GA - Suspicion over heat death of Cooper, 22 mo., Cobb County, June 2014, #10

[RainCheck]

Am I supposed to be somehow impressed by it? And it wasn't his bio son, he adopted him from Russia. Russia stopped all adoptions to US largely because of this guy.

That story makes me sick! What a terrible, short life that poor orphan had. First he's abandoned at an orphanage where he isn't held or played with and then he's adopted by advanced aged parents who were too focused on their careers to take time to have biological children. Finally, he's left in a hot car to roast to death in complete agony. I really hope there's a heaven so I can imagine he's in bliss there! Poor little guy never knew anything but abandonment and pain.

 

[LinasK]

The point I'm trying to make is that straps being in the lowest slot did not make it harder for him to get out. There's a good chance he was able to wiggle his arms free because the straps were in the lowest slot. I just don't think that there was anything deliberately sinister about the choice or method of car seat use. Maybe the rear facing part, but just maybe. Sure he didn't fit the seat, but it's use is more a demonstration of ignorance or laziness than anything else, IMHO.

I disagree. I think the switch back to the smaller, infant seat which is rear-facing, when he had one that fit him was part of the premeditated plan. Make him harder to see/smaller, scrunched down. Easier to "forget". And tighter to get out of.

 

[LinasK]

I think there are better tests than that

http://www.asha.org/public/hearing/Types-of-Tests-Used-to-Evaluate-Hearing/

Okay, Pure-Tone testing was the kind I used to administer. I did screenings only.

 

[cluciano63]

Imo, defense will say car seat was switched because they somehow felt it was safer and they would be less likely to forget him, since they were so concerned and had googled the issue. They will make it out to be a mistake, but with the best intentions.

 

[PigPong]

The defense will say he forgot about the buckling up.

And the state will have a demonstration with a dummy baby Cooper's size and that car seat show how difficult it must have been to strap him in that was....

 

[RainCheck]

Delete

 

[RainCheck]

I disagree. I think the switch back to the smaller, infant seat which is rear-facing, when he had one that fit him was part of the premeditated plan. Make him harder to see/smaller, scrunched down. Easier to "forget". And tighter to get out of.

I completely agree! We switched my son to a larger convertible car seat at Christmas when he was 14 months old. He was in an a safety 1st onboard air 35 and we switched him to a Chicco Nextfit in his dad's car and Radian RXT in mine. He hadn't outgrown his infant seat yet, but it was getting uncomfortably tight already! His dad and I are both only 5'6 and I'm a size 4 so our son is a small guy, but he was already uncomfortable at 14 months in that infant seat. I can't even imagine squeezing him in it now at 21 months. There could not be a good reason to put him back in it! It was much smaller than his new car seats! His new car seats are huge and stick up in clear view outside of the car and come up in between the from seats. His infant seat was much less visible outside of our SUV's!

 

[PigPong]

Ok, here's a fun exercise we had to do in paralegalnclass. Pretend you are RH'S defense attorney. With the info right now, what would be your strategy? This was always a fun activity. I have to be up at 5 (been working on resumes) and it's already almost 2:30.

I'm really curious to see how you all think, even if you believe the guy is guilty as sin.

It's a fun way to rack your brain and gives ideas on what the State could/should counter with.

I can't do it till tomorrow when I get off work but I was hope to get the ball rolling with you fine folks!

 

[jjenny]

Ok, here's a fun exercise we had to do in paralegalnclass. Pretend you are RH'S defense attorney. With the info right now, what would be your strategy? This was always a fun activity. I have to be up at 5 (been working on resumes) and it's already almost 2:30.

I'm really curious to see how you all think, even if you believe the guy is guilty as sin.

It's a fun way to rack your brain and gives ideas on what the State could/should counter with.

I can't do it till tomorrow when I get off work but I was hope to get the ball rolling with you fine folks!

Rather clearly, claim he did forget he left his child in car, strapped in an infant seat. What other strategy can there be? Unless he makes a plea deal.

 

[jjenny]

Imo, defense will say car seat was switched because they somehow felt it was safer and they would be less likely to forget him, since they were so concerned and had googled the issue. They will make it out to be a mistake, but with the best intentions.

Seems like rear facing seat would make it easier to forget him, not harder.

 

[jjenny]

That story makes me sick! What a terrible, short life that poor orphan had. First he's abandoned at an orphanage where he isn't held or played with and then he's adopted by advanced aged parents who were too focused on their careers to take time to have biological children. Finally, he's left in a hot car to roast to death in complete agony. I really hope there's a heaven so I can imagine he's in bliss there! Poor little guy never knew anything but abandonment and pain.

ITA. It boggles my mind that it's always seems to be used as an example how someone can forget their child in the car. If you ask me, this guy had no business adopting this poor child to begin with, if he is so forgetful he couldn't remember he left poor child in the car to roast to death. Russians were outraged he was found not guilty and stopped all adoptions to US using this case as an example of how Americans treat Russian children.

 

[LinasK]

Imo, defense will say car seat was switched because they somehow felt it was safer and they would be less likely to forget him, since they were so concerned and had googled the issue. They will make it out to be a mistake, but with the best intentions.

Not gonna work. It was unsafe because it was an infant seat he had outgrown. Now if they had bought a new rear-facing seat that accomodated toddlers, then they might have had a case...

