United States v. Baldwin, No. 22-1835 (7th Cir. 2023)
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Baldwin and her then-husband Taylor, sexually exploited four girls, including her daughters and her niece. They conspired to produce and distributed explicit videos—some secretly recorded—of the girls. She sexually assaulted three of them. Convicted of sexual exploitation of a minor, conspiring to produce child pornography, and possession of child pornography, 18 U.S.C. 2251(a), 2252(a)(4)(B), the district court sentenced Baldwin to 400 months’ imprisonment, below the Guidelines’ range of 1,320 months.
The Seventh Circuit affirmed, first rejecting Baldwin’s argument that the government’s decision to prosecute her was vindictive and constituted retaliation for Taylor's success in vacating his first conviction. Baldwin's indictment was five years after Taylor was first indicted. Waiting to build a stronger case before pursuing an indictment is evidence of responsible, rather than vindictive, government behavior. Taylor’s success in vacating his original conviction stemmed from his counsel’s incompetence, not missteps by the government. The court rejected Baldwin’s argument that, on a per-count basis, her sentence is roughly an order of magnitude higher than Taylor’s. A below-Guidelines sentence like Baldwin’s cannot stem from an unwarranted disparity. The difference can be explained by Taylor’s cooperation and contrition. The court declined to reweigh section 3553(a)'s factors.
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