http://www.theage.com.au/world/ross...-of-murder-20140708-zszp6.html?skin=text-only
Dr Phillip Resnick, who has studied filicide (parents killing children) for many years, said the key is the relationship between Ross and Leanna. If Ross planned to seek a divorce, Resnick said, Cooper might have stood in the way.
Otherwise, he said, there is no obvious motive for killing the child; Harris could simply have continued pursuing other sexual liaisons while maintaining his family life.
''The missing link is the relationship to the wife,'' said Dr Resnick, who directs the forensic psychiatry program at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland. ''What's going on in the marriage is the key factor.''
But one thing has changed drastically in the years Dr Resnick has been studying this, and that muddies the waters...the coming of the Internet age.
I believe RH was the one most worried about impressions/what people thought about him. He was the one sexting images of himself to young girls, and 'broadcasting' images of himself to others in general in an attempt to impress (eg. references to his playing lead guitar in a band, exaggerated references concerning his job history, his current job situation & income, his house-hunting, running up credit card bills in the thousands, etc.). From the evidence presented so far, it would appear that RH was someone for whom money and keeping up appearances became a central driving theme in his life. So, back to the Internet...
If RH wanted freedom from his marriage and responsibilities, he had these options:
•Divorce LH and pay child support and lose face with the current circle of friends at their church and certain family members; 2 substantial losses there ($ and self-image)
•Get rid of both responsibilities--kill both his wife and child and leave the country (that's a lot of work for someone who doesn't seem to have a lot of work ethic going for him)
•Get rid of his child, (deal with the wife later)...and in so doing, play the cyber violin: engage press and garner sympathy by staging a dramatic, heart-wrenching, every-parent's-nightmare kind of death for an only child. To his wife's stoic faith add the loyal support of his church, friends, and family, and for good measure, top it all off with a dramatic "prophetic" dream account with Cooper sitting on Jesus' knee in heaven (LH taking care of the children and RH playing the guitar, of course). Just the sort of thing for viral feeds on Godvine, Youtube, and Facebook, and (as we so quickly saw), the money starts pouring in.
The third option best supports a lifestyle that is 1) childfree, 2) image-enhancing, and 3) bank-account enhancing. With no loss of face, unless of course, one gets caught. But that's unthinkable to someone who is already pretty sure of his own invincibility, intellect, and charm.
It was the same Sunday, apparently, that the landlord was speaking to RH about their house-hunting.
