José Trinidad Marín, widely known as Trino Marin, is best remembered as the first husband of the late Mexican American singer Jenni Rivera and the father of her three eldest children. His name resurfaces online every few months, usually tied to the same three questions: what he did, whether he is still behind bars, and how his relationship with his children stands today. This guide answers all of it with verified, up to date facts, including his 2024 release from prison, a detail many older articles about him still get wrong.
Trino Marin Quick Information
- Full Name: José Trinidad Marín
- Also Known As: Trino Marin
- Date of Birth: February 15, 1964
- Age: 62 (as of 2026)
- Nationality: Mexican American
- Former Profession: Restaurant manager
- Known For: First husband of singer Jenni Rivera; convicted child sex offender
- Spouse: Jenni Rivera (married 1984, divorced 1992)
- Children: Chiquis Rivera, Jacqie Campos, Michael Marin
- Grandchildren: Five, including Jaylah Hope Yanez and Luna Amira Marín Ibarra
- Conviction: Multiple felony counts of child sexual abuse (2007)
- Sentence: 31 years in prison without parole
- Current Status: Released from custody in November 2024, according to multiple media reports
Who is Trino Marin?
Trino Marin is a Mexican American man who worked as a restaurant manager before his marriage to Jenni Rivera made him a public figure. Some biographies say he was born in Mexico and moved to the United States as a child, while others report he was born in the U.S. to Mexican immigrant parents. Either way, he grew up around Long Beach, California, where he met Rivera.
Their relationship began in the early 1980s, when Jenni was still a teenager. She became pregnant with their first child while in high school, and the couple married privately in 1984. Outside of his marriage and the criminal case that followed, Trino Marin lived a fairly private life, working steadily until his arrest changed everything.
What happened with Trino Marin?
Trino Marin was convicted in 2007 of sexually abusing two of his own daughters and his then sister in law, Rosie Rivera, over a period of years spanning the late 1980s through the 1990s.
The abuse came to light in 1997, when Rosie told Jenni what had happened. Jenni Rivera reported the allegations to police, but Trino fled before he could be arrested. He changed his identity and lived as a fugitive in Riverside County, California, for roughly nine years.
Authorities finally caught up with him in April 2006. At trial in Long Beach Superior Court, he was convicted on multiple felony counts, including lewd acts against a child. In 2007, the court sentenced him to 31 years in prison without the possibility of parole, a punishment that reflected the severity and duration of the abuse.
The case devastated the Rivera family and shaped much of Jenni Rivera’s public life afterward. She spoke openly about the trauma in interviews and later in her memoir, using her platform to support other survivors of abuse.
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What was Trino Marin’s relationship with his children?
Trino Marin’s relationship with his children, Chiquis, Jacqie, and Michael, was severed by his crimes but has partially, and controversially, been rebuilt over time.
Jacqie reportedly reconnected with her father and visited him in prison around 2017, saying she had chosen to forgive him. Chiquis addressed the abuse publicly in her 2020 memoir, Unstoppable, and later visited him in prison as part of a healing journey documented in her Vix docuseries, Chiquis Sin Filtro. Both daughters have said forgiveness helped them move forward, though neither has excused what happened.
Michael Marin has kept a lower public profile on the subject of his father, and the family’s approach to Trino remains a sensitive, sometimes divisive topic among Rivera relatives, including Rosie Rivera, who has said she does not fully trust him.
Did Trino Marin have another daughter?
Some reports claim Trino Marin fathered a fourth daughter, sometimes named “Diana,” from a relationship after his divorce from Jenni Rivera. No verified public record, court document, or confirmed family statement supports this claim, so it should be treated as an unconfirmed rumor rather than fact.
Is Trino Marin still in prison or has he been released?
Trino Marin is no longer in prison. Multiple entertainment outlets and journalists reported that he was released from custody on November 26, 2024, after serving about 18 years of his 31 year sentence.
His release reportedly followed a sentencing review rather than standard parole, meaning it was tied to a legal reassessment of his original sentence rather than a parole board decision. The news drew mixed reactions from the Rivera family. Rosie Rivera, one of his victims, previously said his eventual release was not something she could control, though she expressed discomfort with the idea. Many older articles online still describe Trino Marin as currently incarcerated; that information is outdated as of late 2024.
Was Maria Trino Marin’s wife?
There is no verified evidence that Trino Marin married a woman named Maria. His only confirmed marriage is to Jenni Rivera, from 1984 to 1992. Online searches for “Maria, esposa de Trino Marin” likely stem from speculation about his life after prison, but no court record, news report, or family confirmation supports the claim of a second wife.
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How much was Jenni Rivera’s wealth, and who received it?
Jenni Rivera had an estimated net worth of about $25 million at the time of her death in 2012. She built her fortune through her music career in banda and regional Mexican music, reality television shows such as I Love Jenni, and business ventures including a jeans line and a cosmetics brand, all managed under her company, Jenni Enterprises.
After Rivera died in a plane crash on December 9, 2012, her estate passed primarily to her five children: Chiquis, Jacqie, Michael, Jenicka, and Johnny. A handwritten note reportedly named her younger sister, Rosie Rivera, to oversee Jenni Enterprises and manage the family’s finances and business interests. Some reports noted friction over how the estate was handled in the years that followed, though the children have largely remained connected as a family and continue to protect their mother’s legacy.
Who did Jenni Rivera love?
In her posthumous memoir, Unbreakable: My Story, My Way, Jenni Rivera identified a man named Fernando, nicknamed “El Corredor,” as her one true love. He had worked as a promoter for the radio station Que Buena de Los Angeles. Rivera wrote that their connection ran deep, but his struggles with drug addiction ultimately kept the relationship from lasting.
Beyond that romance, Rivera was married three times: to Trino Marin (1984 to 1992), Juan Lopez (1997 to 2003), and baseball player Esteban Loaiza, whom she married in 2010 and was in the process of divorcing at the time of her death in 2012.
Conclusion
Trino Marin’s story is inseparable from tragedy: a teenage marriage, hidden abuse, a decade as a fugitive, a lengthy prison sentence, and, more recently, a release that reopened old wounds for the Rivera family. While his daughters Chiquis and Jacqie have spoken publicly about forgiving him, the crimes themselves remain a permanent, painful chapter in Jenni Rivera’s legacy. As new details continue to surface, including his reported 2024 release, it is worth relying on verified reporting rather than rumor, especially around unresolved questions like a possible second wife or an additional child.
FAQs
Was Trino Marin Jenni Rivera’s first husband?
Yes. Trino Marin married Jenni Rivera in 1984, when she was a teenager, making him her first husband.
How many children did Trino Marin have with Jenni Rivera?
He had three children with Jenni Rivera: Chiquis, Jacqie, and Michael Marin.
What crime was Trino Marin convicted of?
He was convicted in 2007 of multiple felony counts of child sexual abuse involving his daughters and his sister in law.
How long was Trino Marin in prison?
He served about 18 years of a 31 year sentence before being released in November 2024, according to media reports.
Is Jenni Rivera’s ex-husband alive today?
Yes. Based on the most recent reports, Trino Marin is alive and out of prison.
