Riverside County sued for negligence, leading to death of baby Emmanuel Haro, lawsuit says

Attorneys representing Emmanuel Haro's 3-year-old claimed Riverside County failed to protect the children from their abusive parents, ultimately leading to the 7-month-old's death last year. 

"The County's failure to timely intervene cost [Emmanuel Haro's sister] her relationship with her brother and Emmanuel his life," attorneys wrote in the complaint. 

In the complaint, the attorneys argued that Riverside County's Department of Public Social Services (DPSS) failed to follow its own protocols and botched risk assessments after law enforcement found a gun in Rebecca Haro's purse in July 2024, less than a year before Emmanuel Haro was born. 

The discovery violated her husband Jake Haro's probation stemming from his 2023 child cruelty conviction. 

"They were dealing with a guy, Jake Haro," attorney Roger Booth said. "Someone who had caused really catastrophic injuries to his child in 2018. This girl ended up paralyzed. She ended up blind. Not only was she taken from his custody, but his two other children at the time were taken from his custody permanently."

Booth's team added that a DPSS social worker visited the family 18 days later and determined that there were no safety threats at the home, even though law enforcement found a firearm that Emmanuel Haro's sister could have accessed. The social worker also "ignored the fact, or was not aware of the fact" that Jake Haro had been convicted of child cruelty. 

"Had she done the risk assessment correctly, it would have come out at the end with a score indicating there was a very high risk of future abuse," Booth said. "By their own policies, that would have required them to open a case, meaning go to court. Get the judge involved, and exercise oversight over this family. And they didn't do that."

Another social worker took over the investigation later that month and determined that Rebecca Haro had neglected her children by an improperly secured gun in the home, but the county deemed the situation as stabilized and did not take any further steps, according to the lawsuit.

Booth said Jake Haro physically abused the children after the investigation. His team added that Emmanuel Haro's sister was subjected to horrific abuse and watched her brother die as a result of their parents' neglect. They argued that Riverside County could have prevented Emmanuel Haro's death. 

"His sister would have been spared, not only the loss of her brother, but the abuse that it appears that she suffered," Booth said. "We think it's more likely than not that those things would have happened."

In a statement, DPSS said the county had not received the lawsuit but will review it when it arrives. 

"Riverside County is deeply concerned whenever any child is harmed and takes every allegation of child abuse or neglect very seriously," DPSS wrote in a statement. "We understand the community's interest in the wellbeing of Riverside County children who may have received services from the Department of Public Social Services. State law prohibits the disclosure or confirmation of such information."

Jake and Rebecca Haro pleaded guilty to killing Emmanuel Haro after initially claiming someone had kidnapped their son. 

Jake Haro was sentenced to 25 years to life in prison for his son's murder. Rebecca Haro was sentenced to 12 years and eight months in prison.

Emmanuel Haro's remains have yet to be located.