Rebecca Haro appeared visibly drained and worn in court, facing accusations of assisting her husband Jake in the torture and murder of their young son, Emmanuel, while fabricating a kidnapping story to hide the tragedy.
She looked particularly desperate, with dark circles under her eyes, as her attorneys went over the details regarding her upcoming trial in Riverside County Court.
No trial date has been established yet, but another hearing is set for March 26th.
Jake Haro, 32, pleaded guilty to murder last October and received a sentence of 25 years to life. In contrast, Rebecca, 41, has pleaded not guilty to murder and to making a false police report.
The troubling saga of the Haro family began in August when Rebecca reported being attacked by a Spanish-speaking man while changing Emmanuel’s diaper in a San Bernardino parking lot, claiming that she fled with the infant.
Giving a tearful interview on television, the parents pleaded for the return of their baby, but law enforcement soon found “inconsistencies” in their account, leading to their arrest on suspicion of murder.
Emmanuel’s remains have yet to be discovered, but Jake allegedly confessed to an undercover inmate that he had killed the child and disposed of the body in a trash can.
Jake Haro was already on probation for prior acts of severe child abuse. His earlier actions had left his 10-week-old daughter from another marriage with a lifelong disability.
Despite prosecutors’ efforts to send him to prison, Jake did not serve any jail time for that crime.
Prosecutors are claiming that Emmanuel experienced similar abuse and that Rebecca was complicit. Riverside County District Attorney Michael Hestrin stated in August, “We believe Emmanuel was abused over an extended period and died from injuries resulting from that abuse.”
Even from behind bars, Rebecca has maintained her kidnapping narrative. She expressed a desire to search for her baby, stating, “I’m not going to give up. I’m not going to give up on my baby,” during an interview with Southern California News Group.
Soon after Rebecca’s initial claims, Jake was observed assisting sheriff’s deputies in a search for Emmanuel’s body in a distant field. He was sentenced to 25 years in prison in November.
