Man pleads guilty to killing woman getting money to help father-in-law at Charlotte ATM
The man accused of robbing and killing 48-year-old Karen Lynn Gaskill Baker in 2022 near an ATM in the University City area was sentenced to more than 26 years in prison after pleading guilty to second-degree murder, according to court records.
Baker was killed in a shopping center across the street from UNC Charlotte after she had withdrawn money to help her father-in-law pay a bill. Police said at the time it was a random robbery.
J’Wuan Marquise Horton, 26, of Charlotte, also pleaded guilty Aug. 22 to two counts of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon and was sentenced to about 26 to 32 years in prison by Judge Karen Eady-Williams.
“So giving, selfless, is the biggest thing I would say to describe my mom,” William McClure, Baker’s son, told The Charlotte Observer in 2022. “Most of her life she spent most of her time making other people whole.”
Baker had three sons, a daughter, and two step-children. She also had three grandchildren. In 2011, she married Justin Baker, with whom she moved to Charlotte to help care for his father.
Born in New Jersey but raised in North Carolina, Baker was withdrawing money from a Bank of America ATM on University City Boulevard on July 13, 2022, when Horton robbed and shot her, police said.
According to court records, witnesses nearby said they heard gunshots, and then saw a black Dodge Charger fleeing from the scene. Surveillance footage from the scene confirmed what the witnesses saw, court records said. Police also said photos of Horton matched the footage.
Someone tipped off Crime Stoppers, records said. The tipster said they overheard a conversation during which Horton talked about hiding the murder weapon.
Horton was on post-release probation for an armed robbery conviction at the time of Baker’s death, court records show, and was also previously arrested for fleeing a traffic stop.
“Those people who robbed her, my mom would have given them money,” McClure said in 2022.
District attorney announces recent sentences
The Mecklenburg District Attorney’s Office last week announced recent convictions stemming from deaths, including:
Cristhian Diaz Castillo, who in February struck and killed Christopher Ryan Starr, who was riding a bicycle in southwest Charlotte, pleaded guilty to involuntary manslaughter and felony hit and run. He was sentenced to about 16 to 29 months in prison, but the sentence was suspended if he completes 36 months of supervised probation.
He was ordered to serve 180 days in jail as a condition of probation, and court records said he would receive credit for serving 179 days in jail prior to his Aug. 22 hearing.
Noe Chinchilla, 28, who was accused of fatally shooting 16-year-old Jeferson Josue Landaverde-Cantareno in 2022, pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter and two counts of discharging a weapon into an occupied vehicle. He was sentenced to 10 to 14 years in prison.
Monterius Johnson, 26, who was arrested in connection with the murder of 21-year-old Tahajie Howard in 2021, pleaded guilty to accessory after the fact to first-degree murder and was sentenced to prison for almost four to eight years.
Shikeem Sands, 24, who was accused of fatally shooting Keia Javon Garnett in northeast Charlotte last November, pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. He was sentenced to 16 to 21 years in prison.
