Timothy B. Baskin Jr. appears for his May 26, 2022, arraignment before Saginaw County District Judge M. Randall Jurrens.

SAGINAW, MI — Six days after Saginaw’s fifth homicide of the year, a suspect in the fatal shooting has been charged with murder.

Saginaw County District Judge M. Randall Jurrens on Thursday, May 26, arraigned 27-year-old Timothy B. Baskin Jr. on single counts of open murder, assault with intent to murder, felon in possession of a firearm, and felon in possession of ammunition, plus four counts of felony firearm.

Open murder contains first- and second-degree murder, both of which are life offenses though a conviction of the former mandates a prison sentence of life without the possibility of parole. A felony firearm conviction likewise has a mandatory prison sentence, that of two years consecutive to any related stint.

The charges relate to a double-shooting that occurred on Friday, May 20. About 6:45 p.m., police responded to the reported outdoor shooting in a residential area in 3600 block of Fulton Street. They arrived to find two men suffering from gunshot wounds.

One of the two, 33-year-old Brandon L. Patterson, had been shot multiple times. He was taken to Ascension St. Mary’s hospital, where he died of his injuries despite life-saving efforts.

The second victim, age 32, was hospitalized for treatment of non-life-threatening injuries.

Investigators with the Saginaw Major Case Unit, comprising Saginaw Police Department and Michigan State Police detectives, developed Baskin as a suspect.

During a traffic stop on Sunday, May 22, the Michigan State Police 3rd District Fugitive Team arrested Baskin on charges related to the shooting.

Saginaw County Chief Assistant Prosecutor Blair N. Stevenson said the shooting apparently resulted from “a dice game that went bad.” He added it is unclear whether or not Patterson was involved in the game when the shooting started.

Whether or not Baskin and Patterson knew each other is also unknown.

“It’s unclear what their relationship was, whether they knew each other in passing or whether they knew each other at all,” Stevenson said.

The prosecutor added the handgun Baskin is believed to have used has not been recovered by police.

Patterson had previously survived a shooting that occurred April 24, 2020. Police found him wounded in the parking lot of Holiday Dollar at 3411 E. Genesee Ave. The suspect in that case, Jamal K. Lynn, remains jailed on assault with intent to murder and firearm charges as he awaits trial.

Prior to his arraignment, Baskin was held in the Saginaw County Jail on a probation violation.

A Saginaw County judge in September sentenced Baskin to two years of probation on a conviction of third-degree fleeing and eluding police. Baskin has prior convictions of assaulting police and carrying a concealed weapon, for which he also received probationary terms.

At the Wednesday arraignment, defense attorney James F. Gust said Baskin has lived his entire life in Saginaw and has a large family. He asked the judge to enter a not-guilty plea on Baskin’s behalf.

Judge Jurrens denied granting Baskin bond and scheduled his case for a pre-examination conference at 9:15 a.m. on June 16.

A GoFundMe page has been started by a cousin of Patterson’s to help raise money for funeral expenses. Paradise Funeral Chapel is handling arrangements for Patterson’s funeral, specifics of which have yet to be disclosed.

Patterson’s death is the city’s fifth homicide of the year and the ninth for the county as a whole. Of the city’s five homicides, four involved gunfire.

Last year, Saginaw recorded 19 homicides, six of which had occurred by the end of May. All but one of the 19 homicides involved gunfire.

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