Judge won't separate murder, sexting charges in Georgia hot car trial
Judge denies motion to sever charges in hot car trial
CNN | October 12, 2015, 11:30PM
By Eliott C. McLaughlin and Ashton AdamsMarietta, Georgia -- Justin Ross Harris, who faces murder charges in his 1-year-old son's June 2014 hot car death, will not see a separate trial on allegations that he sexted with minors, a Cobb County, Georgia, judge ruled Monday.
While the prosecution said the sexting-related charges help establish motive, Harris' defense attorney, H. Maddox Kilgore, told Superior Court Judge Mary Staley that he didn't believe the charges that Harris sent minors sexually explicit material had anything to do with the allegations that he intentionally killed his son.
"Severance is warranted and, I believe, mandated in this case," he said. "How do sending these photos show disposition to killing a child?"
Harris left Cooper in a rear-facing car seat in the back of his Hyundai Tucson while he spent the day at work as a Web developer for Atlanta-based Home Depot. He normally dropped the boy off at day care.
The temperature topped 92 that day, which can make the heat inside a closed vehicle soar past 100 degrees quickly, and police testified during Harris' probable cause hearing that Cooper spent at least seven hours in the car.
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Prosecutors in January said they would not seek the death penalty against Harris.
Staley proposed a February trial date for Harris, but the defense said it would need until the end of January to argue all its motions. Staley set a hearing for December 14 and gave Harris' lawyers until January 22.
More at link (video):
http://www.cnn.com/2015/10/12/us/georgia-hot-car-death-sexting-charges/