NEWTON, N.C. - A North Carolina woman will spend up to 18 years in prison after pleading guilty yesterday to murdering her disabled 10-year-old stepdaughter, nearly a year after freckle-faced Zahra Baker’s disappearance and death shocked communities here and in her native Australia.
Elisa Baker, 43, sat between two defense lawyers and teared up before pleading guilty to second-degree murder, with aggravating factors that included desecrating the body of Zahra Baker, who used a prosthetic leg and hearing aids after a struggle with bone cancer.
Elisa Baker also pleaded guilty to obstruction of justice in the case, and to charges unrelated to Zahra’s death, including obtaining property by false pretenses and bigamy.
