GLYNN COUNTY, Ga. — As his 22-month-old son died inside his hot car, Ross Harris sent his wife a text message asking when she was planning to pick "(his) buddy" up from daycare, phone records show.
- 1 detective and 4 women testified
- Harris' phone history said he had multiple conversations with women the day of his son's death
- Harris texted his wife asking about her plans to pick up their son the day he died, according to records
- Four women who had sexual relationships with Harris testified that they all spoke with him on the day his son died
- One woman, who fell in love with Harris, said he told her if it wasn't for his son, he would leave his wife
Harris is on trial for the death of his son, Cooper. He is accused of intentionally leaving the toddler inside the car for nearly seven hours to kill him on June 18, 2014. He is facing eight charges, including malice murder.
Channel 2’s Ross Cavitt and Carl Willis are in Brunswick, where the trial is being held. They will have updates from inside the courtroom on Channel 2 Action News.
Thursday morning, a Cobb County detective returned to the stand to continue his testimony about Harris' phone records. %
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Phone records show Harris' chats day of son's death
R.B. Smith was responsible for extricating the data, including chats and search history, from Harris' iPhone after his son's death.
Wednesday, prosecutors showed records that Harris was sexting a woman as his son was dying inside his car. Thursday, the defense countered that, saying he was having several chats on the app Whisper, some sexual in nature and some not.
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The defense said Harris had a conversation with a woman that morning about Cooper, saying, "He's awesome." He told another woman, "My breaking point is pretty low right now," but the defense pointed out that there is no reference to his son in that post. Prosecutors say Harris sent a message in which he mentioned his son at 9:15 that morning, just moments before he arrived at work.
Later that afternoon, at 3:16 p.m., phone records show that Harris sent his wife a text asking, "When are you getting my buddy?" An hour later, Cooper was found dead inside Harris' car. %
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Harris teared up in court Thursday as the defense showed a photo of Cooper sleeping that Harris had sent to his wife just days before Cooper's death. The tender parental messages were a stark contrast to the hundreds of other chats and messages Harris engaged in.
Four women who chatted with Harris sexually on the applications Scout and Kik testified Thursday.
All four said they spoke with Harris the day of his son's death. Many of them said they had sexual conversations with him that day.
Alexandra Swindell, who began chatting with Harris in 2012, said he never mentioned his wife and son. %
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Swindell said they talked for a while back in 2012, when she was a freshman in college. Harris was 26 at the time. Swindell said they met up once for a sexual encounter and didn't talk much after that.
They began talking again in May 2014. Swindell said their conversations were sexual in nature.
She said that she sexted with him on the day of his son's death.
Molly Sims was the second woman to take the stand Thursday. She said she sexted with Harris in 2013 and 2014.
She said that at times, she would try to have non-sexual conversations with him, but he would blow them off. She never met Harris in person
Elizabeth Smith was the third woman to take the stand. Smith said she talked with Harris daily on the application Kik, and their conversations were often sexual. %
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Smith said she met with Harris a few times, and had sex with him at least once.
She said Harris did mention his son, and would often send her pictures of Cooper. She said Harris talked about how much he loved Cooper.
The final woman to take the stand Thursday was Jaynie Meadows.
Meadows met Harris on a dating app in May 2013. She says they began talking and eventually fell in love. %
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She only met him in person one time, and they kissed, but they spoke daily over text, on chat and on the phone.
She said Harris didn't initially say anything about his wife and son, but eventually told her the truth. She said Harris often told her that he and his wife were having problems, including financial problems and family problems. She said he told her his marriage was falling apart, but always talked about how much he loved his son.
She said he once told her that if it weren't for his son, he would leave his wife.
“It just made me realize how unhappy I can be sometimes. If he wasn’t in the picture, I probably would have left (Leanna) by now,” Meadows read from a text Harris sent her.
Once she heard what happened to Cooper, Meadows said she wrote Harris a letter and asked his attorneys to give it to him. In the letter, she told Harris she knew how much he adored his son.
You can watch the entire trial LIVE on WSBTV.com/Ross-Harris-Trial. We will have minute-by-minute coverage as well as a daily summary from the courtroom each day. Like Ross Harris Updates on Facebook and follow @RossHarrisTrial on Twitter for updates throughout the trial.
Cox Media Group
