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Templeton husband and wife accused of child molestation

June 27, 2011

The alleged female victim, Wendy and Donald Baker at a work Christmas party in 2010

By KAREN VELIE

A Templeton husband and wife were arrested for the alleged repeated molestation of a male relative under the age of 14, according to a sheriff’s report.

Donald Baker, the former nursing director of the intensive care unit at a Templeton hospital, and his wife Wendy Baker are accused of molesting a boy who is now 14.

When he was 12, the boy said Wendy Baker asked him how big his penis was and asked to see it. In February 2010, when the boy was 13, Wendy Baker allegedly molested him.

The boy told sheriff investigators Donald Baker began molesting him in July 2010 and that the alleged molestation went on for about a month, according to the report.

The victim told investigators he never disclosed to either Wendy or Donald Baker that the other spouse had also molested him.

San Luis Obispo County Sheriff’s detective Sonja O’Donohoe arrested Wendy Baker on April 26 for committing a lewd or lascivious act on a child under 14.

On June 23, Donald Baker was charged with three additional felony counts of committing lewd acts on a child under 14 while in court on previous molestation charges about a female relative. He was booked into San Luis Obispo County Jail with bail set at $100,000.

Both Wendy and Donald Baker were released on bail.

In October 2010, Donald Baker was charged with eight felony counts in the alleged molestation of a now 12-year-old girl, including forcing the girl to perform oral copulation, penetration with a foreign object of a person under 14 and possession of child porn, according to the sheriff report. Baker is accused of repeatedly molesting the girl, a relative, from the time she was 8 years old until September 2010.

The girl said Donald Baker told her not to tell Wendy Baker about the alleged molestation.


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This case is very different from the McMartin case. It sounds like incest and one of the victims finally told someone outside the family what was happening.


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From what I recall in the McMartin case, they were aquitted.

The defense attorney cross examined the victims with leading exaggeration and the kids fell for it (easily influenced), so the judge correctly excluded the victim’s testimony.

Quite often the fear/ hysteria generated stories beyond the truth, but my gut tells me maybe one of them may be implicated.

For sure they need a good attorney more for truth than a legal defense for all our sakes.


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Wille – much has changed since those days of the McMartin case. While that family was destroyed by the system, certainly in CA, law enforcement learned their lesson and went into training. I think it is likely that LE weighed long and hard, given the stature of the individual, before getting the warrant, let alone making the arrest.


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The 80s were big for the satanic molestation thing. But there is still a huge amount of false molestation accusations. It’s such an easy thing to accuse someone of but it’s such a hard thing to find out the truth. You can’t ask the kids and many times even if could ask the children it wouldn’t matter as the suggestion of molestation has already been planted.


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I like the “False Reporting Law” it applies to all people filing a false report and LE as well, that good law.


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Agreed, I do trust LE now more than in the past.


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Furthermore, the investigators took their time before even arresting Donald, they had to make sure they had a solid case before arresting and broadcasting this story about a man in such high leadership roles. A story like this true or false will ruin a persons life. They were not about to go forward without a solid case. These are the facts folks……like them or not, they are GUILTY!


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L.O. had a Perv Karate instr. go to CMC for 15 yrs. awhile back, first offense even. Somebody’s goin’ bye-bye.


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willie, the McMartin case was the first long drawn out case that I watched closely. It seemed to go on forever. The judge didn’t just quickly discount the testimonies. The court appointed therapists played a large part in coaxing these kids into there molestation accusations.


They started arresting the McMartins along with other school employees from 1984 through 1987. The case lasted 3 years after that and was played out on TV day after day like the OJ case but even longer. This is a similar case:

http://www.bakersfieldnow.com/news/42838572.html


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FIRST of all……you are all rambling!! Stick to the topic. We aren’t talking about satanic rituals or INNOCENT people. I knew from the start BOTH were involved. NONE of you know anything about this case. The “male victim” was also a perpetrator with the “female victim” CLEARLY he was a victim before he turned perpetrator! ! His story came out a little later because he is now getting the help he so desperately needs and was finally able to get it off his chest. Three people out of R in a household are sleeping together and the 4th person knows nothing?? Give me a break!! Those poor children and what they have endured isunthinkable!!!! Prison will be too good for Don and Wendy and they wont last a week in there. It is so sad to think that the 2 people who are supposed to protect you, are the ones inflicting the torture upon these children. I hope they both get LIFE!! Unfortunately, the damage is done with the children. Will they ever lead “normal lives”? Probably not.


