Leanna Harris, mother of the Georgia toddler that died after her husband left the 22-month-old in a hot car, remains under intense scrutiny after her husband's preliminary hearing on Thursday.
"There isn't enough to make her a co-conspirator . . . yet," said criminal defense lawyer Esther Panitch,
according to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
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Ross Harris pleaded not guilty to charges of murder and child cruelty last week, but his wife Leanna has not yet been charged with a crime. Investigators say her behavior could eventually implicate her, however.
On Thursday, Cobb County Police Det. Phil Stoddard testified that Leanna Harris was calm when she was told by employees at her son Cooper's day care facility that he had never been dropped off.
"Ross must have left him in the car. There’s no other explanation," she was reported to have said in reaction,
CNN reported. Even after others tried to reassure her that there were a number of possibilities still on the table, witnesses say she was insistent that her son had died after being left in a hot car.
Stoddard reported that once the couple was reunited at the police station, she asked her husband "Did you say too much?"
Those present at the hearing say Leanna Harris showed little emotion in the courtroom, staring blankly while chewing gum. Her demeanor has been reported as non-emotional throughout the ordeal. When she called her mother on June 18 to tell her of Cooper's death, her mother was reported as saying, "Why aren't you crying? Why aren't you reacting?"
Police say that Leanna's Internet search history was similar to her husband's in regard to looking up information about children and animals dying in hot cars. She told them it was her "worst fear" when asked about the research.
At Thursday's hearing it was also revealed to the public that Ross Harris was text messaging six different women during the time he was at work while his toddler slowly died in his car. Many of the messages were explicit, and some included nude photos.
One of the women was underage at the time of the messages, making it possible he will also be charged with felony sexual exploitation of a minor and misdemeanor illegal contact with a minor, according to Stoddard. It is unclear whether Leanna Harris knew about the women.
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