I honestly think the biggest thing standing in the way is that people don't think they will ever forget their babies.
They would have to admit to themselves that they might forget in order to buy things like this. It would be like admitting that you suck at being a parent KWIM?
In 2008, my dd blogged about her fear of "forgetting" and leaving her baby anywhere [in the car] when she was mere weeks away from delivery. She lived in Dallas which has an extremely warm summer climate but this was wintertime and "a hot car death" was not her particular fear; whereas, forgetting her baby, in general, was her fear.
Hormones were adversely affecting her memory. She couldn't remember to do stuff. If she made a list, she forgot to take the list. Time was spent and frustration would seep in when she forgot everyday things but serious things like leaving her cell phone or day planner at home was alarming. She would forget important things like birthdays. She became so forgetful that she researched, wrote about and posted her concerns before her baby was born. Thankfully, her memory issues corrected themselves soon after giving birth to my beautiful grandbaby
extraordinaire.
Additionally, my wonderful 82yo father sadly has the onset of dementia whereby he recalls what he did the summer of '42 but can't remember that he ate seven bananas yesterday even when he sees the banana bunch is now gone from the fruit bowl. He opened the trash compactor and saw seven banana peelings, but he shook his head and shrugged bc he cannot remember eating those seven bananas yesterday.
These true stories were shared to demonstrate my personal knowledge of and experience w/ human fallibilities such as forgetfulness.
I could almost understand, without compelling evidence to the contrary, JRH forgetting his child and heading to the HD parking lot, if this routine was per usual. I could almost understand right up to the point when he opened the driver's side door after returning from lunch with co-workers @ 12:30p. There is no doubt in my mind, that the vehicle's hot interior air was fouled with feces, urine and vomit that rushed at Ross when he opened the door of his Hyundai because hot air rises and it rose in those few seconds it took Ross to open the door widely enough, bend his body a little to be able to toss the light bulb package inside. JRHs nose would be right at the level where the odor would waft toward him with the suction created by opening the door, a powerful suction of pulling the interior malodorous air to the outside took place, imho. It only takes one small whiff to know very bad things had already happened inside that car to Cooper. I think this is why Ross did not dally around but closed the door rather quickly. Experts seem to agree, as best as possible with the info available, that Cooper died no later than eleven o'clock
[and I pray it was much sooner].
If their expertise is reliable, JRH opens his driver's door appx ninety minutes, or longer, after Cooper's long struggle that lasted until his little heart expired in the hot car. That's plenty of time for a heavy stench to develop and permeate the air, the carpet and fabric seat coverings, if applicable. The jury will convict based on that knowledge alone. OTOH, if the guy can't smell a thing, more emphasis to any of the other clues, hints, indicators that JRH had that his son was still inside his car, ie., the dayschool email. Even seeing his vehicle at lunch should have rung a bell of some kind even if he cannot smell.
I am no expert and do not play one here. My opinions only ~ based on reviewing available case documents, videos and all that jazz.