-I drove from eastern NC to Atlanta for the sentencing
-I drove the route from CFA to the Treehouse (recorded it, and it took 8 takes)
-I found the space in the Treehouse parking lot and did the park job
-For those of you sticklers: A guard came and talked to me, wanted to know why I was there, he nodded and allowed me to stay and finish my personal analysis of the parking spot.
Firstly, about the sentencing:
-Ross Harris has lost at least twenty pounds since the verdict, so the observation about his weight is off. I noticed it right away when he entered. You can see clearly on the replays in his face, neck, and gut the weight loss.
-Ross seems to have been on Xanax or something, his eyes and mannerisms were very slow and almost lethargic.
-Leanna was NOT there. Only a male cousin, members of the public, and lots of media.
-The defense was rude and pompous (which startled me because they seemed so polite during the trial). The attitude I immediately detected was "why are we even here, this is a waste of our time."
-Judge Staley was emotional. Her voice quivered, she had to collect herself, she said that LWOP was the very LEAST form of justice she could give Ross Harris after he shut that door and walked away from Cooper in June, in Georgia. Not sure why Minor thinks she was communicating it was an accident, context is very important tool, and in context she was being poignant and pointing out the IRONY of his goal and the reality he achieved.
In other words Ross--your actions will cause others to think twice before they leave their child to die in a hot car. It has also brought on so much national attention that awareness has increased 10 fold. Recall, the notices in the Wal Marts appeared shortly after this case made national news.
Drive from CFA to Treehouse
-Impossible to forget, that's all I have to say. It took me on average less than 1 one minute to get out of the CFA parking lot and make the U-turn (the point where he needed to forget Cooper in order to drive through the intersection), all while CFA was visible in my periphery. There wasn't even an opportunity for Cooper to leave his working memory, much less be forgotten completely.
Treehouse Parking Lot Space Analysis:
The spot he chose was between TWO CURBS (two islands). One of the curbs extended into the space by approximately 1 foot. He drove between the two curbs to pull into the spot. The maneuver was very awkward and the space narrow. That is NOT a space ANYONE would choose to pull into. It was designed for you to drive around and enter from the other side of the space, not to pull through it (I ran over the curb the first time). When he drove through the lot, the spot he chose isn't even visible until you pass by it because you are driving up a hill. Why would he back up and maneuver into that difficult, narrow, awkward spot when other spots were much more accessible after running late for work? Because he knew no one would park next to him. Because this spot was pre-selected.
If I had been on the fence, I would no longer be after physically pulling into that spot as he did.
