Wesley Eugene Baker was born on March 26, 1958, in Baltimore, Maryland. His life was marked by tragedy from the very beginning, as he was the result of his mother being raped at a young age. Growing up in a tumultuous environment, Baker faced abuse and neglect from his mother, stepfather, and two teenage girls in the household. This traumatic upbringing led him down a troubled path, marked by addiction and criminal behavior.
At the age of 16, Baker was sentenced to three years in prison for unauthorized use of a motor vehicle. This was just the beginning of his criminal record, as in 1978, he was convicted of armed robbery and received a 15-year prison sentence. Despite numerous run-ins with the law, Baker's criminal activities escalated to a horrifying extent on June 6, 1991, when he brutally murdered Jane Frances Tyson, a mother and grandmother, in front of her own grandchildren in Catonsville, Maryland.
Baker's heinous crime shocked the community, and his trial in 1992 resulted in his conviction for the murder of Jane Tyson. The case ultimately led to his sentencing to death by lethal injection, making him the 1,002nd person executed since the reinstatement of capital punishment in 1976. His execution in 2005 marked a dark chapter in Maryland's history, as he became the fifth person to be executed in the state.
Throughout his time on death row, Baker's story garnered attention from religious figures, including Cardinal William Henry Keeler, the Archbishop of Baltimore. Keeler's visit to Baker in prison in November 2005 marked a significant moment, as it was the first time the cardinal had visited a death row inmate. Following their meeting, Keeler, along with two other Catholic bishops in Maryland, made a plea to Governor Bob Ehrlich to grant clemency and commute Baker's sentence to life imprisonment without parole.
In the end, Maryland abolished the death penalty in 2013, marking a shift in the state's approach to criminal justice. Looking back on Wesley Eugene Baker's life, it is evident that his story is one of tragedy and violence, shaped by a cycle of abuse and addiction. His actions have left a lasting impact on those affected by his crimes, serving as a stark reminder of the devastating consequences of violence and crime in society.