Father whose son died in hot car to face Georgia grand jury

[erpowers]

Source: CNN.com

(CNN) -- Murder and child cruelty charges against a father whose son died after being left in a car will go to a grand jury after a Cobb County judge found probable cause for the charges Thursday.

Justin Ross Harris was denied bail.

He messaged six women, sending and receiving explicit texts -- some including nude images -- from work while his 22-month-old was dying in a hot car, a detective testified in the hearing.

Harris' attorney repeatedly objected to Cobb County, Georgia, police Detective Phil Stoddard's testimony regarding Harris sexting the women -- one of whom was 17 -- but the judge allowed it because it was a probable cause hearing.

Read more: http://www.cnn.com/2014/07/03/justice/georgia-hot-car-toddler-death/index.html?hpt=hp_t1

[Little Star]

1. I think the judge made the right call.

[RebelOne]

2. I have been watching the live murder investigation broadcast

from one of our local news stations in Atlanta. I am torn between the fact that he intentionally left the child in the hot car or whether he just forgot he was still in the car. But I am siding with the judge that there was probable cause and his denial of bond.

[hopemountain]

5. the recording of the convo between mom and dad recorded

at the police station was damning in the least. wtf is wrong with people? $27,000 life insurance was worth it to them to kill him? disgusting. yes. they are both guilty of the murder of this little boy.

[Little Star]

6. I thought I heard they had 2 policies that...

combined were worth close to 50k.

[hopemountain]

7. i came up with 27k from the 2

my ears heard 25k for one they purchased together and the other was 2k from one of their jobs.

perhaps i incorrectly heard the amounts - but the point is - this is one motive.

[Little Star]

9. You are correct & I was wrong on the total amount....

The couple had $2,000 and $25,000 life insurance policies on their son, according to Stoddard, who also said Harris’ wife “was complaining about [her husband’s] purchasing, sporadic purchasing or overcharging credit cards.”
http://www.hlntv.com/article/2014/07/03/justin-ross-harris-cooper-toddler-hot-car-death-live-blog

[hopemountain]

14. what clinched it for me was hearing her tell him

that she hoped he hadn't told the cops too much - or something to this effect.

thank you for the link and follow up, little star.

[NJCher]

16. these two

seem to be a bit dim. I mean, who doesn't know your computer can be tracked? That's a pretty low threshold.

Every time I see a pic of this adorable little boy, I think about how many childless couples would have loved to have adopted him.

Why not just give the child up for adoption? If he was desperate to give up the child, family might have also come to the rescue.

Not to mention this fool appears to have had a pretty good job, but instead of doing his job, he is sexting on company time.

Life gave him so much and what did he do with it?

I have no sympathy for people like this.
'


Cher

[hopemountain]

19. yes, njcher -

some folks do not read nor listen to the news. they seemed to have been particularly self focused. i wonder what her side of the story is beyond the phony staging and phony excuse of concern and fear of a worst case scenario in the event one or the other of them "forgot" connor in the car on a hot day.

i would call them 'dim-lits'. they were so selfish they could not think past their own egos and give him a live/future with those who would have loved to raise him as their son. they believed they could get away with it.

that precious boy deserved to be loved and cherished - not hideously murdered.

yup, i do believe i have judged them guilty before a trial even begins or charges are fully made.

[Divernan]

4. The evidence is damning, for sure.

Among the details police have released is that Harris and his wife, Leanna, told them they conducted Internet searches on how hot a car needed to be to kill a child. Stoddard testified Thursday that Ross Harris had visited a Reddit page called "child-free" and read four articles. He also did an Internet search on how to survive in prison, Stoddard said.

Also, five days before Cooper died, Ross Harris twice viewed a sort of homemade public service announcement in which a veterinarian demonstrates on video the dangers of leaving someone or something inside a hot car.

Leanna Harris told police that she had recently seen a story on a state initiative aimed at reminding people not to leave children in cars and that it was a fear of hers, Stoddard said.

Ross Harris "stated that he recently researched, through the Internet, child deaths inside vehicles and what temperature it needs to be for that to occur," police said, adding that Harris told investigators "he was fearful that this could happen."

During questioning, Leanna Harris "made similar statements

[onecent]

21. Me thinks "his survival in prison" will be far shorter

than he now believes...and I hope his stay is VERY VERY PAINFUL. They didn't watch enough Crime shows on television...If what we are given from the media is true, I'd say these 2 don't have much time left in freedom land. May little Cooper rest in peace.

[shenmue]

8. ...

[cosmicone]

10. Evidence is damning. Good call. n/t

[davidpdx]

11. Wow, that is messed up

I heard someone else say yesterday that they thought he would be held without bail.

[question everything]

12. Will all this evidence hold based on the SCOTUS decision from last week about cell phones?

If the police did not get a warrant, and it probably did not, will this evidence, of sexting while the child was dying, be allowed in court?

Either way, this is horrible.

[Divernan]

13. The sexting is scandalous, but it's the prior computer search records that matter.

Because they prove he had the means/knowledge (how to do it), along with motive & intent (the reference to "child-free" links). And throw in the life insurance toward motive.

Frankly, it seems the mother was in on this to a certain degree as well. Wouldn't be surprised if charges are not brought against her too.

[Little Star]

15. They must have had a warrant because it...

looks like they took all of his electronics in for forensics.

[Crabby Appleton]

18. Here's a link to 18 search warrants

issued by the Cobb County Magistrate Court for this case which includes iPhone, computers, vehicle, workplace, home, etc.

http://ftpcontent3.worldnow.com/waga/documents/JustinRossHarrisWarrants070414.pdf

[Kablooie]

17. He also went back to put something in his car during the day.

And still left the baby in the car seat.

[catchnrelease]

20. Other testimony

There was also some testimony from the police investigator that indicated that the car seat, while rear facing, was too small for the size of the child, so his head would have been visible from the front or side.

And Harris got into the car at the end of the day and drove, with the windows up, for a bit before pulling over and getting out and yelling that this son was dead. Apparently officers at the scene said the smell that came out of the car at that point was so overwhelming they could hardly stand it. How did this guy not notice it as soon as he went to get into the car when he was leaving work?

This whole thing is so sickening.