Thank you Confusion for starting this thread.
What if RH did forget?
He leaves CFA, goes directly to work thinking he dropped Cooper off prior to eating at CFA.
He usually drops Cooper off first, grabs himself something to eat at CFA and then goes to work - His attorney states that's more his routine than the other way around. (CFA, day care, then work). Bringing Cooper to CFA was a specialty, not the norm. So he may have been on an autopilot leaving CFA parking lot rushing to get to work.
With hearing loss to the right ear having low audio of Cooper, driving distraction/heavy traffic needing to concentrate, window may have been down with outside noises drowning his left good ear, radio on volume high - most of all, probably can't wait to meet new hook ups on line. So he parks his car thinking only about his computer and getting on line. He never notices Cooper and the 30 second stall was to make sure window up, radio off, and the computer was all intact. Then goes into work never noticing he forgot Cooper until later in the day as he claims.
Or....the 30 second stall was RH notices Cooper, but sits and contemplates, and rationalizes that Cooper would be fine for a little while. He'll take him to day care at break but before lunch, then goes in to work. RH forgets about him again, because he's tangled with his sexting, movie planning, and making lunch plans with his friends. It's not until he drops the light bulbs off that he realizes he forgot about Cooper, but looks like he is sleeping so RH figures he'll let him rest and leave work early to drop him off at day care. That's why he texts LH his "when are you picking up my buddy" comment. He has to leave work early to beat LH to day care, but he's also going to be late to the movies and let's his friends know.
RH leaves work, gets in suv but because of his loss of smell (side effect from meds), he does not notice anything bad. After driving a distance, thinking Cooper's kind of quiet, he takes a good look behind. See's his color's off and thinks he's choking. Realizes he better get out of the car and check, but dreads what he may look like. Then the reality and horror and shock and all emotions explodes and he snaps.
What have I done - I killed my son. Some one else now is trying cpr. He's off to the side trying to contact LH - Our child is dead, he gets word to her? Maybe the 6min call is someone at day care room 5, trying to listen to all the commotion, but not saying anything? Phone to good ear so he can't hear police telling him to get off the phone, he's all frazzled, tells cop to eff-off. Cop takes phone away disconnecting the call. Now he's hand cuffed and in the police car. He can't understand what's happening, didn't talk to anybody on that call, yet, the one's on the other end knows something bad's happened. LH and day care worker thinks he's still at work parking lot. LH now thinking "he must have left Cooper in the car, it's the only explanation" and meet police at HD parking lot.
At HD parking lot police inform LH Cooper's dead, maybe tell her he's been taken away in ambulance. RH's arrested and at the jail. So she decides to go see RH. They talk, he can't understand what's happening, in his mind he's done nothing wrong, Cooper was ok, can't believe it. Thought maybe he was choking, dreaded how he would look. Thinks he'll loose his job. Says, our son is dead, what have I done, I killed our son. LH says "did you say too much" in reference to RH stating I killed our son?
This is an alternate theory explaining some of the main points.
Yes RH left Cooper in the car all day, but what if it was not intentionally to kill him. It's just that he forgot about him several times through out the day. Checking on him, thinking he's ok, just resting. Making plans to drop off a live Cooper each time, but that too did not go as plan.
my opinion, and all that jazz :moo:
If RH offered this explanation and I were prosecuting, I'd ask the jury to think about the last time they took a toddler to a fast food restaurant....or watched someone with a toddler in a McDonalds or Chik-fila. Or maybe show a few video clips of parents in that situation. I watched a woman with a small girl yesterday in just such a situation. The toddler was under the table at one point, then had to asked to sit and eat, then hopped down and headed off for another table...Mom had to get up and swoop her back to where they were sitting...
There was a tremendous amount of interaction. There HAD to be a high amount of awareness just to get in, eat, help them, leave, put the child back in the car. It's hands on...watching...eyes on that child all the time.
This is not a book or a briefcase...an inanimate object that there is no reciprocal interaction. Your mind has to be focused on where they are, what they are found, etc. It's like playing handball..watching a moving changing object!
Cooper was said to be awake, talking and walking around. I think a few short videos of kids and parents at a fast food restaurant would squash the idea that any parent can "forget" in seconds after so much hands-on interaction.
But even if we were to somehow cross the hurtle...the problem with this theory, IMO, is that these parents say hot car death was "their greatest fear." They researched how long, how hot, etc. How do we reconcile Ross being so casual about leaving his son with the knowledge HE HAS just researched?! He absolutely KNEW how lethal a situation he was leaving Cooper in!
He spent time reading! He watched videos!
He knew the parameters! And supposedly...he and LH had this tremendous fear!
It's hard to reconcile someone who researched and feared...thinking..."oh, I'll just pop back later! Oh, he's just sleeping!"
That research is going to hang this Monster. You can't defend giving your child ten times the normal amount of medicine because you...thought it would be harmless...if you have been reading and watching videos about how high doses causes death!
The problem with all RH's "innocent" scenarios is that it is like we are talking about two different people.,The descriptions that he and LH give of him as the obsessive, researching parent...kissing Cooper because he might die in a wreck, etc....do not match the description of the Doofus who forgets a child in 30 seconds and blows off leaving him in a hot car...with the windows up....while he works.
And...If he knew...surely he'd open the windows. Even for a dog, you'd open the windows!
He wants to be Fabulous Dad and Lethal Ferris Bueller all at once. I don't think that will sell to a jury.
Edited to add....in many hot car cases, there is a caregiver who is on overload of responsibilities...in their personal life and/or work. It's the opposite in this case. How much more of a blow-off job can anyone have...when you can sext all day at work? RH seems to be a man-child with no responsibilities!!!
Look at his day! He lays in bed watching TV, lounging while LH goes to work? He heads to feed his face at Chik-fila. He sexts all morning...breaks for more food. More sexting...and then he would be off to a movie, not home to the family.
He is in a position where he will need to argue that his obsession with photographing his penis to attract underage girls is why, he...the FABULOUS father....forgot his child in 30 seconds and left him to die, scratching his tiny face and banging his baby head in agony...while Daddy sexted.
