TRIAL Week One - Ross Harris 3 October 2016

[DaleTray]

IMO he was hoping to "find" Cooper in front of his friends (sympathetic and biased witnesses,) but they drove off too soon.

And if he was just totally clueless he was in there, that is additional evidence of extreme negligence. Either way, it's not good for the defense no matter the scenario presented. I think people on a jury could be more understanding of leaving a child in a car all day while you're at work. But forgetting after a matter of minutes, going out mid day and forgetting again, getting in the car and forgetting again...I'm not so sure.

I think if JRH wanted witnesses after returning from lunch, and that was his plan, he would have found a way for them to stay longer or see something. Like maybe as he puts bulbs in car, he screams and says "what have I done" A nefarious plan would have included some way to involve his friends. Just a thought. If he didnt want his friends involved he would have asked them to drop him off at office rather than parking lot.

 

[blue22]

Interesting theory. I suspected he waited until he got to the mall so that he could distance himself from his co-workers who were better able to guess if he was acting or not.

(still thinking about that glass case of emotion)

IMO, friends wouldn't question reaction or emotion. They wouldn't suspect. I think they would be immediately supportive and emotionally distraught. (At least, my friends.)

 

[Hope4More]

I just want to add that daycare said Cooper always arrived awake and very chatty. jmo

"Always" seems a bit of a stretch, IMO. In any case, iirc Cooper hadn't been sleeping well for several nights in a row prior to that morning (can't remember why that was), and if so , it's perfectly believable to me he'd conk out right after eating and being put in a moving car.

 

[minor4th]

IMO he was hoping to "find" Cooper in front of his friends (sympathetic and biased witnesses,) but they drove off too soon.

And if he was just totally clueless he was in there, that is additional evidence of extreme negligence. Either way, it's not good for the defense no matter the scenario presented. I think people on a jury could be more understanding of leaving a child in a car all day while you're at work. But forgetting after a matter of minutes, going out mid day and forgetting again, getting in the car and forgetting again...I'm not so sure.

I don't think there's any question that it's negligent to forget your baby in a car all day. But I think the question in this trial is whether he intentionally and purposely killed Cooper by leaving him to roast in a hot car all day. I don't think there's any way he did this deliberately. I wouldn't be bothered if he's convicted for negligently causing Cooper's death, but I've seen and heard nothing that suggests that he knowingly left Cooper in the car to kill him.

Should he have remembered Cooper was in the car? Of course he should have! Should he have seen Cooper's head in the car seat when he did the u-turn or got out of the car? Well, if he forgot about Cooper being in the car, he's not looking closely behind him at the car seat to check on Cooper, so it looks as though he did not see Cooper back there because he wasn't paying attention.

Would it make it any more excusable if his attention was diverted by the news on the radio or a work issue or because he spilled coffee on himself and directed all of his attention to the growing stain on his trousers? It doesn't matter WHY he forgot or what distracted him - it only matters whether he actually did forget or if he left Cooper there specifically to kill him.

 

[Maisiebelle]

So the reason RH had Cooper in the rear facing car seat is because the mother had the front facing seat in her car.


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[jamiect]

Ross Harris Trial ‏@HarrisTrial 2m2 minutes ago
The prosecution compares the positioning of Cooper's car seat in Leanna Taylor's car to the one in #RossHarris' car. http://on.11Alive.com/HarrisTrialLive

Cathy ‏@courtchatter 2m2 minutes ago
#RossHarris - The State shows the jury #CooperHarris's car seat located in mom, Leanne's car. It is front facing. (rear facing in dad's)

 

[Hope4More]

So the reason RH had Cooper in the rear facing car seat is because the mother had the front facing seat in her car.


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Yes......

 

[Magdalyn]

And sadly, hundreds and hundreds of parents have accidentally left their children to die in cars. It does happen, as unimaginable as that seems to most of us.

Right. I never said it didn't happen. I said I couldn't see how 'easy' it could happen. Hundreds dying this way compared to the millions who don't means extremely rare.

 

[jamiect]

Ross Harris Trial ‏@RossHarrisTrial 25s25 seconds ago
Jurors are now seeing photos from inside the Harris home.

Claire SimmsVerified account ‏@Claire_FOX5 1m1 minute ago Georgia, USA
Photos from Harris home show lightbulbs were out in the bathroom--the same kind #RossHarris bought that day.

