Today in the Ross Harris trial: Jurors see SUV in which Cooper died
The prosecution in the Justin Ross Harris trial today will introduce the jury to the state's largest piece of evidence: what lead prosecutor Chuck Boring has called the "murder weapon."
At about 9 this morning, jurors will be led out of the courthouse to view Harris’s Hyundai Tucson, the SUV in which 22-month-old Cooper Harris perished after his father left him strapped inside it in June 2014. The state contends that Harris intended for his little boy to die in the vehicle.
The "field trip" to see the car — it is expected to be parked just outside the courthouse — will be a highlight in a prosecution case that is beginning to draw to a close. The child safety seat in which Cooper died, which has been in the courtroom tagged as evidence, will be placed back in the SUV for the jurors' viewing.
The court and both parties spent part of Wednesday drafting rules that will govern the experience: how close jurors may get to the vehicle, how long the viewing will last, the angles of the views and so on.
Additional prosecution testimony is expected back in the courtroom after the viewing, including perhaps a viewing of a highly controversial 3D animation the state has created to help jurors envision what happened to Cooper Harris.
The AJC's reporters in Brunswick will report throughout the day on key developments in the trial, and you'll also be able to follow our minute-by-minute account of the proceedings from the time court convenes in the morning until it recesses in the afternoon. AJC reporters Christian Boone (@reporterJCB) and Bill Rankin (@ajccourts) are in Brunswick for the duration of the trial.
Harris is also the subject of the second season of the AJC's podcast series "Breakdown,"which is following the trial's developments.
About the Authors
A native Atlantan, Boone joined the AJC staff in 2007. He quickly carved out a niche covering crime stories, assuming the public safety beat in 2014. He's covered some of the biggest trials this decade, from Hemy Neuman to Ross Harris to Chip Olsen, the latter of which was featured on Season 7 of the AJC's award-winning "Breakdown" podcast.
Bill Rankin has been an AJC reporter for more than 30 years. His father, Jim Rankin, worked as an editor for the newspaper for 26 years, retiring in 1986. Bill has primarily covered the state’s court system, doing all he can do to keep the scales of justice on an even keel. Since 2015, he has been the host of the newspaper’s Breakdown podcast.
