GA - Suspicion over heat death of Cooper, 22 mo., Cobb County, June 2014, #11

[PaperDoll]

I agree that people do grieve differently but what strikes me as odd is LH's worst nightmare came true, AND, while in the possession of her husband who failed to love and protect their own child, and she isn't angry at him???? Even her own mother thought it was odd that she wasn't angry, crying, fearful, to HER OWN WORST NIGHTMARE that came true!!! and I'm sure LH's mother knows her own daughter, she raised her from birth. My mom knows me and she knows I get emotional so if I were to act differently, well I'm sure she would be surprised..

 

[JLSChook]

IMO this is part of RH's undoing. If it wasn't possible to see Cooper's head over the edge of the car seat, and this is why RH didn't see him the other times he looked to the right, then it would not have been possible for him to see it the last time he looked. You can't have it both ways.

This point is more important than almost anything in this case, IMO. You (generally) have to realize that if he could see Cooper's head by glancing right for a moment during a lane change, then he sure as hell could see him every other time he turned his head in that direction.

Backing up
Other lane changes
Making any turn (have to look both ways)

He is toast.

 

[New1]

Has anyone considered the reason he might have parked in a different spot could have been because (it appears) he was late to work that day, and someone else was already parked where he usually parks? I'm pretty sure he didn't have his own designated parking spot. Not defending him, but I don't see where and how he parked his car that day is evidence of any kind.

 

[popsicle]

Has anyone considered the reason he might have parked in a different spot could have been because (it appears) he was late to work that day, and someone else was already parked where he usually parks? I'm pretty sure he didn't have his own designated parking spot. Not defending him, but I don't see where and how he parked his car that day is evidence of any kind.

For me, it's the fact that he drove right past a spot and went back to that spot and backed in.

 

[RainCheck]

Has anyone considered the reason he might have parked in a different spot could have been because (it appears) he was late to work that day, and someone else was already parked where he usually parks? I'm pretty sure he didn't have his own designated parking spot. Not defending him, but I don't see where and how he parked his car that day is evidence of any kind.

Well, they have video of the lot that day. If ALL the parking spots were filled up were he usually parked then I don't think the DA would be putting so much importance on his parking choices they day. I'm sure they'll have video showing empty spaces closer. Also, if he wasn't normally a back in parker it's significant evidence he was attempting to conceal Cooper in the car. I would say it's actually one of the most important pieces of evidence in the case. Between where and how he parked and how visible Cooper would have been to him when he turned to look behind him as he backed up.

 

[ScarlettScarpetta]

Okay, I found it. ...

It bothered me that everyone kept saying that JH put the ill fitting rear facing car seat in his car that Cooper had outgrown. Not that I believe JH is innocent, but i get hung up on when people take liberty to re-word things because it can change the scope entirely.

I watched the live trial and picked up on the fact that Stoddard did not specify that it was JH who put the rear seat in his car. The reason I picked up on that is because part of me questions Leanna's involvement and I waffle back and forth on that. But sometimes I second guess my memory so I had to look up the transcripts.

So just to clear the record, at 3:15 during trial, Stoddard testified that the new car seat was in Leanna's car and therefore the older seat had been put back into JH's car 3 weeks earlier. And Stoddard did NOT testify by whom. I just wanted to re-balance the tilt of the facts. Carry on....

I care about the details also. It matters to me to get the little things right. I wonder how the car seat was actually installed on the seat. I am curious if it gets to court how the seat was installed and how it was used. I am sure there will be pictures of it. It will speak loudly to me.

I wonder who drove the child the most?

 

[Baznme]

For me, it's the fact that he drove right past a spot and went back to that spot and backed in.

Just throwing this out there but, I always avoided parking under trees as I think a lot of others do because of tree sap that can ruin a paint job on a car. Just saying that may have been why that spot was vacant and that he chose that particular spot having one side that would not be visible from one side by anyone passing by.

Throwing a question out here at the same time, since he backed in, with the tinted windows in the back, would it be more or less likely that someone could easily view the child in the car seat had anyone walked past the car?

 

[TorisMom003]

Of course it is possible that Harris had to park in another parking space other than the one he usually did because he was late for work. However, all of the other facts need to be looked at as well. Such as, WHY was he late for work? If he was already late for work, then WHY the stop by Chick-Fil-A? WHY did Harris drive past an empty parking spot to go to the spot that he ultimately parked in? It has been stated that Harris and Cooper were awake and watching cartoons before leaving to go to Chick-Fil-A. If there was time enough for that, then there was time enough for Harris to arrive at work on time (IMO). If Harris just had to have CFA that morning, and he was already late, why not just use the drive through instead of spending 20 minutes inside to eat? And why did Harris leave work 44-45 minutes early to go see a movie with his buddies at 5 pm?

