Jury Selection Begins for Georgia Dad Justin Ross Harris, Accused in 'Hot Car Death' of Toddler Son

Justin Ross Harris, the man accused of murdering his 22-month-old son by allegedly intentionally leaving him in a hot car while he went to his job at Home Depot, is finally facing trial – five months after a judge abruptly halted jury selection to move the trial out of the Atlanta area.

Jury selection is set to begin on Monday morning in Brunswick, Georgia, more than 275 miles away from where the toddler died. About 200 potential jurors have been summoned to the Glynn County Courthouse.

It will be the second time that the lawyers have gone through this process. In April, attorneys began questioning potential jurors. Three weeks into the process, Harris' attorneys filed a motion arguing that "an impartial jury cannot be obtained in the county where the crime is alleged to have been committed." The judge agreed to move the trial.

The Alleged Crime

On June 14, 2014, Harris allegedly left his son, Cooper, in the family's SUV on a day when the outside temperatures were nearly 90 degrees. An autopsy found that Cooper died of hyperthermia.



Harris's attorney, Maddox Kilgore, contends Harris merely forgot about Cooper because he was distracted and that Harris never intended to harm his son.

Prosecutors charged Harris with eight felony counts, including malice murder, cruelty to children and criminal attempt to commit a felony.

Alleged Sexting and Strange Behavior

Prosecutors contend that Harris was not the loving father he has claimed to be.

In a pretrial hearing, a detective told the court that Harris had exchanged sexual text messages with six different females while his son was dying in the car. One of the females he allegedly sexted was just 16 years old. (Harris tried to have the alleged racy text messages declared inadmissible at trial.)

In a 2014 probable cause hearing, detective Phil Stoddard outlined Harris's alleged strange behavior, both before and after Cooper's death.

According to Stoddard, Harris had researched hot car deaths online. He also searched "how to survive in prison."

Surveillance video has shown Harris returning to the car during lunchtime and placing two boxes of light bulbs inside. He appears not to look at Cooper's car seat.

Stoddard also testified that Harris grew belligerent with responding officers after discovering Cooper's lifeless body. When he was arrested, Harris allegedly said, "But there was no malicious intent."

Will His Wife Testify?

For nearly two years, Harris's wife, Leanna, stood by him, calling him a good father.

Earlier this year, however, she quietly filed for divorce. "She had had enough," a source close to Leanna tells PEOPLE. "She is 100% done with him."

She is on the trial's witness list, but it's unclear whether she will be called to testify against or for him.

The trial is expected to last several weeks. Harris faces life in prison if found guilty.