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Friday, March 29, 2024 | Back issues
Courthouse News Service Courthouse News Service

Jury Selection Begins in Ga. Hot SUV Murder Case

(CN) - Jury selection got under way Monday in the case of Justin Ross Harris, the Georgia man accused of intentionally leaving his infant son to die in a hot SUV.

Harris, 35, faces multiple charges, including murder, in the June 18, 2014, death of his 22.month-old son, Cooper.

The authorities said the boy died after spending roughly seven hours in an SUV with the windows closed on a day that the local temperatures in Atlanta climbed into the low 90s.

A coroner later concluded that the temperature inside the vehicle climbed to as high as 120 degress.

Harris was indicted in September 2014 on charges of malice murder, felony murder and child cruelty, He also faces charges over sexually explicit texts and photos he sent three underage girls.

Prosecutors claim Harris, who worked as a web developer for The Home Depot at the time of his son's death, was deeply unhappy in his marriage and intentionally left the boy to die to escape his parental responsibilities.

Harris, who has pleaded not guilty to the charges, has said it was all a tragic mistake.

He is being tried in the Cobb County, Ga. Superior Court before Judge Mary Staley.

The county has called 550 people to be in the jury pool; On Monday, Judge Staley heard from several potential jurors who claimed scheduling conflicts would prevent them from serving.

By the end of the session, most but not all of those called remained in the potential jury pool.

Additional questioning of jurors is expected to extend into next week.

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