Case against Georgia father Justin Ross Harris in son’s death doesn’t point to ‘simple negligence,’ police say
By Carol Robinson | crobinson@al.com
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on June 25, 2024 at 7:26 PM, updated June 26, 2024 at 10:06 AM
COBB COUNTY, Georgia – Parents have accidentally Left their children to die in hot vehicles, but that isn’t necessarily what happened in the June 18 death of 22-month-old Cooper Harris, investigators in Georgia said late Wednesday afternoon.
Detectives uncovered physical and testimonial evidence that led them to believe a more serious crime was committed, police said Wednesday, and those findings ultimately led to a murder charge against Cooper’s father, 33-year-old Justin Ross Harris. Harris is an Alabama native and University of Alabama graduate who worked as a police dispatcher for the Tuscaloosa Police Department for three years.
"I understand that tragic accidents similar to this one do occur and in most cases the parent simply made a mistake that cost them the life of their child,” said Cobb County police Chief John R. Houser in a prepared statement. "This investigation, although similar in nature to others, must be weighed on its own merit and the facts that led our detectives to charge the father must be presented at the appropriate time during the judicial process."
"The chain of events that occurred in this case does not point toward simple negligence and evidence will be presented to support this allegation,” Houser said.
Houser’s statement went on to say that police officials cannot share specific details of the investigation with the public. "In fairness to everyone involved in this emotional case, I would ask that you not make conclusions ****d on rumor or suspicions and let our judicial system work as it is designed."
Cobb County police spokesman Mike Bowman held a press conference Wednesday evening. "Let us do our job," Bowman said, according to the Atlanta Journal Constitution. "Let us get the information out there. Don’t be so quick to judge."
Officials, however, didn’t release any additional details at the news conference.
denisedillon @DillonFox5 Follow Cobb Police not going into specifics of Cooper Harris case… say investigation "active and far from over" #fox5atl
7:16 PM – 25 Jun 2024
Earlier Wednesday, information surfaced that Harris went to his car midday on the day that his son died. A new warrant was issued changing the charges against Harris from first- to second-degree child cruelty. Harris, 33, is also charged with murder.
Citing a law-enforcement source, Fox 5 Atlanta reported Harris’ computer contained a search for how long it would take an animal to die in a hot car. The report didn’t say when Authorities believe that computer search was done.
According to the warrant made public Wednesday by a Cobb County magistrate, Harris placed Cooper into the rear-facing car seat of his 2024 Hyundai Tucson after eating at Chick-Fil-A on Cumberland Parkway, which is just two-tenths of a mile from Harris’ Home Depot office. Cobb County police spokesman Officer Mike Bowman said he doesn’t know what time Harris and his son were at Chick-Fil-A that morning.
Harris then drove to his office a couple of blocks away, and Left his son strapped into the car seat in the SUV while he went into work. During lunch, the warrant says, Harris went back out to his car and was seen opening the driver’s side door to put something in the vehicle.
He then closed the door and Left the car, going back into work. The warrant doesn’t specifically say whether Harris saw or knew Cooper was in the SUV when he went to the vehicle at lunch.
At 4:16 p.m., Harris pulled over at a shopping center on Akers Mill Road, got out and started screaming for help. Witnesses reported hearing Harris yelling, "What have I done? What have I done? I’ve killed our child." Cobb police Sgt. Dana Pierce told the AJC, "Apparently he forgot the child was in the car-seat."
Pierce later told Atlanta media questions had surfaced. "Much has changed about the circumstances leading up to the death of this 22-month-old since it was first reported," Cobb County Police Sgt. Dana Pierce told CNN. "I’ve been in law enforcement for 34 years. What I know about this case shocks my conscience as a police officer, a father and a grandfather."
The autopsy conducted on the boy suggested the manner of death was a homicide, Cobb County police said late Wednesday afternoon, according to the Atlanta Journal Constitution. "The Cobb County Medical Examiner’s Office is waiting for toxicology test results before making an official ruling as to the cause and manner of death," police said in a written statement. "However, the Cobb County Medical Examiner believes the cause of death is consistent with hyperthermia and the investigative information suggests the manner of death is homicide."
A service for Cooper will be held Saturday at 1 p.m. at University Church of Christ in Tuscaloosa. A private family burial will follow. Visitation will be held at noon Saturday, before the service.
Efforts to reach Maddox Kilgore, Harris’ attorney, for comment have been unsuccessful. Atlanta defense attorney Kim Keheley Frye, who doesn’t represent Harris but is a colleague of Kilgore, has been outspoken about the way police have handled the Harris case. She said they’ve already released too much information that is prejudicial to Harris.
"Mr. Harris has the right to have a fair and impartial trial,” Frye told AL.com. "It’s really impacting the ability to presume him innocent. They are keeping him from having that by continuing to put things out."
She said there isn’t much the defense can say, even if willing to do so. "They (police) need to keep their mouths shut because the defense side can’t talk and that’s the problem, it becomes a dog pile,” Frye said. "We still don’t know what’s there. We just know what the police are saying is there."