Hot Car Death: Verdict in Ross Harris Trial

COBB COUNTY, GA — The jury reached a verdict Monday in the trial of Ross Harris in the hot car death of his son. Cooper Harris, only 22 months old, was strapped in his car seat in the back of the family SUV for seven hours on June 18, 2014.

Accused of leaving Cooper in the car intentionally to live a child-free life, Ross Harris was found guilty on all eight charges, including malice murder. Sentencing will be Dec. 5.

Three of the charges were related to messages Harris sent to underage girls in chats during the day while his son was in the car. Harris pleaded not guilty. He did not testify on his own behalf during the trial.

The jury sat through 22 days of testimony from 70 witnesses, as well as a delay in the trial as Hurricane Matthew moved up the Georgia coast. On Thursday, the jurors asked to review security footage of Harris returning to his SUV after lunch, tossing light bulbs inside and walking away.

According to the National Safety Council, children overheat four times faster than adults. A child is likely to die when the body temperature reaches 107 degrees, and that can happen in minutes. Even in 70-degree weather, a vehicle can reach life-threatening temperatures quickly. The average increase in temperature inside a vehicle is 3.2 degrees per five-minute interval.

Charges included malice murder, two counts of felony murder, and cruelty to children in the first degree and in the second degree. Three other charges were related to text messages and images Harris sent to underage girls on the day of Cooper's death. Those charges included criminal attempt to commit sexual exploitation of children, and two misdemeanor counts of dissemination of harmful material to minors.

“Today is not a victory, nor is it a day we celebrate. In fact, today is a monumentally sad day,” District Attorney Vic Reynolds said in a statement. “It was a true team effort, and I believe justice was served today on behalf of young Cooper Harris.”

• Read More: A Father's Mistake or Murder

‘What Have I Done’

At 8:30 a.m. on June 18, 2014, Harris and his son left the family’s Cobb County condo in a 2011 Hyundai Tucson and drove to a nearby Chick-fil-A, where Harris treated his son to breakfast.

At the restaurant, Harris allegedly texted a woman, who shares her displeasure at being a wife and mother. Police say Harris texted, “'I love my son and all but we both need escapes.” Harris also allegedly told the woman that he missed having time to himself and going out with his friends.

They left the restaurant at 8:55 a.m., with Cooper fastened in his rear-facing car seat in the center of the Tucson’s backseat. Instead of taking his son to his daycare at The Home Depot headquarters, Harris went directly to work at the company’s Treehouse office on Cumberland Parkway. Cooper’s daycare is about 2 miles away.

At 9 a.m., the temperature outside was 78 degrees and fair, as recorded at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport. Harris, who had worked as a Home Depot web developer for almost two years, went into his office, with Cooper still in his carseat. The Hyundai’s windows were rolled up.

Harris left his office at 4:16 p.m., but not before police say he texted an underage girl shortly before he left work. Harris “sexted” with six different women during the day, while his son was dying in his vehicle. One of those alleged texts included a photo of Harris’ penis, sent to a 16-year-old girl.

At 4:23 p.m., Harris turned into an Uncle Maddio’s pizza parking lot on Akers Mill Road and got Cooper out of the car. He told police that it was then, when he was driving home, that he realized the boy was still in the car.

A minute later, witnesses at the shopping center watched Harris as he tried to revive his son. Bystanders started CPR on the boy, while Harris was reportedly frantic and screaming “What have I done?”

Includes reporting by Tim Darnell and Chris Gaudet