Leanna Taylor was on the stand in her ex-husband's murder trial for nearly five hours Monday, and she'll be back this morning for more cross-examination by prosecutor Chuck Boring.
» Hot car death trial live stream: Watch Leanna Taylor take the stand.
Even though she divorced Ross Harris earlier this year over his serial philandering, Taylor appeared as a defense witness and seemed firmly in Harris's camp on Monday. She spoke at length about her ex-husband's devotion to their son, Cooper, and the defense showed the jury dozens of images and videos of Cooper. What the jurors saw was a delightful toddler who loved bananas and appeared to have a strong bond with his father.
But these were also images of a little boy who will never get any older than 22 months. Ross Harris is accused of malice murder for leaving Cooper to die in his hot SUV in July 2014.
Leanna Taylor’s testimony on Monday represented her first public statements about her son’s death and her husband’s prosecution. Although she sometimes cried on the stand, Taylor was mostly composed and articulate. Some said she was a little too composed, seeming to be too practiced. Others gave her high marks for what they found to be lucid, believable testimony.
Here are five key statements by Taylor on Monday:
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The AJC's team 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.
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