MCKINNEY, Texas — The U.S. Supreme Court Monday declined to hear the case of a former McKinney woman seeking compensation after a SWAT team “destroyed” her home while pursuing a wanted man in 2020.
The woman, Vicki Baker, petitioned the Supreme Court earlier this year. Baker's case began in July 2020, after a contractor and handyman Baker knew broke into her former home off of Vista Verde Trail after kidnapping a 15-year-old girl and barricaded himself inside, while Baker was not home, as WFAA reported at the time. The McKinney home was on the market at the time and its sale was on the verge of being finalized.
Baker’s relative called 911 and escaped while the armed man, identified as Wesley Little, remained in the home. McKinney police surrounded the home and negotiated with Little, who complied but wouldn’t surrender. SWAT made its way inside using tear gas canisters and broke doors and a fence, Baker alleges. Baker said the home sustained about $60,000 worth of damage.
Her insurance company and the city declined to cover the damage, so in March 2021, she sued. In April 2022 she won a partial summary judgment at the district court level and, in June 2022, a federal jury ruled she was entitled to nearly $60,000 in damages. But, after the city appealed that decision, in October 2023 a panel of the 5th Circuit reversed the lower court’s decision. The full Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals declined to re-hear the case in February.
“I was hoping the Supreme Court would take up my case, so what happened to me would never happen to anyone else, so it’s disappointing that they decided not to hear it,” said Vicki in a statement. “If police can destroy my home and leave me with the bill, it can happen to anyone.”
Although the Supreme Court’s decision is the final word on Vicki’s claim under the U.S. Constitution, the Institute for Justice, a nonprofit law firm representing Baker, says she still has a claim under the Texas Constitution, and they will continue to represent her.
