Greensburg woman's appeal rejected in drug delivery resulting in death case
Oct. 27—A Westmoreland County judge on Tuesday rejected an appeal from a Greensburg woman who was sentenced to serve a 14-year prison term for the sale of heroin that caused the fatal overdose of a woman last year.
Jamie Lynn Dickant, 35, sought to rescind her guilty plea and contended she did not understand the ramifications of the deal she reached with prosecutors. She pleaded guilty last December to charges of drug delivery resulting in death and two related drug offenses in connection with the Feb. 11, 2020, overdose death of 32-year-old Justine Baker in Greensburg.
Dickant in her appeal contended she did not understand the consequences of the plea deal and she was was not properly advised by lawyers in the county's public defenders office and claimed they didn't adequately prepare her defense. She also claimed her sentence was improper because a co-defendant received a plea deal that included a substantially lighter sentence.
Police said Dickant served as the primary dealer who sold the fatal dose of fentanyl-laced heroin that investigators determined caused Baker's death.
According to court records, police contended Baker's spouse, Mary Crimboli Baker, contacted Dickant by text message and arranged to purchase 12 bags of heroin, stamped with the word "Punisher," for which she paid $60 in cash and exchanged several pills. Police said Crimboli Baker retrieved the heroin from Dickant's mailbox and was driven home, where she and Justine Baker used the drugs.
Crimboli Baker, 34, of Greensburg, told police she found her spouse unresponsive the next morning in the couple's Greensburg apartment. Justine Baker died later that day in the hospital.
Dickant was ordered to serve seven to 14 years in prison. Crimboli Baker, in March, pleaded guilty to lesser drug charges after prosecutors dismissed one count of drug delivery resulting in death. She was sentenced to serve one year, less a day, to two years less a day in jail and another two years on probation.
"The court finds Ms. Dickant's assertion that had she known her co-defendant would receive a lesser sentence the likelihood that she would have entered into her plea is minimal, has no effect on the validity of her plea or the legality of the sentence imposed," Feliciani wrote.
He said Dickant's sentence was mitigated because her plea allowed the victim's family to avoid a trial and was contingent on the prosecution's decision to not seek a jail sentence for her mother, who was also charged in connection with the overdose.
Rita Dickant, 63, of Greensburg, pleaded guilty in February to one conspiracy count and to serve up to six months in jail and paroled after she received credit for time served. Police said she is the person who placed the drugs in the mailbox for Crimboli Baker to retrieve.
Rich Cholodofsky is a Tribune-Review staff writer. You can contact Rich at 724-830-6293, rcholodofsky@triblive.com or via Twitter .
