Parents May Be Tried Separately in Girl’s Death

An Oxnard couple facing murder charges in connection with the beating death of their 2-year-old daughter may have to be prosecuted separately now that the mother has accused her husband of abusing her and the child, attorneys said Monday.

Gabriela Hernandez’s declaration Saturday that she was a battered woman roused the concern of domestic violence advocates, who say she should not face murder charges in the June 1996 death.

But they acknowledge she could face an uphill battle proving her allegations because she never sought help from police or local hospitals.

And her father-in-law, Juan Hernandez, said Monday he never saw his son hit Gabriela Hernandez and contended that her accusations are simply an attempt to save herself from going to prison.

“Those are lies she is telling,” he said. “Only a few months ago, she wrote some love letters to Rogelio, telling him that she loved him.”

Gabriela Hernandez said Saturday in a jail interview that her husband, Rogelio, regularly beat her and their daughter, Joselin.

The toddler died last year as a result of blunt-force injuries to her stomach that prosecutors say were inflicted by her 19-year-old parents.

Both Gabriela and Rogelio Hernandez have been ordered to stand trial on murder and felony child abuse charges, and the father faces an additional charge of torture for injuries Joselin suffered as an infant. Both have pleaded not guilty, and their joint trial is set to begin July 7.

But that may change because of Gabriela Hernandez’s statements to the press, Deputy Dist. Atty. Dee Corona said Monday.

“I suspect that the defendants will have to be tried separately at this point because of the statements Gabriela made,” Corona said.

Under the law, Corona explained, the statement of one defendant cannot be used against the other unless the person testifies.

Corona said she was unsure what the next step in the case might be, adding that she needs to first talk to Gabriela’s defense attorney, William C. Maxwell.

Whether a plea arrangement can be reached in exchange for Gabriela Hernandez’s testimony remains a question.

“We haven’t talked about it, and he needs to approach me about it,” Corona said.

Reached by phone Monday afternoon, Maxwell declined to comment on the case but said he does expect to talk to prosecutors soon.

“I haven’t decided anything yet,” he said, adding, “I don’t try my cases in the press.”

Meanwhile, his client’s statements to the media drew the attention of advocates for battered women, who pledged to seek counseling for Gabriela Hernandez.

The Oxnard mother complained in the interview that she was not receiving any counseling or help to deal with the death of her child or the alleged beatings she suffered at her husband’s hands.

“If she is not getting the services she needs, something needs to be done about it,” said Barbara Marquez O’Neill of Interface Children Family Services, a battered women and children’s social service agency.

“She needs to have somebody contact her, and we will definitely coordinate and facilitate that process,” she said.

In addition, members of the Farm Worker Women’s Leadership Project in Ventura County say they are planning to see what they can do to support Gabriela Hernandez.

Though Hernandez said Saturday that she was regularly beaten by her husband, she acknowledged that she never contacted police or turned to a hospital or emergency shelter.

At least two witnesses have said they saw Rogelio Hernandez hit his wife on separate occasions. But without a paper trail in the courts and hospitals, advocates say her defense as a battered woman could be difficult to prove.

“Those records are very, very important,” said Shakti Chen, who is starting a national battered women’s awareness and education program with Denise Brown, sister of the late Nicole Brown Simpson. “It is very important to have things documented.”

Chen questioned why prosecutors charged Gabriela Hernandez with murder rather than a lesser charge for failing to protect the infant.

She pointed to the 1987 case of Hedda Nussbaum, a New York woman originally charged with murder for failing to protect her adopted child, Lisa Steinberg, from her lover’s beatings.

Nussbaum, who was viciously beaten by her live-in companion, Joel Steinberg, testified against him and was not prosecuted in Lisa’s death. She was later sent to a hospital for intensive psychiatric treatment and was released after a year of therapy.

In arguing their case against Joel Steinberg, prosecutors said Hedda Nussbaum was beaten so severely that she became “physically and mentally incapacitated” and was not “criminally responsible” for the 6-year-old girl’s death.

Chen said battered women often do not come to their children’s defense for fear of their lives.

“The only way to survive is to side with the abuser, the aggressor,” she said. “It is a very, very strange phenomenon where their survival depends on being neutral. Their survival instinct is primal, which is strange because we think of the maternal instinct as being so strong.”

In addition to witnesses who testified that they saw Rogelio Hernandez strike his wife, her father, Miguel Nieto, said in an interview that he saw bruises and scratches on his daughter, which led him to believe she was abused.

Gabriela Hernandez said in Saturday’s interview that if she tried to defend Joselin, Rogelio Hernandez would only beat the child more severely and then assault her as well.