How do you send a news tip to The Desert Sun?
How do you send a news tip to The Desert Sun? Read on and you’ll learn what makes a good tip, and who to email it to.
(This story was updated with new information.)
Jake Haro was sentenced to 25 years to life in prison Monday for killing his infant son, Emmanuel Haro, who went missing in August and whose remains have yet to be found.
Jake Haro and Emmanuel’s mother, Rebecca Haro, were accused of murdering the 7-month-old boy and falsely reporting to police that he’d been kidnapped. Rebecca Haro’s case remains open and she is next set to appear in court in February.
On Monday afternoon, Jake Haro’s head slumped as Judge Gary Polk read his sentence during a Superior Court hearing at the Riverside Justice Center. In addition to 25 years to life for assault on a child resulting in death, he was ordered to serve 180 days for filing the false police report and to six years, eight months for a firearm charge in a prior case. The three sentences will be served consecutively, for a total sentence of just over 32 years to life.
Haro, 32, had the chance to speak in court before he was sentenced, but declined.
He pleaded guilty on Oct. 16 to felony charges of second-degree murder and assault resulting in the death of a child under 8 years old, and a misdemeanor charge of falsely reporting a crime to police.
Rebecca Haro’s mother, Mary Beushausen, said during the hearing that she was frustrated that the court system had allowed Jake Haro to been released on probation for a previous abuse conviction. She told the judge that Jake Haro kept her daughter from her and hid the truth of the severity of the child abuse.
“He didn’t give his children a second chance,” Beushausen said, asking the judge for the maximum sentence. “He didn’t give my daughter a second chance.”
The Haros became the focus of national media attention when they first said Emmanuel had been kidnapped in a store parking lot on Aug. 14. Rebecca Haro, 41, told sheriff’s deputies she was knocked unconscious near a Yucaipa shopping center while changing her baby’s diaper. When she came to, she said, the boy was gone.
Police said they identified discrepancies in her account and she and Jake Haro were arrested Aug. 22. The two pleaded not guilty and were being held on $1 million bail each, until Jake Haro changed his plea.
Riverside County District Attorney Mike Hestrin said, during a press conference soon after the arrest, that Emmanuel was likely subject to severe abuse that resulted in his death. Hestrin added that Jake Haro had a previous child abuse conviction, for which he was on probation when the baby is believed to have been killed sometime between Aug. 5 and Aug. 14.
Hestrin has said that investigators believe they know where the child was left, but his remains have yet to be found. Jake Haro was seen after his arrest with deputies apparently searching a remote area of Riverside County.
“The lies told in this case only deepened the tragedy of Emmanuel’s death,” Hestrin said in a statement after Monday’s hearing. “While today’s sentence represents a measure of accountability for Jake Haro, our office will continue to seek justice as the case against his co-defendant moves forward.”
Christopher Damien covers public safety and the criminal justice system for The Desert Sun. He can be reached at christopher.damien@desertsun.com.