 

[RainCheck]

Ok, here's a fun exercise we had to do in paralegalnclass. Pretend you are RH'S defense attorney. With the info right now, what would be your strategy? This was always a fun activity. I have to be up at 5 (been working on resumes) and it's already almost 2:30.

I'm really curious to see how you all think, even if you believe the guy is guilty as sin.

It's a fun way to rack your brain and gives ideas on what the State could/should counter with.

I can't do it till tomorrow when I get off work but I was hope to get the ball rolling with you fine folks!

I don't think the defense has anything other than partial hearing loss. With the current charges the DA doesn't even have to prove intent, only neglect. I mean they can't even try to say he was a sex addict and that's why he was distracted and forgot his son because that would still be neglect! I mean seriously, all they can try to say is he forgot him, but once again why did he forget him? We know it wasn't because he was thinking about work! He was sexting women for most of the day and that is not going to work as an excuse for forgetting his son!

 

[gngr~snap]

I worked in daycare on a work release program in high school (we only had to go half the day) and several summers. Then for a year and half full-time both in the infant and toddler rooms.
This was 1983-1987.

Even back then, if dad dropped off and mom picked up, but there was only one car seat, it stayed with the child.

We had them lined up!
When I had kids, we had 2 car seats in each car.
It was harder to buckle the seats in, and I didn't.have the infant seat that could be removed from it's base.

Why wouldn't they have 2 seats.
They had 7 computers/tablets/ electronic devices!
Priorities people...

 

[Karmady]

ITA. It boggles my mind that it's always seems to be used as an example how someone can forget their child in the car. If you ask me, this guy had no business adopting this poor child to begin with, if he is so forgetful he couldn't remember he left poor child in the car to roast to death. Russians were outraged he was found not guilty and stopped all adoptions to US using this case as an example of how Americans treat Russian children.

Stopped all adoptions? Do you have a link? But even if they did, that's quite rich considering how much of the deliberate, knowing and intentional abuse of abandoned children happens there. It's the RAD capitol of the world. I'd never even heard of RAD until I heard about Russian adoptions. One of which is what makes me wonder whether the adoptions were actually stopped, for how long and why. It was pretty recently that a US adoptive mother put her Russian child back on a plane to Russia by herself.

 

[RainCheck]

ITA. It boggles my mind that it's always seems to be used as an example how someone can forget their child in the car. If you ask me, this guy had no business adopting this poor child to begin with, if he is so forgetful he couldn't remember he left poor child in the car to roast to death. Russians were outraged he was found not guilty and stopped all adoptions to US using this case as an example of how Americans treat Russian children.

Some people are not meant to be parents, but they just had to get a baby, somehow, someway, no matter what. Then they get him and still carry on as busy and career focused as they ever were. He forgot his son because he was on the phone dealing with business! It's infuriating! He should have been found guilty of something! I don't care how sad the guy acted, it could never be sad enough!

 

[Karmady]

That story makes me sick! What a terrible, short life that poor orphan had. First he's abandoned at an orphanage where he isn't held or played with and then he's adopted by advanced aged parents who were too focused on their careers to take time to have biological children. Finally, he's left in a hot car to roast to death in complete agony. I really hope there's a heaven so I can imagine he's in bliss there! Poor little guy never knew anything but abandonment and pain.

bbm

that's quite the inappropriate judgment right there, imo.

 

[RainCheck]

Stopped all adoptions? Do you have a link? But even if they did, that's quite rich considering how much of the deliberate, knowing and intentional abuse of abandoned children happens there. It's the RAD capitol of the world. I'd never even heard of RAD until I heard about Russian adoptions. One of which is what makes me wonder whether the adoptions were actually stopped, for how long and why. It was pretty recently that a US adoptive mother put her Russian child back on a plane to Russia by herself.

They were stopped due to the death of the child in the car, the woman who adopted young brothers and beat one of them to death and the woman who put her son on a plane to a Russian with a note. I don't understand your line of thinking? Are you saying because the Russians have issues with RAD, it makes it okay that people adopt Russian children only to kill them later? Also, RAD was a huge issue at one point because of the huge influx of babies conceived through rape during the war in the former Yugoslavia. I can't imagine our foster system would fair much better if it happened here.

Here's info on the date Russia passed a bill banning adoptions to the US...

http://www.cnn.com/2012/12/28/world/europe/russia-us-adoptions/

This is getting way off topic though! Shouldn't we be focusing on Cooper Harris and other hot cars deaths?

 

[momrids6]

I don't think the defense has anything other than partial hearing loss. With the current charges the DA doesn't even have to prove intent, only neglect. I mean they can't even try to say he was a sex addict and that's why he was distracted and forgot his son because that would still be neglect! I mean seriously, all they can try to say is he forgot him, but once again why did he forget him? We know it wasn't because he was thinking about work! He was sexting women for most of the day and that is not going to work as an excuse for forgetting his son!

bbm: It's irrelevant why he forgot him. ( which he didn't, imo.) It's negligent to leave your kid in a car all day to roast to death - accidental or not.

 

[RainCheck]

bbm

that's quite the inappropriate judgment right there, imo.

It's right on point and exactly what happened whether you find it political incorrect or not!