When you look at everything that Harris did as far as his parking choice, his arrival time, his departure time, etc it points to Harris wanting as little contact by other people with his car as possible (IMO).

MOO

 

[RainCheck]

Okay, I found it. ...

It bothered me that everyone kept saying that JH put the ill fitting rear facing car seat in his car that Cooper had outgrown. Not that I believe JH is innocent, but i get hung up on when people take liberty to re-word things because it can change the scope entirely.

I watched the live trial and picked up on the fact that Stoddard did not specify that it was JH who put the rear seat in his car. The reason I picked up on that is because part of me questions Leanna's involvement and I waffle back and forth on that. But sometimes I second guess my memory so I had to look up the transcripts.

So just to clear the record, at 3:15 during trial, Stoddard testified that the new car seat was in Leanna's car and therefore the older seat had been put back into JH's car 3 weeks earlier. And Stoddard did NOT testify by whom. I just wanted to re-balance the tilt of the facts. Carry on....

I assume he is capable of removing the infant car seat and replacing it with the correct, or a correct, seat. He may possibly be hard of hearing in one ear, but it sure looks like he had two working hands and arms. Whether he literally put it in or didn't changed it out, he's just as guilty of putting his child in danger with an improperly fitting car seat. Of course, he did much worse to Cooper besides have him in an improper safety seat, but that fact alone tells me he's a neglectful parent.

 

[Bernina]

This is a REALLY compact SUV. The manufacturer takes pics at an angle with lenses that would make it seem pretty roomy, but it isn't. I wouldn't have much room putting my 2 dogs in the back seat, and they weigh 75 and 120 lbs. respectively.
Take into consideration that the car seat was facing the rear, the child's head was 2-3" inches above the back of the car seat, 6" behind the seats in the front, and the center console. Look at a ruler....2-3" and 6". The driver's seat was, no doubt, pushed back about as far as it would go because RH is a BIG boy.

I'm not buying it that he reached/swiveled over to get his laptop/work related stuff in front of the passenger seat and didn't see that blond hair on the top of his child's head, directly or indirectly through the rear view mirror, or exited the vehicle and didn't see it when he turned to shut the door. That vehicle is like a sardine can.

That's what we're dealing with, folks, 2-3" and 6". Almost the length of a credit card, and the other apprx. the height of a soda can.

 

[Kensie]

I work with people that abuse start/end working hours on a regular basis. Get to work at 9, take an hour or more for lunch and then leave at 5:00. They don't ever get a full 8 hours in.
I have worked places that really did not care when you got to work as long as it was by 9:30 (10:00) and you worked your required hours. Some jobs dont' require much interface with others and you can be flexible on start/end times.

I am not saying any of this to be agrumentive but mainly to point out things that others may not know. I work IT and I can pretty much come in and leave when I want unless there is a customer meeting.

 

[CHERIE.T]

Thanks for that.

Here's the thing though, you, actually any of us, shouldn't have to keep explaining how a forum - exchange of ideas and opinions - works for those who are being deliberately obtuse, those who either can't or won't understand that they don't get to tell others how they should think, what they should say or bang on and on the same point over and over to derail the discussion.
Moving along.

:Crown:

 

[renarde]

Has anyone considered the reason he might have parked in a different spot could have been because (it appears) he was late to work that day, and someone else was already parked where he usually parks? I'm pretty sure he didn't have his own designated parking spot. Not defending him, but I don't see where and how he parked his car that day is evidence of any kind.

You can always tell at my work who got there late: their car is usually in the row the furthest from the building. A few years ago, someone's window was broken. It was reported by someone walking in late, then it took a while to figure out whose car it was... and no one could figure out how the window was broken while the car was parked. The parking lot video did show that the landscapers had been there that morning and the window had probably been been hit by a rock from one of their trimmers.

Lots going on in parking lots... the cameras are really helpful. They are going to show RH's routine (where, when, how he usually parked on other days). I'm sure they really have only "scratched the surface."

 

[kashmir]

I'm actually opposed to the death penalty myself, but if my adult son did this um YEAH he'd be running to prison. You know I was watching a true crime episode entitled Strangers on a Train and it was pretty obvious that this man killed his former best friend (a woman) with the help of another woman and at the very end his mother took him into a room and got him to confess to the whole thing.

I really thought about what the mother did, and how she was able to get him to do it. And I think that for some of us, even if someone makes a horrible evil decision and we're at the point of seemingly no return, for some us, we'd try to salvage whatever level of redemption of human dignity may still exist in our children. I have adult children and I wouldn't want to see one of them go to prison for the rest of their life or be executed. However, I wouldn't want to continue to Cindy Anthony my way down the road. We're given one life on this planet and hedonism beckons at every corner. Encouraging and defending evil and corruption and lies in our children creates a shell of a human being beyond all meaning of the sanctity of life. I am an atheist so I don't worry about forgiveness or redemption. What I'd be worried about as a mother is the integrity of the living soul of my child. I would pull them back from the abyss of darkness and criminal behavior. I would talk them down from the ledge of total submission to evil behavior. I would plead with them to try to find in themselves that last scrap of their humanity and to come back over to humanity and be honest, tell what happened, solve the confusion, put away the lies and deceit and then find a way to strive towards being a better person.

