Cooper Harris - Sidebar Thread

[hikerchick]

Yeah, if there really is such a thing as "forgotten baby syndrome" then I guess no penalty will act as a deterrent. OTOH, I'm curious to see if new laws will deter parents from purposely leaving their kids locked in a car. Tennessee passed a law in July of 2014 that gives people permission to smash a car window in order to rescue a child inside without being liable for the damage. In July of 2015 they extended it to cover pets too.

As for the "I forgot about my kid" cases, I'm getting a little sick of the "parent has been punished enough" sentiment by prosecutors. Once the investigation is complete then fine - if the evidence shows the parent genuinely forgot then act according to local law, be it no charge, suspended sentence, jail term, whatever. But please, the dead child deserves a thorough investigation, so don't just hand the parent a pass simply because they're the parent.

One case from 2007 really bothers me. In 2007, Brenda Nesselroad-Slaby, the assistant principal whose daughter died wasn't prosecuted because she had suffered enough. What's shocking to me is that a week earlier she had purposely left her in the car briefly. In fact she had a habit of leaving Cecilia in the car - a school official even warned her to stop it. Plus, CCTV showed that she returned to the SUV five times during the day Cecilia died and once moved the SUV to another location in the parking lot. Yet prosecutors called Cecilia's death a "tragic mistake." Case closed.

The mother wasn't prosecuted but I think she should have at the least been charged with negligence. And in the extreme, her actions could be seen as suspicious. I wonder if the investigation would have gone differently if it happened today...

Anyway, I guess what I'm saying is there's a fine line between experiencing some sort of brain dysfunction and letting distactions take priority over your responsibilities to your child and each case needs to be carefully examined before condemning or exonerating the parent.

This case and Cooper are about the only cases that I feel warrant serious charges.

 

[DaleTray]

Yeah, I think defense was sitting on this motion until they felt that they had a strong enough argument. IMO I think they have a good chance of having it granted.p/

The defense will say they need to get away from biased people of Georgia and request a cold northern part of Maine where cars don't even need a/c....but I guess it is GA charging him rather than federal government.
Every Georgian when sitting in jury room debating will recall the hundreds and hundreds of times jumping into a hot summer car , maybe even while wearing shorts and
scalding back of their legs. I can just hear the prosecutor in closing arguments "People of the jury, I want you think about the first 60 seconds when you enter a hot car after leaving work. You jump in and immediately put a/c on high. Think just how miserable you are for those first 60 seconds. Lets sit here quietly for 60 seconds and imagine that heat (tick tock tick tock tick tock). Now imagine 7 hrs."

 

[angelainwi]

Is it horrible that my first thought is NO, because I am looking forward to HLN covering it. IF they move away, HLN may pull out

 

[eileenhawkeye]

Is it horrible that my first thought is NO, because I am looking forward to HLN covering it. IF they move away, HLN may pull out

It will still be in Georgia though. While I agree that part of HLN's interest does have to do with the trial being Atlanta, they have covered trials in Florida and Arizona and Utah.

 

[JerseyGirl]

Staley scheduled a hearing Monday morning and said she expects to rule before lunch.

According to the defense motion, 43 of the prospective jurors have “formed an opinion that defendant is guilty, expressed an opinion (about his guilt), have bias against defendant” and are either partial to the state’s case or require Harris to prove his innocence.

Of the 43 jurors who’ve formed opinions against Harris, six have been qualified.

http://www.myajc.com/news/news/local/justin-ross-harris-lawyers-seek-change-of-venue-in/nrD9D/

 

[beach]

I am embarrassed to even ask this (especially as an admin here :iamashamed - Is the State of Georgia seeking the DP in this case? Because, IMO, that may carry some weight as to whether or not the defense's motion is granted.

Either way, I don't fault the defense for filing this motion. A LOT of time and money has been spent conducting this lengthy voir dire. No matter that it is a long shot IMO, the defense has an obligation to their client to at least make the motion "for the record". Otherwise, they would lose any chance of appealing it should their client be found guilty. A LOT of these sort of motions are made "for the record". Should an appeal be necessary, an appellate court ONLY reviews the official court records when deciding whether or not to grant the appeal. (they don't listen to any witness testimony, although lawyers get to argue case law authority, etc..) If they didn't at least ask, they would sorely hurt their chances to effectively argue that point. They at least need to be able to argue that they requested it and the trial judge denied their request.

