Sentence Modification – Mitigating Evidence

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WI Court of Appeals – District I

Case Name: State of Wisconsin v. Fontaine L. Baker

Case No.: 2016AP2516

Officials: Sherman, Blanchard, and Kloppenburg, JJ.

Focus: Sentence Modification – Mitigating Evidence

Fontaine Baker was charged with first-degree intentional homicide while armed in the shooting death of Frankie Jenkins. At the jury trial, Baker admitted that he had shot Jenkins in the head and that he had fled the area after doing so. However, Baker testified that he shot Jenkins by accident, and fled because he “just panicked” and “didn’t know what to do.” Baker was convicted of first-degree reckless homicide. Baker appealed the judgment of conviction and an order denying post-conviction relief, and this court affirmed both. Baker subsequently appealed an order denying his motion for postconviction relief on the ground of ineffective assistance of counsel, which we also affirmed.

Baker filed a post-conviction motion that the circuit court denied without a hearing. The motion was based entirely on a post-trial diagnosis by a psychologist that Baker suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) at the time of the shooting. On appeal, Baker argues that the post-trial PTSD diagnosis constitutes mitigating evidence about his mental state when he fled following the shooting, and therefore a new trial is merited based on newly discovered evidence or in the interest of justice, or, in the alternative, that his sentence should be modified. We affirm for reasons explained below.

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Attorney Derek A. Hawkins is the managing partner at Hawkins Law Offices LLC, where he heads up the firm’s startup law practice. He specializes in business formation, corporate governance, intellectual property protection, private equity and venture capital funding and mergers & acquisitions. Check out the website at www.hawkins-lawoffices.com or contact them at 262-737-8825.