I would not be giving them the benefit of the doubt or trying to find ways to get them out of it. Doing so would be equivalent to killing my own child in my opinion. And I really just don't understand people who think that way.

JMVHO

This reminds me so much of Desiree Young and her plea to Terri to "do it for K****, so she can see that her mom did the right thing."

Of course, it only works if the person does indeed have a conscience.

 

[alwaysonmymind]

I've seen a lot of people grieve and never seen anyone clap for a killer at his victim's funeral. Never.
I was speechless.

Right?

What the actual f$&@?? This poor babies funeral was just a front for that disturbing pep rally. moo


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[Bernina]

I was surprised at the space too. While I lean heavily toward guilt, that space looks suboptimal to me from a risk standpoint. Of course, if he came late, it might have been the best of a bad lot for a bad purpose. Still, I would have wanted the car with the least visibility to potential pedestrians and it looks like that space wasn't it.

I still think he did it, but if he did do it on purpose not every action was the perfect move to make and it's fair to examine that certainly in light of the intent issue (to me the space is suboptimal, cussing at the police and then talking to them increased his risk of getting charged, entering the car during lunch unless certain the deed was done and revealing it then was also a bad move. Those things are very dumb or go away from intent, IMO).

Tinted windows. Low profile vehicle. People going in and out of work and the parking area are concerned about getting from point "A" to point "B", not checking the contents of the vehicles they pass, and the Tucson is pretty sound proof.

 

[LinasK]

Well since we've been asked to stay on topic I'll only reply this last time. Also I'm loathe to participate in conversations where people try to make it go off topic with hyperbole. But since I don't believe in the death penalty the issue is moot anyway. It was just a figure of speech.


What I mean is, I consider it unconscionable to leave a baby to bake to death in a car (I've been pretty outspoken about this already so I won't repeat myself) And if my grown adult son did this EVEN ACCIDENTALLY I'd want him to man up and take responsibility for what he did to his child. I would of course be compassionate. But I would not waste tax payer money and put the family of his wife through all this because "my precious son can do no wrong." I taught my children to take responsibility for their mistakes and to own up and to be responsible. Not to figure out a way to make excuses and to try to get away with their mistakes.

So I think what some of us are responding to in the direct questions to me, is the idea that there is no question IMO that this is Felony Neglect with 2nd Degree Murder. I would tell my son to go to prison and find his new path in life and follow the journey that has arisen.

I would tell him to plead guilty.

Excellent post!!!:clap::clap::clap: I totally agree- my love for my daughter is CONDITIONAL- you murder somebody, you lose that love!

 

[Kensie]

I think we all agree that the funeral for this poor sweet baby was tacky and that Cooper deserved a respectable funeral.

I have to get back to work. I was hoping that new developments had been released but will check again later.

 

[Stolat]

I assume he is capable of removing the infant car seat and replacing it with the correct, or a correct, seat. He may possibly be hard of hearing in one ear, but it sure looks like he had two working hands and arms. Whether he literally put it in or didn't changed it out, he's just as guilty of putting his child in danger with an improperly fitting car seat. Of course, he did much worse to Cooper besides have him in an improper safety seat, but that fact alone tells me he's a neglectful parent.

No argument there. I just wanted to get back to the facts. It bothered me that there was quotes being throw around that just were not factual whatsoever. But I'm OCD that way .

 

[LinasK]

Okay, I found it. ...

It bothered me that everyone kept saying that JH put the ill fitting rear facing car seat in his car that Cooper had outgrown. Not that I believe JH is innocent, but i get hung up on when people take liberty to re-word things because it can change the scope entirely.

I watched the live trial and picked up on the fact that Stoddard did not specify that it was JH who put the rear seat in his car. The reason I picked up on that is because part of me questions Leanna's involvement and I waffle back and forth on that. But sometimes I second guess my memory so I had to look up the transcripts.

So just to clear the record, at 3:15 during trial, Stoddard testified that the new car seat was in Leanna's car and therefore the older seat had been put back into JH's car 3 weeks earlier. And Stoddard did NOT testify by whom. I just wanted to re-balance the tilt of the facts. Carry on....

Yeah, but Ross could have easily put back the proper fitting forward-facing seat. I think it fit in with his plans to keep Cooper in the ill-fitting rear-facing infant seat. Easier to claim you didn't see him, easier to forget. Scrunch him down tighter.