A Delaware woman faces decades in prison after pleading guilty to kill his 3 year old daughter and dump their burnt remains on a softball field.
Kristie Haas, 31, pleaded guilty Thursday to murder by abuse or neglect, abuse of a corpse and three counts of endangering the welfare of a child. Prosecutors recommend a 50-year prison sentence on the murder charge, suspended for non-custodial supervision after 30 years behind bars. The murder charge carries a maximum sentence of life in prison. Prosecutors are recommending probation for the other charges and will drop several other felony and misdemeanor charges.
“Yes, your honor,” Haas intoned repeatedly under his breath when asked by Superior Court Judge Noel Primos if he understood the nature of the charges and the consequences of pleading guilty.
At the request of the lawyers, Primos, who is not bound by the sentencing recommendation, deferred sentencing until July 10, the date Haas’s trial was due to begin.
Prosecutor Kevin Smith said the delay will give family members of the victim, Emma Grace Cole, time to make arrangements to travel from out of state to attend the sentencing.
Meanwhile, the attorneys will prepare sentencing memoranda. Smith said prosecutors are recommending a mental health evaluation of Haas. Defense attorney Patrick Collins told the judge that Haas is already being treated for bipolar disorder and depression.
“She is up to date on her medications,” he said.
The defense and prosecution disagree on whether Haas should be barred from contact with his other three children, as prosecutors recommend, or allowed contact pursuant to court orders.
Collins declined to comment as he left the courtroom. The court issued a partial gag order in June 2021 restricting what lawyers could say about the case, which has attracted media attention.
The boy’s body was found in September 2019 by a person walking a dog at Smyrna-Clayton Little Lass Fields, a softball park near Smyrna High School in central Delaware. At the time, Emma was living with her parents and siblings less than a mile from the playing field. Authorities believe Emma had been dead for several weeks before her body was found.
Haas and her husband, Brandon Haas, the girl’s stepfather, were arrested in Pennsylvania in October 2020, more than a year after the girl’s body was found. Both were originally charged with felony child abuse, child endangerment and hindering prosecution related to Emma’s death, as well as lesser child endangerment charges involving their siblings.
Kristie Haas was also charged with felony assault, abuse of a corpse, and reckless burning. The charges against her were later updated to include two counts of murder.
Authorities alleged that the couple withheld food and medical care from Emma and subjected her to “torture or mistreatment,” while subjecting her and her siblings to excessive forced exercise and inappropriate physical discipline.
Brandon Haas’s trial is scheduled to begin on July 10. He faces more than 40 years in prison if he is found guilty on all counts.
2023-05-25 22:50:07
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