Michael Christian has taken a meticulous look at the search warrants, what we know has been obtained by police, as we do a ride-along, following in police footsteps, retracing Daddy`s movements that morning.
Michael Christian, I find it extremely interesting and possibly probative that they look in the car and take measurements. How can measurements prove a case, inches and feet? Also, I learned they seized Cooper`s carseat. Why?
MICHAEL CHRISTIAN, NANCY GRACE PRODUCER (via telephone): That`s right, Nancy. You know, with the measurements -- this is a small SUV and it`s going to be pivotal in this case, how far that back seat, that child seat is from the front seat, because that certainly makes a differenceabout what Justin Ross Harris would or wouldn`t have seen. They also checked the inside of that SUV for fingerprints, blood, DNA, hair and fibers.
GRACE: Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa! Did you just say blood?
CHRISTIAN: Fingerprints, blood, DNA, hair and fibers, according to the search warrant.
GRACE: OK, hold on. Dr. Bill Manion, medical examiner, pathologist joining me out of Philly tonight. Dr. Manion, if the child had died of heat stroke, would you expect to find blood or vomit?
DR. BILL MANION, MEDICAL EXAMINER/FORENSIC PATHOLOGIST (via telephone): I may see vomit with aspiration of vomit, but I would not expect to find blood. That`s not one of the autopsy findings.
GRACE: What do you mean by aspiration of vomit?
MANION: The child would vomit when he`s in extreme discomfort, extreme suffering, and then as he breathes in, he breathes the vomit down his trachea, into his lungs.
GRACE: Dr. Manion, with heat stroke -- the temperatures were in the 90s that day -- how long would it have taken the child to have heat stroke and die?
MANION: I think within 30 to 60 minutes. The temperature in that car would rise very quickly, and once that child reaches 107 degrees, that`s by definition heat stroke and you`re basically cooking your brain. There are specific autopsy findings in heat stroke, including right-sided cardiac...
GRACE: Whoa, whoa, whoa! Wait a minute! I`m just a JD, not an MD. What? What did you say?
MANION: Well, there are -- there are specific findings. The right side of the heart will be dilated, meaning the right atrium and right ventricle. You`ll see hemorrhage inside the heart, the lining of the heart inside, and venous distension in the veins in the brain.
It`s like the veins are dilating, trying to give off heat. It`s one of the mechanisms the body uses to give off heat. The peripheral veins on the outside of the body will dilate and will try -- will sweat. And the baby was probably panting also in an effort to get rid of all this excess
DR. BILL MANION, MEDICAL EXAMINER FORENSIC PATHOLOGIST: The temperature will rise very quickly in the car and when the temperature of the body is 108 degrees that will be hyper thermic death basically. And as the body is dying, the veins are dilating trying to give off heat. So, there are specific pathologic findings at the autopsy. They should also do a drug screen to make sure this baby wasn`t sedated and left in the car.
GRACE: Whoa. OK. All right. I haven`t even thought of that. A drug screen, a drug screen, sedated. What do you mean? Sedated with what?
MANION: Well, perhaps if he was sedated with some kind of a tranquilizer, something to (inaudible) to make him unconscious so that he wouldn`t suffer. That would be significant finding.
GRACE: Hold on. Defense Journey Peter Odom waving, he`s got a question, what is it Peter?
PETER ODOM, DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Dr. Manion, would there be a smell of decomposition or other smell in the car after the child died in this manner, after seven hours, would you expect to find that?
MANION: That`s a tough question. I`m not sure, to be honest. I certainly think within 12 hours, 24 hours, certainly. But I`m not sure at seven.
GRACE: OK. So, that could go either way, Dr. Manion. And I had no idea that the right side of the heart dilated. Because I notice in the medical examiner`s initial findings that he said -- he/she said this was consistent with the death of hyperthermia in other words heat stroke, but I don`t know why they thought it was hyperthermia. Now I do.
