Opening arguments in the Casey Anthony first degree murder trial will likely be Wednesday, May 18, in the Orange County Court and not Tuesday, as earlier envisaged, as the pace of jury selection has been slower than anticipated.
On Saturday, Day 6, four potential juror were retained making for a total of 12 so far, after six days of inquiry. But, between the defense and prosecution there remain 18 challenges to potential jurors. Both sides have already utilized one each to strike two jurors.
In all, 12 jurors have got to be selected, in addition to 8 alternates. It is not clear if Judge Belvin Perry will swear jurors in at the Pinellas County Courthouse. Perry has said that there would be a day off at the end of jury selection and opening arguments.
Meanwhile, jury selection will resume tomorrow, May 16, on Day 7, in the Pinellas County Court.
Casey Anthony is charged with murdering her two-year-old daughter, Caylee. She had initially claimed her daughter was kidnapped by a baby sitter, but that “story” was later debunked by her defense attorneys.
Based on questions posed to potential jurors by the Anthony defense team, it is almost certain that factors such as sexual, verbal, and emotional abuse will loom large as part of the Casey defense strategy. How these dots will be connected to Caylee’s murder, is anyone’s guess.
