Baptist News Global
Sections
  • News
  • Analysis
  • Opinion
  • Curated
  • Podcasts
    • Stuck in the Middle With You ↗
    • Madang with Grace Ji-Sun Kim ↗
    • Highest Power: Church + State ↗
    • Non-Disclosure: The Silenced Stories of Kanakuk Kamps Survivors ↗
    • Change-making Conversations ↗
  • Storytelling
    • Faith & Justice >
      • Charleston: Metanoia with Bill Stanfield
      • Charlotte: QC Family Tree with Greg and Helms Jarrell
      • Little Rock: Judge Wendell Griffen
      • North Carolina: Conetoe
    • Welcoming the Stranger >
      • Lost Boys of Sudan: St. John’s Baptist Charlotte
      • Awakening to Immigrant Justice: Myers Park Baptist Church
      • Hospitality on the corner: Gaston Christian Center
    • Signature Ministries >
      • Jake Hall: Gospel Gothic, Music and Radio
    • Singing Our Faith >
      • Hymns for a Lifetime: Ken Wilson and Knollwood Baptist Church
      • Norfolk Street Choir
    • Resilient Rural America >
      • Alabama: Perry County
      • Texas: Hidalgo County
      • Arkansas Delta
      • Southeast Kentucky
  • More
    • Contact
    • About
    • Donate
    • Associated Baptist Press Foundation
    • Planned Giving
    • Advertising
    • Ministry Jobs
    • Subscribe
    • Submissions and Permissions
Donate Subscribe
Search Search this site

Former pastor convicted of murder seeks new trial

NewsABPnews  |  February 23, 2010

WACO, Texas (ABP) — A former Texas Baptist preacher convicted of murdering his wife says he deserves a new trial because his attorneys didn't adequately represent him.

According to the Waco Tribune-Herald and other media reports, Matt Baker filed a two-page motion and affidavit Feb. 22 alleging that two lawyers failed to call expert witnesses on his behalf and did not communicate with him before the trial. Baker also said the attorneys failed to ask key questions during cross-examination of state witnesses.

Judge Ralph Strother of Waco's 19th State District Court, who presided over Baker’s trial, set a hearing to consider the motion on April 1.

Baker received a 65-year prison sentence after a jury found him guilty Jan. 21 of drugging and smothering his wife, Kari, in 2006 and covering it up by making it look like a suicide. 

-30-

Share this:

  • Share on X (Opens in new window) X
  • Share on Threads (Opens in new window) Threads
  • Share on Facebook (Opens in new window) Facebook
  • Print (Opens in new window) Print
  • Email a link to a friend (Opens in new window) Email
  • Share on Bluesky (Opens in new window) Bluesky
  • More
  • Share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window) LinkedIn
  • Share on Reddit (Opens in new window) Reddit
  • Share on Tumblr (Opens in new window) Tumblr
  • Share on Pinterest (Opens in new window) Pinterest
  • Share on Telegram (Opens in new window) Telegram
  • Share on WhatsApp (Opens in new window) WhatsApp
Tags:Archives
More by
ABPnews
  • This BNG series of articles on Christianity and democracy will lead toward the July 4 celebration of America’s 250th birthday. The series has been curated by Carol McEntyre, senior minister at First Baptist Church of Greenville, S.C.

    • What is democracy?
    • The church as school for democracy
    • Democracy as the practice of loving our neighbors
    • Democracy and religious freedom
    • Democracy as a moral practice, not just a system
    • Love of neighbor is a democratic ideal
    • Democracy offers a way for Christian’s to express God’s will
    • Democracy: A political response to human sinfulness
    • Why coercive religious politics undermine Christianity and democracy
    • Democracy and prophetic witness
    • The spiritual discipline of losing
    • Patriotism or nationalism?

  • Get BNG headlines in your inbox

  • Check out our podcasts

     

     

    Stuck in the Middle
    With You

     

    Madang
    With Grace Ji-Sun Kim

     

     

    Highest Power
    Church+State

     

     

    Non-Disclosure:
    The Silenced Stories
    of Kanakuk Kamps Survivors

     

    Change-making
    Conversations

     

     

  • Politics • Faith • Resistance: by Greg Garrett

    BNG interview series on the state of faith, politics and resistance in our nation.

    See also Greg’s series on Politics, Faith and Mission

     

  • Featured

    • ICE agents are least-trained law enforcement in America

      Opinion

    • Coalition campaign seeks to ‘Melt ICE’

      News

    • Hegseth’s testosterone testing plays into MAGA mythology

      Opinion

    • In conversation with George Mason

      Analysis


    Curated

    • How classical education can be an antidote to AI

      How classical education can be an antidote to AI

    • Maine Democratic Senate nominee Troy Jackson raises eyebrows in the Jewish community

      Maine Democratic Senate nominee Troy Jackson raises eyebrows in the Jewish community

    • No Proof That Texas Midwife Violated Abortion Ban, Court Overturns Ruling To Close Clinics

      No Proof That Texas Midwife Violated Abortion Ban, Court Overturns Ruling To Close Clinics

    • Church of England’s justification for slavery reparations is ‘a complete joke’, says MP

      Church of England’s justification for slavery reparations is ‘a complete joke’, says MP

    Conversations that Matter.

    © 2026 Baptist News Global. All rights reserved.

    Want to share a story? We hope you will! Read our republishing, terms of use and privacy policies here.

    • Facebook
    • Twitter
    • Instagram
    • LinkedIn
    • RSS
    • 129