 

[Maisiebelle]

Seems one of the Harris' were reading self help books


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[Magdalyn]

I think if JRH wanted witnesses after returning from lunch, and that was his plan, he would have found a way for them to stay longer or see something. Like maybe as he puts bulbs in car, he screams and says "what have I done" A nefarious plan would have included some way to involve his friends. Just a thought. If he didnt want his friends involved he would have asked them to drop him off at office rather than parking lot.

Personally speaking, I'm not going to automatically apply "smart about committing a crime" logic to a guy who spent his time (allegedly) sexting with underage girls. But that's just me. :fence:

 

[Maisiebelle]

Yes......

I had been wondering why RH had the baby in the rear facing seat. I'd read that they had changed Cooper to the big boy seat then changed him back to the baby one. Makes sense that if RH doesn't always drive the baby he probably wouldn't want the carry on of moving the bigger seat over.

Saying that, I'm sure the prosecution said in opening that RH drove Cooper 19 out of the last 25 days before his death.......


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[magnolia]

I don't think there's any question that it's negligent to forget your baby in a car all day. But I think the question in this trial is whether he intentionally and purposely killed Cooper by leaving him to roast in a hot car all day. I don't think there's any way he did this deliberately. I wouldn't be bothered if he's convicted for negligently causing Cooper's death, but I've seen and heard nothing that suggests that he knowingly left Cooper in the car to kill him.

Should he have remembered Cooper was in the car? Of course he should have! Should he have seen Cooper's head in the car seat when he did the u-turn or got out of the car? Well, if he forgot about Cooper being in the car, he's not looking closely behind him at the car seat to check on Cooper, so it looks as though he did not see Cooper back there because he wasn't paying attention.

Would it make it any more excusable if his attention was diverted by the news on the radio or a work issue or because he spilled coffee on himself and directed all of his attention to the growing stain on his trousers? It doesn't matter WHY he forgot or what distracted him - it only matters whether he actually did forget or if he left Cooper there specifically to kill him.

BBM -- Exactly.... It doesn't matter why he forgot or what distracted him. Making the Jury aware of all the lewd details about his sexual activities serves no purpose.

 

[minor4th]

I like this prosecutor better than Boring for some reason. No rambling or pausing or repeatedly saying "uh"

 

[ReadyorNot]

BBM -- Exactly.... It doesn't matter why he forgot or what distracted him. Making the Jury aware of all the lewd details about his sexual activities serves no purpose.

It does though, it goes to show that he had reason to not want to parent Cooper any longer. But only if its true.

 

[Leader6518]

Sure, that would be a logical first question. I don't believe though it was the only question that could have been asked in that situation.

Just for the sake of argument, let's say Cooper's death was accidental, Harris had just found him dead, he thinks his wife will never forgive him, he knows he'll never forgive himself, and on top of all that, LE is definitely treating him like a suspect.

I'm not sure any question he could have asked would sound OK to most folks. I think most of us think we would be so overcome with grief that we'd be incapable of speaking at all. I think that of myself for sure.

But. I'm not Harris, have no clue who he is, or how he responds to anything, and unless he is a sociopath, I think it's very likely he was in some kind of shock at that point.

I lost my son and when I got the call, I certainly was numb, but I was not combative, I was broken. In my grief counseling group, it is basically the same reactions. LE sees this all the time and knows when someone is not displaying the common signs of trauma.

 

[Maisiebelle]

I lost my son and when I got the call, I certainly was numb, but I was not combative, I was broken. In my grief counseling group, it is basically the same reactions. LE sees this all the time and knows when someone is not displaying the common signs of trauma.

I'm so sorry for your loss


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[Magdalyn]

I lost my son and when I got the call, I certainly was numb, but I was not combative, I was broken. In my grief counseling group, it is basically the same reactions. LE sees this all the time and knows when someone is not displaying the common signs of trauma.

slightly O/T

People who displayed their grief very oddly:

Casey Anthony
Jodi Arias
Burke Ramsey
Ross Harris

 

[minor4th]

When my teenage son was notified that his father was suddenly and tragically killed in a car accident, his reaction was to lash out in anger, much like Harris shouting "shut the **** up" when told to get off the phone.

 

[minor4th]

slightly O/T

People who displayed their grief very oddly:

Casey Anthony
Jodi Arias
Burke Ramsey
Ross Harris

Martin MacNeill