Update, Jan. 13, 8:15 a.m.: Adam Randy Baker, who is accused of stabbing a man to death with a knife and hospitalizing another in the early hours of New Year's Day, is out of jail after paying $1 million bail on Wednesday.
After recovering for days in the hospital from injuries incurred to his head and face, Baker was booked and released at the Santa Ana Jail on Wednesday morning.
Baker pleaded not guilty at his arraignment; a pretrial hearing is set for March 4.
Further details of the incident are in the earlier posts, after the jump.
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In a report by The Orange County Register, police found Baker to have no serious criminal record, aside from driving violations in 2003 and minor charges that were later dismissed.
Friends of Robert Sickles, the 27-year-old man who was killed, put together the following video, which the Weekly found on YouTube. The video includes photos of Sickles and comments from those close to the Mission Viejo resident. Other videos were also created.
Update, Jan. 4, 11:15 a.m.: Adam Randy Baker, 23, has been charged with murdering one man and stabbing another, following a New Year's Eve hotel party in Costa Mesa. If convicted, Baker faces a maximum sentence of 23 years to life in a state prison.
The People are asking for a $1 million bail at the arraignment, though a date and time are not yet set.
Details of the incident, from the OC district attorney's office report
Around 2 a.m. on Jan. 1, Baker was sitting on a bench near the valet booth of the Hilton on Bristol Street.
Baker is accused of flicking his cigarette at a group of men as they exited the hotel, as well as starting a verbal argument with 27-year-old Robert Sickles.The defendant allegedly approached Sickles and started a physical fight by pushing him. According to accusations, Baker then pulled out a knife, slashing the victim across the chest and stabbing him one time in the chest. Sickles' friend, 26-year-old Brian McTeigue, attempted to intervene to protect his friend; Baker is also accused of stabbing McTeigue one time in the back.
Friends of Sickles and McTeigue got involved and detained Baker. Members of the Costa Mesa Police Department were already on location, responding to other disturbances, and responded immediately.
Sickles and McTeigue were transported to Western Medical Center in Santa Ana, where Sickles was pronounced dead on arrival. McTeigue's injuries were not life-threatening.
Baker was transported to Mission Hospital to be treated for facial fractures sustained after the stabbing. Apparently, details are lacking about what transpired between the time of the stabbing and the cops taking him into custody.
Baker will be taken into custody again once he is discharged from the hospital.
Original Post, Jan. 1, 8:05 p.m.: In what police are calling the first Orange County murder of the year, Mission Viejo resident Robert Sickles, 27, was stabbed in the chest outside the Hilton Hotel in Costa Mesa on Saturday morning while attending a New Year's Eve party.
Sickles was allegedly stabbed by Adam Baker, 23, of Dana Point, following an altercationnear the valet booth in the parking lot. The incident occurred around 2 a.m. Both had attended the party at the Hilton.
Sickles was pronounced dead upon arrival at Western Medical Center.
Another Mission Viejo resident, Brian McTeigue, 26, was also involved in the fight and was stabbed in the back by Baker. McTeigue was also taken to the hospital, though his injuries were not life-threatening.
Baker was treated for his injuries and is in police custody and facing charges of homicide and attempted homicide. He is being held on a $1 million bond.
According to one individual, the party, which supposedly attracted nearly 1,000 attendees, was already in the process of being shut down by fire marshals.
This is wildly inaccurate. Could have simply asked me what happened. This should be taken down.