News

Ross Harris' ex-wife: 'He destroyed my life'

GLYNN COUNTY, Ga. — Ross Harris' attorneys spent the day Tuesday trying to convince jurors that Harris is a deeply flawed person, but someone who loved his son and would never intentionally kill him.

Day 18 Quick Facts
  • Harris' ex-wife said after re-watching her interactions at the police station she agrees her actions were "odd"
  • She said Harris "destroyed her life" and she doesn't care if she ever sees him again
  • Several of Harris' coworkers, neighbors and friends took the stand in his defense
  • They described Harris as friendly and chatty, but said they didn't know about his "darker side"
  • Harris brother said Harris "loved Cooper more than life itself"
  • Michael Baygents said he is ashamed of his brothers actions, but would never lie for him

Harris is accused of killing the toddler by intentionally leaving him inside a hot car for nearly seven hours. He is facing eight charges, including malice murder.

Harris' ex-wife: 'He destroyed my life'

Prosecutors resumed their cross-examination of Harris' ex-wife, Leanna Taylor, Tuesday morning.

Taylor was on the stand all day Monday, and testimony became tense when cross-examination began.

Taylor was married to Harris for 9 1/2 years.

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.

Assistant District Attorney Chuck Boring asked Taylor about her statements and actions after Cooper’s death.

Taylor said after rewatching her interactions at the police station she agrees that she was acting “odd.” She said the whole thing was an out-of-body experience. %

INLINE

%

"You would agree that looking at that, it struck you as odd. Just looking at it objectively, 'OK, that's not me. That looks odd,'" Boring said. "As an observer, just watching it, yes, I would agree with that,'" Taylor said.

Boring said the first thing Taylor asked detectives about that day was her husband.

"Your main concern was your future and how it was going to go forward with the defendant, would you agree with that after reviewing it?" he asked. "I wouldn't agree because I knew how I was feeling at the time," Taylor said.

Taylor's attorney, Lawrence Zimmerman, said he was appalled by the prosecutions questions.

"How dare they even suggest (that). I want each person to record themselves the next time they are told the most tragic thing in humanity and see how they react. People are social media are still judging her it's disgusting and it's outrageous," he said.

RELATED CONTENT:

At one point during her testimony, Taylor appeared overwhelmed so Boring asked the judge for a break. Taylor began to cry as jurors left the room. %

INLINE

%

When they resumed, Boring asked Taylor about the sexual text messages Harris was sending an receiving.

"He destroyed my life. I didn't know about these things," Taylor responded. "All I can say, I was very upset. I was angry. I was disappointed. All of the things I felt during this trial."

Prosecutors once again tried to argue that Harris was two different people.

"I would agree that that was a part of his personality that he did not share with me," Taylor said.

Taylor told jurors she didn't talk to detectives after Cooper's death because she "didn't find them very trustworthy."

When asked how she feels about her husband now, she said, "He ruined my life. He destroyed my life. I'm humiliated. I may never trust anybody again the way that I did. If I never see him again after this day, that's fine."

Harris' coworkers, friends take the stand

The defense called Harris' neighbor, friends and coworkers to the stand.

They all described Harris as chatty and friendly, but said they didn't know about his "darker" side.

"They seemed like the perfect family," neighbor Joey Nesbit said. %

INLINE

%

A co-worker said when he once asked Harris about having kids, Harris told him, "As much as you love music, you'll love your kid 100x more."

Harris' director, Aundrae Brown, said Harris would often talk and brag about Cooper at work.

Brown said Harris' work fell off a lot in June 2014. He said Harris was spending a lot of time on his phone at work and a project he was supposed to complete was never completed, which was unlike Harris.

Jelani Etienne, who worked closely with Harris, said nothing seemed out of the ordinary the day Cooper died.

Close friend says Harris loved his son

Angie Bond, who has been best friends with Taylor since high school, took the stand Tuesday.

Bond said both Taylor and Harris were thrilled when they got pregnant with Cooper. She said they loved that little boy very much. %

INLINE

%

Bond said she'll never forget the day Cooper died. She said she received a text from Taylor that said, "Please pray something bad has happened and nobody will tell me what." Bond said when she called Taylor back, Taylor told her, "Cooper's gone."

Bond said she went to Marietta to be with Taylor for several days.

"Most of the time she was in a daze, but when we were at home, just family, she was an absolute wreck," Bond said.

Bond said after Monday's testimony, Taylor broke down when she left the courtroom and was "inconsolable" for about 30 minutes.

Harris' brother takes the stand

Harris' brother, Michael Baygents, took the stand Tuesday afternoon.

Baygents told jurors he's ashamed of the things his brother has done, but said, despite that, Harris loved Cooper.

"I think he loved Cooper more than life itself. I'll never believe anything other than he loved his son more than anything," Baygents said.

When asked about a different side of Harris, Baygents said, "I would agree that he made a lot of mistakes." He said what he learned about his brother has been "shocking."

Harris broke down in the courtroom during his brother's testimony.

Baygents, who has been in law enforcement for more than 20 years, said Harris used legal jargon and cop talk all the time

When questioned by prosecutors about his experience as a police officer, Baygents agreed that sometimes people you never expect commit horrible crimes.

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.