The Casey Anthony defense team, along with five top experts in their respective fields, is into the second day of examining key evidence which the State plans to present in their case against her. Anthony is charged with first degree murder in the death of her two-year-old daughter, Caylee.
Dr. Henry Lee, one of the world’s foremost forensic scientist is in Orlando working alongside four other forensic experts, closely examining key pieces of evidence. Lee, whose work has made him a landmark in modern day forensic sciences, figured prominently in the O.J Simpson trial and in convictions of the “Woodchipper” murderer, as well as hundreds of other murder cases.
Lee is joined by a husband and wife team, Dr. Richard and Thelma Eikelenboom, who flew in from Holland. The couple are forensic scientists in the Netherlands and are known for their expertise in touch DNA testing and recovery of trace evidence. The Eikelenbooms pioneered sample recovery methods for isolating skin cells of a perpetrator from a crime victim’s clothing.
Dr. Nicholas Petraco is also a member of the expert group that is examining evidence at the Orange County Sheriff’s Office. A nationally recognized forensic expert out of New York, Petraco specializes in hair and fiber. It is believed that Petraco will be closely examining the strand of hair that prosecutors found in the trunk of Casey Anthony’s car.
Known as a “Forensic Whiz”, in 2002, Petraco’s testimony cast doubt on evidence based on hair samples that linked the Central Park jogger to five teens convicted of raping and beating her. The teens were cleared after another man confessed.
Making up the star-studded line up of defense experts is Timothy Huntington from Nebraska. A board certified forensic entomologist, Huntington’s profile page states that, “I am one of only 15-board certified forensic entomologists. So we are a small pool of experts to draw from”.
It is believed that Huntington will be examining closely the prosecution’s evidence of coffin flies found in Casey Anthony’s car.
In an earlier statement, Huntington explained that “Forensic entomology applies the study of insects to a legal system context to establish a time of death and post-mortem movement of a body. It is a key element in the construction of a timeline relating to death.”
Along side the experts are Anthony’s local attorneys, Jose Baez and James Cheney Mason, who have been tight-lipped regarding what specific evidence is being examined. The defense team was required to present to prosecutors last week, a list of the items that they wished to examine.
Casey Anthony, is charged with first degree murder in the death of her two-year-old daughter. She has maintained her innocence saying that Caylee was kidnapped by a baby sitter, although to date, there is no evidence to suggest that this was the case. Caylee’s remains were found five months after she went missing in a wooded area near to the Anthony family home in December 2008. Anthony’s trial is expected to commence in May 2011. The state is seeking the death penalty.
