Perhaps not surprisingly, a clearly frustrated Chief Judge Belvin Perry recessed the court early on Monday morning, even before jurors took their seats, after legal wrangling between the state and defense attorneys in the Casey Anthony murder trial continued. Perry said the court would be recessed until Tuesday at 9:00 am.
Prosecutors have charged Casey Anthony with first degree murder in the death of her two-year-old daughter Caylee. They believe that she poisoned the toddler with chloroform and placed duct tape over the child’s nose and mouth, before dumping the body in the woods near the Anthony family home.
Monday, Day 23, began with prosecutor Jeff Ashton complaining that the defense’s first two witnesses should not be allowed to testify. This followed from Saturday, when forensic anthropologist, Dr. William Rodriguez who began his testimony for the defense, was asked to step down.
Rodriguez told jurors that one cannot make a determination of the exact location of the duct tape as it could have shifted as the child’s body decomposed and also her skeleton remains could have been moved by animals, thereby shifting the duck tape.
But Ashton said that Rodriguez was offering opinions and interpretations on the location of the duct tape found on Caylee’s skull–opinions which he said were not contained in his report.
The issue of duck tape is central to the prosecution’s case as prosecutors believe that Casey applied duct tape to the child’s face prior to her death.
Perry, who ordered Rodriguez to step down and his deposition taken on Saturday afternoon, took the opportunity to admonish lead defense Jose Baez. He told Baez that he could not choose which court orders to comply with and which he wouldn’t.
Perry reminded both the state and defense attorneys that well before the start of the trial, court orders were issued wherein both sides had to disclose any opinions that were to be rendered by experts during testimony.
“Both sides have engaged in game playing and this is not a game”, Perry warned.
He added that the failure on Baez’ part to disclose Rodriguez’ opinion was “quite intentional, not an inadvertent slip” and warned that “lightening does not strike twice in the same place.”
Perry also said he was reserving the right on moving forward with possible sanctions that Baez many face and he could do so at the conclusion of the trial.
Although Rodriguez’ deposition was taken by the state on Saturday afternoon, on Monday morning, Ashton asked for more time to review the transcript so that he could better prepare for cross-examination.
On Saturday, world renowned forensic pathologist Dr. Werner Spitz also was called to the stand.
He told jurors that the autopsy performed on Caylee’s remains by the Orange County Medical Examiner, Dr. G. was “shoddy”, as the toddler’s skull was never examined. On the autopsy he performed the skull was opened and he did find residue or settlement, although on cross-examination by Ashton, Spitz conceded he had not tested it.
Spitz testified that it was his opinion that the duct tape found on Caylee’s skull was placed there after decomposition of the child to hold the lower jaw in place.
“I have felt that the duct tape was a later event”, Spitz testified.
While Spitz said he had reviewed Dr. G’s autopsy, like her, he could not conclude as to the cause of Caylee’s death. But unlike, Dr. G. who had testified that the manner of death was homicide, Spitz said, he could not say.
“Do you know what the manner of death is?”, Cheney Mason, one of Casey’s defense attorneys inquired.
“No, I could not tell you”, Spitz testified.
On cross-examination, Ashton sought to undercut some of Spitz’s testimony.
Ashton pointed out that determining the manner of death of Caylee also required other information and the entire circumstances surrounding the death. He grilled Spitz on what other information he had reviewed in coming to his opinion that the manner of Caylee’s death was undetermined and that an accidental death could not be ruled out.
“Did you read any police reports?”, Ashton asked.
“I had those too”, Spitz replied.
“Which ones?”, Ashton inquired.
“I could not tell you”, Spitz said.
Ashton got Spitz to admit that the lapse of time from when Caylee was last seen to when she was reported missing–31 days–was very important in trying to determine the manner of death of the toddler.
“All of it needs to fit together. One has to evaluate the entire picture”, Spitz said.
Ashton challenged Spitz on the timing as to when in his opinion he felt that the duct tape had been applied to Caylee’s face.
“Is it your opinion that the duct tape was applied after the body (Caylee) was skeletonized?”, Ashton asked Spitz.
“Yes, after the body was decomposed”, Spitz said.
Ashton seemed to ridicule Spitz’s theory and asked whether someone had picked up the skull and applied duct tape.
“If the duct tape was placed after the skull was decomposing, then someone would have had to take up the skull and place the jaw in place and then connect the jaw to the skull”, Ashton said. “The person would have had to have done it with three pieces of tape. Why?”
A lengthy cross-examination took place between Ashton and Spitz on the location of Caylee’s hair when the child’s remains were found.
Ashton asked Spitz why it is that there was no duct tape on Caylee’s skin, but only on her hair.
Spitz conceded that he did not know what duct tape stuck to the hair only, meant in this case.
Spitz suggested the Medical Examiner, Dr. G. or someone in her office could have re-arranged Caylee’s hair on her skull and that the photographs could have been staged.
Casey’s defense attorneys have claimed that Caylee accidentally drowned in the family swimming pool and George Anthony, Casey’s father covered up the crime. The defense has also said that their client was sexually abused by George, and her brother Lee.
Casey, if convicted, could face the death penalty.