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Mercy! Things never ceased to amaze me! I don’t even know what to say


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I don’t think I’ve ever even read about a child molestation victim who was molested by a married couple, but at different times, and–apparently, I may be reading too much into this–neither spouse knew the other spouse had also molested the child.


This specific was available to the press, too, when many other aspects of the case was not available to the press.


Is it a greater charge with a greater sentence if a married couple did the molestation and both knew the other was also molesting the child? LIke a conspiracy or something.


That is just such an odd detail—why would that be available to the press?


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There is much, much more to this story than has appeared anywhere in the press. Karen, I hope you follow this story to it’s end…


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Yes–this seems like such a big story and yet there’s no mention of it in today’s Trib or on KSBY website… I also hope the CCN reporters follow up on this case.


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Color me “not surprised.”


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Often it’s because of the very sensitive nature of the charges and the age of the victim(s) involved. I am glad it is not plastered all over the place. Some things should not be sensationalized (not to imply that CCN would sensationalize, mind you).


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I’m always hesitant to make judgements in cases like this. Does anyone remember the McMartin case? The only thing this article says is that they were charged, it doesn’t say that they were convicted. Also, I have a friend who’s wife charged him with child molestation so she could get full custody of thier kids. I’ll wait to hear the evidence.


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TQueen, I remember the McMartin case.


If I remember it correctly, weren’t the children involved much younger than male child who was 12 years old when the wife molested him and 14 years old when the husband molested him?


Also, the vast majority of the charges against the McMartin school were secondary or tertiary cases (fishing nets thrown out by investigators on the first complaint).


The whole thing was in the context of the day-care molestation and satanic cult hysteria of that time, as well.


So, while I agree, these reports have to be read with the idea that everyone is innocent until proven guilty, and a wrong step by prosecution can be a slippery slope which ends in innocent adults being defamed for life by overzealous prosecutors and unethical investigations—I also think this particuar case in Templeton is unique for two issues:


1. That both the wife and husband molested the male child at different times, and neither knew the other did it, too (apparently).


2. The husband had already been charged in the molestation of a female relative.


The second go work either for the innocence or guilt of the husband–it could be a copycat claim or an instance where child molesters will usually commit more than one molestation event.


I think the Charles Manson deal was so shocking, and the findings drug out so long (Shorty Shea was not found until the late 1970s, and it seemed we heard about the Manson family at least once a month in the newspapers), that we kind of changed our thinking of what it was possible for humans to do. The fact that the Manson trial and the after-trial publicity went on for so long just kept those fears alive and, IMO, helped set us up to believe the worst of the McMartins.


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Here is the apology from the accuser of the McMartin family, they kept Raymond Bucky in a cell for the duration of the trial, hysterical belief in satanic ritual abuse LOL .


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Even teens are very suggestible. It’s very difficult as you can’t ask a child/teen if they had been molested. A properly trained therapist or parent can only wait for the child to tell them. There can be no asking, coaxing or hinting to find out info from the kids. They are very vulnerable to suggestion. In many cases including some that I’m personally familiar with you can only tell that there was molestation by the actions of the child but thats not proof and you can’t in any form come out and ask them or even use play therapy to get it out of them. Many people are also under the belief that a child can be examined by a doc to see if there was abuse but that is also a not true. All you can do is observe and wait. The age of these kids makes no difference so even thought the McMartin kids were preschoolers, teens are also suggestible.


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I understand that, especially with young children, an improper type of suggestive inquiry by investigators will actually CHANGE the memories of children so that, for the rest of their life, they remember it as it was suggested to–and reinforced by repeated questioning, testifying in court, etc.


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As if adults are not suggestible! ROTFLOL


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Who doesn’t believe evil exists?


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Temptation is aways nearby, it also surface when tempted.


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“Both Wendy and Donald Baker were released on bail.”


I smell a Roman Polanski style “Get away plan”


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Doubtful, as they are not icons in the liberal, euro-trash movie-making world.


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Oh please r0y, do you have to bring it down to a political thing? I guess I’ve given you too much credit.


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Oh phuleeeeeze. Do the words kettle and black refer you to anything?


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Where did I bring this topic up as a political issue or were you just wanting use the pot kettle thing as cute little way for attention? Where have I ever brought politics into a non political issue?


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Judge Laurence J. Rittenband tainted the case:He was removed from the case in February 1978 after a complaint filed by Polanski’s attorney and supported by the prosecutor in the case,

corrupt judge to blame, politics nil.


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Jails too good.


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