Hot car death: Mistake or murder?
Ross Harris’ attorney, Maddox Kilgore, has not shared his defense strategy and declined comment for this article. An investigation by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution published last year revealed that police appeared to overstate some of the evidence introduced during the probable cause hearing.
Surveillance footage in the Home Depot parking lot where Cooper Harris died showed that Ross Harris sat in his Hyundai Tucson less than 15 seconds — not 30 seconds, as lead Det. Phil Stoddard testified — after parking it that morning, before heading into work.
Stoddard also testified Ross Harris had a “clear view” inside his SUV when he stopped by to drop off a package during his lunch hour. But the video reviewed by the AJC shows that Harris’ eyes remain above the SUV’s roof line in the three seconds it took for him to open the door, place the package inside and close the door.
DOCUMENT: Letter from Cobb Police Chief John Houser
The detective further insinuated that Harris, concerned a passerby might see his son inside the vehicle, stopped and waited for the man to enter the office building. The video shows that Harris did stop briefly, but his eyes stayed on his cell phone, which he operated with his free hand. He never looked back at the man who walked past his car.
Dunwoody attorney Esther Panitch said she expects the defense to argue “this is a witch hunt. They had it in for him from the beginning.”
Zimmerman, Leanna Harris’ attorney, said if the district attorney has nothing on his client, he should say so publicly.
“They’ve ruined her name with the bold accusations, taking statements she made out of context,” Zimmerman said. “There’s still people out there who think she had something to do with this. In fact there will always be people who think she did it.”
“There’s no reason for them not to clear Leanna Harris,” he said.
DOCUMENT: View the indictment against Ross Harris
Panitch said prosecutors may try to elicit testimony they could later use against Leanna Harris if she takes the stand to testify on her husband’s behalf.
“No good deed could go unpunished,” she said. “If she testifies to try and help her husband, it could open her up to cross-examination.”
The prosecution has the advantage, Panitch said, if for no other reason than “jurors are going to want to hold someone responsible for this child’s death. This child felt great pain and suffered greatly.”
No one knows that more than his parents, Balfour said.
“He’ll be questioning what he did that day for the rest of his life,” she said. “It’s been eight years, and I still question what happened every day of my life.
“It’s a pain that never goes away.”
