Ex-mistress says TX minister admitted killing wife
By ANGELA K. BROWN
Associated Press Writer
WACO, Texas (AP) -- The state rested its case Tuesday in the murder trial of a Texas minister whose ex-mistress testified that he drugged his wife, handcuffed her to the bed under the guise of spicing up their marriage, then smothered her with a pillow until she died.
Vanessa Bulls said Matt Baker, then a Baptist preacher, had talked about killing his wife and making it look like a suicide. His wife, Kari Baker, had previously attempted suicide, Bulls said.
Bulls said she never reported his plans or the murder to authorities because she was afraid of exposing the affair that she said began about two months before Kari Baker's 2006 death. Bulls, 27, also said she was afraid of being arrested for not stopping Baker.
Bulls was not asked directly whether she helped Baker plan or commit the crime, but at one point she said she was only guilty of not reporting it.
Bulls said she understood "what he was capable of" but tried not to think about it as she continued seeing Baker for about three months after his wife's death. She said Baker told her he would not harm her because he was happy with her.
"He was and still is a manipulative liar who took me in my vulnerable state and made me believe everything he said," said Bulls, who has been granted immunity from prosecution.
TBO.com - News From AP
By ANGELA K. BROWN
Associated Press Writer
WACO, Texas (AP) -- The state rested its case Tuesday in the murder trial of a Texas minister whose ex-mistress testified that he drugged his wife, handcuffed her to the bed under the guise of spicing up their marriage, then smothered her with a pillow until she died.
Vanessa Bulls said Matt Baker, then a Baptist preacher, had talked about killing his wife and making it look like a suicide. His wife, Kari Baker, had previously attempted suicide, Bulls said.
Bulls said she never reported his plans or the murder to authorities because she was afraid of exposing the affair that she said began about two months before Kari Baker's 2006 death. Bulls, 27, also said she was afraid of being arrested for not stopping Baker.
Bulls was not asked directly whether she helped Baker plan or commit the crime, but at one point she said she was only guilty of not reporting it.
Bulls said she understood "what he was capable of" but tried not to think about it as she continued seeing Baker for about three months after his wife's death. She said Baker told her he would not harm her because he was happy with her.
"He was and still is a manipulative liar who took me in my vulnerable state and made me believe everything he said," said Bulls, who has been granted immunity from prosecution.
TBO.com - News From AP