Though I could use a refresher, I promise I know most of the facts of this case. Unfortunately, I've been married to several other very busy cases here for the past few months and simply cannot recall. TIA!

 

[eileenhawkeye]

They are not seeking the DP.

I don't blame the defense either for seeking a change of venue. After watching jury selection, it does seem like they might have a case.

 

[ms madge]

I hope he grows a set and decides to plead guilty.

If he does take a plea, what is the legal procedure there - would he have to allocute? (I am from Australia, basing my knowledge of the US legal system on Law and Order, sorry)

 

[borndem]

I dont know if Judge Staley will grant the Motion for a change of venue...

I believe if they do they try and move to a county that both the prosecution and defense agree to and that is similar in population/demographics.

In 2004, Cobb County Superior Court Judge Bodiford ordered a change of venue in the trial of Lynn Turner and the case was moved to Houston County.

:happydance:Welcome to Websleuths, Beccalynne! We're glad to have you with us!:happydance:
​

 

[borndem]

Is it horrible that my first thought is NO, because I am looking forward to HLN covering it. IF they move away, HLN may pull out

At this time, several parties are planning to film/live-stream it. But -- It could be that the judge may decide not to allow any live-streaming or tele-recording at all. Yes, it's the public's right to know, but the courtroom is open to all, and that is the answer to the challenge by the media. I'm worried about it.

 

[borndem]

Staley scheduled a hearing Monday morning and said she expects to rule before lunch.

According to the defense motion, 43 of the prospective jurors have “formed an opinion that defendant is guilty, expressed an opinion (about his guilt), have bias against defendant” and are either partial to the state’s case or require Harris to prove his innocence.

Of the 43 jurors who’ve formed opinions against Harris, six have been qualified.

http://www.myajc.com/news/news/local/justin-ross-harris-lawyers-seek-change-of-venue-in/nrD9D/

Mmmmppfff. Not lookin' good, is it? That is shaky ground for a solid, no-appeal-later trial, IMO and SMH. After all this, what would/could a judge do but to bring in a jury from another county? And talk about hardship if a "foreign" jury were bussed into the county for several weeks -- seating a jury with that in mind would be really tuff. And it's not easy to move the "courtroom" to another county. (Is that ever done?) Very few courtrooms anywhere are vacant for 4-5-6 weeks straight.

 

[Hope4More]

They are not seeking the DP.

I don't blame the defense either for seeking a change of venue. After watching jury selection, it does seem like they might have a case.

IMO the defense has a very compelling case for change of venue, and would have been negligent not to request it. Not sure what difference a change would make in reality, though, if the pro-prosecution saturation coverage has similarly influenced potential jurors outside Cobb County.

 

[magnolia]

They are not seeking the DP.

I don't blame the defense either for seeking a change of venue. After watching jury selection, it does seem like they might have a case.

I don't blame them either, but, I think their chances of getting a change of venue is slim. The defense filed the motion so it will be on the record for appeal. IMO

 

[Hope4More]

BTW, his lawyers requested a change of venue before jury selection began and it was denied. Their arguments were pretty lame though. I sort of wonder if that was on purpose, like purposely get it denied so you can request a change of venue after jury selection is almost complete?

Why would the DT do that?

 

[eileenhawkeye]

Here are some statistics on Cobb County:

The median income for a household in the county was $65,522 and the median income for a family was $78,920.

The racial makeup of the county was 62.2% white, 25.0% black or African American, 4.5% Asian, 0.3% American Indian, 0.1% Pacific islander, 5.3% from other races, and 2.7% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 12.3% of the population

If the defense gets the change of venue, they will try to find a county similiar in demographics that is not part of the Atlanta metro.

One possiblity: Columbia County

The racial makeup of the county was 76.5% white, 14.9% black or African American, 3.8% Asian, 0.3% American Indian, 0.2% Pacific islander, 1.5% from other races, and 2.8% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 5.0% of the population

The median income for a household in the county was $66,333 and the median income for a family was $74,426

It's part of the Augusta Metro area. It's the only county I could find (looked at every county with population over 90k) that was similiar in demographics, that wasn't part of the Atlanta area. A lot of counties seem to have majority black populations, much lower median incomes, and just seem much more rural than Cobb. Columbia County is one of the fastest growing counties in Georgia.

