Defense Testimony ~State vs. Casey Anthony~ Thread#2 (June 23-June 27). Cindy Anthony claims she is the one who made some of the computer searches. Casey was evaluated by 3 forensic psychologists to determine if she is competant. She IS! Will she Testify?

I bet JP is making Finnell argue the motion for mistrial after the jury is excused for the day...

Bozo and LDB chatting and smiling with each other in the courtroom during the break. Give Bozo a swift one Linda.

Bozo and his drawings! He thinks he has a "Gotcha" moment!

A competency hearing is requested when the defendant starts acting in a different manner - or is offered a reasonable plea deal and turns it down

wesh reporter saying Casey has been acting in an odd manner of late.

Extremely interesting article on this case:

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Casey has been acting in a weird manner for decades! They already had two psychologists interview her prior to the trial and wanted them to testify in her behalf. That was axed by JP.

They are trying everything they can think of to keep her from testifying.

In Session, Casey Jordan is saying that she thinks this was prompted by Lee's testimony and that something is/was going on w/them and it made her act weird. I don't buy it.

Did Bozo ask Lee if he had ever sexually molested Casey? No, he did not! Why?? That was part of his opening statement. If I were on the jury, I would wonder Why Baez did not ask him.

This jury is probably shaking their heads and tired of showing up and then sent back to their hotel rooms like what happened Sat. IMO, this speaks Volumes for the way the jury will deliberate. MOO.

Did she really write that? The accused child killer Casey Anthony included this surprising passage in a letter to a fellow inmate as she awaited her capital murder trial currently under way in Florida:

I've told you about all the mail I've gotten. I'm up to the thousands with positive letters and cards. Low 20's for the negative. Good stuff. Well...there are a couple of fellas who have either become infatuated with the celebrity or with the fair damesll [sic]...in distress. One is more hooked than the other...Is this what "celebrities" have to deal with? Yikes! It is sweet in a strange sort of way...

--Excerpt from Casey Anthony's jailhouse letters

K-9 Officer is back...Bozo is showing him his drawing...

10:46

ClickOrlando.com Editor:
Here is Local 6's interview with Dr. Ryan hall, one of the psychologists who evaluated Casey Anthony over the weekend. The interview was done years before he examined her. [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

Bloise didn't put 2 cars in his drawing, so Bozo wants the jury to think that Forgey is lying to bolster his dog's results.

I would have thought we exhausted the dog issues earlier.

LDB just gets right to the crux of the matter...

Dr. Kenneth Furton is up next...

10:55

Tony Pipitone:
Kronk was ultimately dismissed from his job for failure to promptly or repeatedly report to his assigned duties.

From Wesh.com
#CaseyAnthony A judge friend says lawyers request competency evals if client gives new, inconsistent info. or rejects reasonable plea offer.

OR insists on testifying against defense instruction?

Furton has testified as expert witness in human decomp? Not before this trial. As forensic chemist? Yes, over 2 dozen times.

Casey’s Dysfunctional Lawyer
In the explosive Casey Anthony trial, the defense team provides the gasoline. Diane Dimond on how the accused child murderer’s attorney has earned the judge’s ire—and might sink her case.
June 26, 2011 10:28 PM EDT

Clearly exasperated, Judge Belvin Perry, Jr. uttered a single line on Saturday, day 39 of the capital murder trial of Casey Anthony, that spoke volumes: "You think this would've grown old by now, but I guess some things never change."

The exclamation, after yet another in a long string of prosecution objections to the way attorney Jose Baez is attempting to present the defense case, turned into a private huddle as the judge and the lawyers seemingly sought to remedy yet another defense team gaffe in front the of the jury. The result: Court adjourned with no testimony heard.
Click here to find out more!

Long before the trial, Perry issued orders about how he expected the case to proceed. One of the main orders: expert witnesses file a full report on what they intended to testify about, including all their findings, opinions, and details of any and all experiments they had conducted. In the world of criminal justice, both sides are entitled to know what the other knows.

On three occasions the defense ignored Perry’s order and tried to either present expert witnesses without the prerequisite final report, or to ask questions about topics not in their report. At one point, outside the presence of the jury, a frustrated Perry jumped in to question forensic scientist Dr. Richard Eikelenboom.

“Were you told, doctor, that you needed to do a report for the court?”

“No, just an affidavit,” he answered.

“And you got your instructions from who?” Perry asked.

“

When it comes to the defense team’s expert witnesses, the choices have been, well … interesting.
”

“From Mr. Baez …” And he went on to explain that just three days earlier, on a Saturday evening, he sat down and “wrote a short report” after Baez finally instructed him to. Not good enough, the judge ruled, and Eikelenboom’s testimony was limited.

Short, stout Perry is the longtime chief judge in Orlando and highly respected for his accomplishments and tenure. He runs a tight courtroom and in mandating the six-day a week schedule he often cites the disruption this weeks-long case has on the sequestered jury, chosen from the Clearwater area 100 miles away.
Casey Anthony Trial

Red Huber / AP Photo

Perry has made it clear he is unhappy with the lawyers from both sides of the Casey Anthony case for “engaging in what I call ‘game playing.’” At one point the judge hinted darkly at recommending court sanctions or reporting the lawyers to the bar for ethics violations at the end of the trial.

