the sounds of Baker's attack;
• he saw Baker leaving through the broken front door;
• his mother suffered horrific injuries that night;
• the police were called; and
• his mother was taken to the emergency room.

He also testified that Baker had previously broken into their home on numerous occasions.

Rayville police officers testified about their continued efforts to stop Baker from going to, and into, McQueen's home.

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Related

State v. Calhoun
974 So. 2d 805 (Louisiana Court of Appeal, 2008)
State v. Scott
948 So. 2d 1159 (Louisiana Court of Appeal, 2007)
State v. Gibbs
935 So. 2d 349 (Louisiana Court of Appeal, 2006)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
902 So. 2d 1247, 2005 WL 1109614, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-baker-lactapp-2005.