The jury in the hot car murder trial listened on Wednesday to testimony from yet another woman who exchanged sexually explicit text messages and photos with Justin Ross Harris.
That makes three women — including one under-aged teenager — who have testified that they sexted with the defendant. Harris is charged with the murder of his 22-month-old son Cooper who died after being left in a hot SUV for 7 hours in June 2014.
Here are the three key moments from court on Wednesday.
1. When did Cooper die?
On Tuesday, former Cobb County Medical Examiner Brian Frist testified “Cooper could’ve survived” the morning of June 18, 2014, as long as temperatures remained in the 90s inside the car. A person dies of hypothermia, he said, when his or her internal temperature exceeds 105 degrees.
On Wednesday, a heat expert called by the state testified the temperature inside Harris’ SUV didn’t pass 100 degrees until just before 1 p.m. The temperature was 98 degrees at 12:45 p.m., when Harris returned to his vehicle to drop off some light bulbs.
Frist said there was no way to pinpoint an exact time of death, but the possibility adds another chilling layer to the prosecution’s claim that Harris intentionally killed his son.
2. ‘Does your conscience ever kick in?’ … ‘Nope’
A woman testified that she and Harris exchanged nude photos of their private parts and suggested one day they’d hook up for sex.
At one point, Harris told the woman he was the lead guitarist at his church.
This prompted Caitlyn Hickey Floyd to message Harris: “But you still exercise the thought of being with someone else when you’re married?”
When Harris responded, “Yep,” Floyd asked, “Does your conscience ever kick in?”
“Nope,” Harris replied.
3. ‘I love my son and all …’
On the morning Harris left Cooper in his car he responded to a post on the social media app Whisper by a mother of two who said she felt unappreciated. “I hate being married with kids. The novelty has worn off and I have nothing to show for it,” she wrote, adding, “I don’t resent my kids. I resent him.”
At 9:15 a.m., while eating breakfast with Cooper, Harris messaged the woman: “I love my son and all but both need escapes.” Ten minutes later he got out of his car in the Home Depot parking lot, leaving Cooper behind.
During his opening statement, lead prosecutor Chuck Boring said this exchange helps explain why Harris wanted to kill his son.
Court resumes Thursday at 8:30 a.m.
You can follow minute-by-minute developments in the trial at AJC.com and on Twitter at @AJCBreakdown. AJC reporters Christian Boone (@reporterJCB) and Bill Rankin (@ajccourts) will be 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 will follow the trial's developments.