 

[MsJosie]

Did the defense file a motion to change the trial previous? If not, why not? IMO the Change of Venue, should have been filed a lot earlier. Why waste monies, proples time and delay the trial? Defense knew the feelings of the people in the area before the jury was to be picked.....IMO the defense knew no matter what anyone said, they knew how people felt. I understand the defense needs to file this, however, Why So Late?!

As for the media in the courtroom....several ways it can be reported to the public
One pool camera, shared by all media, with Court rules
Reporters can have elecronic devices to tweet....and reporters can make sure devices are charged before each day .... There is a charging device, using regular batteries, that can be used as a back up, then no fighting for a wall plug
Reporters can take notes using paper and pen only and tweet on breaks, lunch, after court
Pencil Drawings of differents trial highlights

Feel free to add any other way....trying to remember other trials recently

 

[beach]

They are not seeking the DP.

I don't blame the defense either for seeking a change of venue. After watching jury selection, it does seem like they might have a case.

Thank you for clarifying for me! :blowkiss:

 

[Hope4More]

I don't blame them either, but, I think their chances of getting a change of venue is slim. The defense filed the motion so it will be on the record for appeal. IMO

Why do you think odds aren't good? Because these motions typically aren't granted, or for reasons more specific to this judge, case, and/ or location?

On paper the DT's argument for change of venue is one of the strongest I've ever seen.

Sure, money and time have already been invested into jury selection, but that is pittance compared to the costs of an entire trial being wasted if he wins a new trial on appeal.

 

[Niner]

Just tried to find the rest of potential jurors seated already. Need to add the last 11 - anyone know "who" they might be? Can't find anything on the "The Atlanta Journal" site...
I did scratch #22.

If anyone can help me - truly appreciate it! :tyou: in advance. Also, I'll go look to "see" if there is a thread for potential jurors, so we have them in one place. I copied what JerseyGirl posted, plus the tweets for each potential jurors that were posted here.

:wave:

 

[JerseyGirl]

Just tried to find the rest of potential jurors seated already. Need to add the last 11 - anyone know "who" they might be? Can't find anything on the "The Atlanta Journal" site...
I did scratch #22.

If anyone can help me - truly appreciate it! :tyou: in advance. Also, I'll go look to "see" if there is a thread for potential jurors, so we have them in one place. I copied what JerseyGirl posted, plus the tweets for each potential jurors that were posted here.

:wave:

these were the last three who were questioned Friday. There was one juror left waiting to be questioned when the motion was filed.

Friday morning recap:

The four people who were most recently qualified are: a Smyrna woman who, like her husband, works for Home Depot; a technical engineer from East Cobb who mentors teenagers and whose son has been offered football scholarships from more than a dozen colleges; an accountant from North Cobb who said she believed her nephew was wrongly charged with murder for a fatal traffic accident; and a software engineer from Smyrna who loves to watch NBA games on TV with her beloved Yorkshire Terrier.

Juror #84 - Of the first two jurors interviewed Friday morning, one was excused for medical reasons. He suffered congestive heart failure a year ago and continues to feel dizzy and fatigued. He said he was greatly worried about his health if he had to sit on the jury and see the “brutal” material expected to be presented at trial. “I don’t want to have some condition where I drop down dead,” he said. As Juror #84 began discussing his medical maladies in great detail, the lawyers asked him to pause so they could talk to the judge. Both sides agreed he should be excused.

Juror #83 - Also questioned was a retiree from Kennesaw with 11 grandchildren. She said she has strong feelings about what happened and believes Harris is guilty. “He left his son in the car and went to work and the child died,” she said. He was having an affair, just wanted to get rid of the kid.” She said it would be difficult for her to put her thoughts aside when hearing the evidence, and she also said she would probably hold it against Harris if didn’t testify in his defense. “To intentionally kill a child is totally despicable,” she said. “Technically, he’s innocent.” She was among those who were later struck for cause on grounds she couldn’t be impartial. Both the state and the defense were in agreement on that outcome.

http://www.ajc.com/news/news/local/four-more-qualified-to-serve-on-jury-in-hot-car-mu/nrDsp/

Vince sims ‎@SimsCBS46
Juror 86 is a pastor. His questioning begins now. He has no opinions, bias, or prejudice. @cbs46 #CBS46JRH #hotcardeath
1:50 PM - 29 Apr 2016 · Georgia, USA, United States