Texas cancer survivor Vicki Baker whose home was destroyed by SWAT team using explosives, toxic gas and armored vehicles in pursuit of armed fugitive has her $60k compensation claim REJECTED

A cancer survivor has vowed to challenge an appeals court ruling that says she is not entitled to a $60,000 payout after a SWAT team destroyed her home with explosives, toxic gas and armored vehicles while carrying an armed fugitive pursued.

The 5th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled last month that it was necessary for police to use the measures to resolve a July 2020 standoff at Vicki Baker’s home and that she should not be compensated for the damages — ending a previous decision in her favor was reversed by a federal judge.

Lawyers from the Institute for Justice, who represent Baker, have asked the court for a new hearing and are prepared to take the case to the Supreme Court.

Her home in McKinney, Texas, was virtually demolished after she called 911 to warn them that an armed fugitive was at her home.

Wesley Little, a man who had worked on her property, burst into the property while Baker’s adult daughter was home, with a teenage girl he had kidnapped.

Baker’s daughter, Deanna Cook, was the only person in the home at the time, but knew Little was on the run with the girl after seeing information from the teen’s mother on Facebook.

Cook let the couple into the house, claiming she had to go to the store and left. That’s when she called her mother and the authorities.

Baker, Cook and police met at a local WalMart, where the homeowner provided the code that gave authorities access to her home.

Police arrived at the property and surrounded it, awaiting the teenage girl’s release.

The teen was eventually able to leave the property and alert authorities that Little had seven firearms in him. He later took his own life.

The original lawsuit filed by Baker alleging violations of her Fifth Amendment rights stated: “Ultimately, the McKinney Police Department decided to storm the house, using highly destructive tactics.

“They knocked down the backyard fence with a BearCat (essentially a tank). They shot about thirty tear gas canisters through the windows of the house. They broke the front door and the garage door.”

‘The damage to the house was extensive. Every window had to be replaced. A hazmat remediation team had to clean the entire house because of the tear gas. Equipment has been destroyed.”

Vicki Baker’s home in McKinney, Texas, was virtually demolished on July 25, 2020, after she called 911 to tell them about the armed fugitive

Police arrived at the house and surrounded it, waiting for the teenage girl’s release

In the original lawsuit, Baker said officers knocked down the backyard fence with a BearCat, seen here, and fired about 30 tear gas canisters through the home’s windows.

The lawsuit continued: “The front door and garage needed to be replaced. Tear gas canisters had punched through the drywall.

‘Carpets, blinds and ceiling fans needed replacing. The damage was at least $50,000.”

Speaking about the incident, Baker said Fox news: ‘What I was told was that they did a lot of that to confuse the perpetrator inside.

“They call it shock and awe, doing all that damage to my house. He apparently committed suicide.

“Tear gas got to my daughter’s little chihuahua, so he had to be put to sleep. Everything you have in your home is gone.”

Her insurance policy excluded damage caused by the government, so Baker tried to file a property damage claim with the city, which refused to pay out.

Baker then sued the city with the help of the Institute of Justice, which successfully argued that the city had the right to seize the property but should be compensated.

Carpets, blinds and ceiling fans had to be replaced, with damage totaling at least $50,000

The city of McKinney and Baker’s homeowner’s insurance company told her police had “immunity” from having to pay for the carnage they left behind

The city then offered to pay out the full amount of damages, but Baker’s attorneys refused to settle until the city changed its policy so it wouldn’t happen again.

A federal judge also sided with Baker, and a jury awarded her $59,656.59 in damages.

The city subsequently appealed this decision, and the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals overturned the earlier ruling.

In a lawsuit seen by Fox last month, they said: ‘As a matter of history and precedent, the Takings Clause does not require compensation for damaged or destroyed property when it was objectively necessary for officers to actively damage or destroy that property . state of emergency to prevent imminent harm to persons.’

As a result, the Institute for Justice is asking the courts to rehear the case and plans an appeal to the Supreme Court, Fox said.

According to her attorney Jeffrey Redfern, Baker will eventually be paid for her troubles after she wins her lawsuit under the U.S. Constitution.

The appeals court’s reversal applies only to her Fifth Amendment claim, which states that private property “shall not be taken for public use, without just compensation.”