To be fair, however, it is Baez who is in Perry’s crosshairs the majority of the time. On occasion the judge seems to be trying to teach the inexperienced defense attorney from the bench, reminding Baez, for example, that he can’t discuss an item until he submits it into evidence. At one point recently the judge stopped himself and said, “Well, it’s not my job to tell you.”

Veteran Orlando-based attorney Bill Sheaffer told The Daily Beast he thinks the defense has so far, “been inadequate and ineffective.” As a legal analyst for local WFTV, Sheaffer said, “I end every day asking, ‘Have they raised a reasonable doubt about the states’ case?’ and every day I say I don’t think they have. The general consensus is it’s a combination of (Baez’s) lack of experience coupled with him being awfully busy trying to make a name for himself. ”

Much of the defense presentation has centered on recalling prosecution witnesses, including members of the Orange County Sheriff’s Department and the FBI forensics team. Baez scored points when he got FBI examiner, Lorie Gottesman, to admit she had contaminated duct tape found on the child’s skull by leaving behind her own DNA. But most often Baez’s questioning centered on inconsequential things the witnesses failed to do or see: No fingerprints or heart-shaped sticker residue were found on the duct tape, no blood was found on any of Casey Anthony’s clothing, and there was a failure to discover who the real father of Caylee might be—although both Casey’s father and brother were excluded.

Veteran court watchers find that little of that testimony had an impact and, in fact, it often went to remind the jury of the prosecution’s theory–that Caylee had been either overdosed on chloroform or suffocated with strips of duct tape so her mother could go out partying. Common sense already says a body abandoned in the wild for six months, often underwater, would yield little evidence; that blood is usually not present in suffocation or poisoning cases; and who a child’s father might be doesn’t change the fact that she is dead.

When it comes to the defense team’s expert witnesses, the choices have been, well … interesting. Eightysomething Dr. Werner Spitz brought his own human skull as a prop to court and testified about his autopsy of little Caylee’s remains, yet he called her “Casey” at least twice. He declared that residue found on the left side of the child’s skull was from her decomposing brain, but he admitted he never tested it to see if it might have been sediment from floodwaters. Spitz surprised the court when he testified that he believes the duct tape had been placed on the child’s face after death. He offered little evidence to that, and his testimony was reported to have made some of the jurors snicker.

Forensic botanist Dr. Jane Bock, who earned her master’s degree in the mid-'60s, testified “leaf litter” seen in photographs taken at the recovery site led her to conclude that the body had been there approximately two weeks and not six months as generally assumed. She said that the well-established plants and roots intertwined in the child’s bones could have grown up in that short period of time. She seemed stymied when Prosecutor Jeff Ashton asked how one of Caylee’s bones could have sunk a full four inches below the topsoil in two weeks. Bock suggested a dog or coyote could have buried it. Ashton laughed out loud at the notion.

When forensic anthropologist Dr. William Rodriguez was sworn in, he falsely claimed he was co-founder of the Body Farm in Oak Ridge, Tennessee a renowned research facility studying human decomposition. When pressed by the defense to testify to topics not in his final report, the prosecutors objected and all hell broke loose. The jury was removed and Perry told Baez, “It appears to me this was quite intentional, not inadvertent!” Baez petulantly responded that he thought to ask a witness “to put down every single opinion in a report … I don’t think it’s reasonable.” Court was suspended for the day and an immediate deposition of Rodriguez was ordered.

Rodriguez never returned to court. His current employer [the department of Defense] sent word that he had failed to get permission to testify, and if he went forward he would be fired immediately. Rodriguez was removed from the witness list.

“Jeff Ashton has destroyed Baez’s case on so many levels,” says Sheaffer. “It’s like he’s playing high school baseball against the New York Yankees.”

Late last week, Baez was successful in scratching the ugly scab of Anthony family dysfunction. He got Cindy Anthony to admit that while doing a computer search for chlorophyll, she was diverted to sites on chloroform, which made headlines everywhere. Far less reported upon was her follow-up answer to the question about whether she had conducted any of the 84 searches from that computer for “How to make chloroform at home.” She answered an emphatic, “No.” It presumably left the jury to wonder who within the home had.

And brother Lee Anthony revealed a still raw wound within the family when he was asked to remember the first time he realized his sister was pregnant. His voice choked with emotion when he testified that his mother, Cindy, had waved him off when he asked about it and told him not to bring it up again. “I was very angry at my mom … (and) at my sister—that they didn’t want to include me and didn’t find it important enough to tell me,” he sobbed.

Baez reportedly told Fox TV host Geraldo Rivera that he was setting up Lee to testify that the reason he wasn’t included in preparations for the baby’s birth was because his parents had come to believe—presumably from Casey herself—that he was Caylee’s father. When Perry disallowed such testimony, reports say that Baez vented his frustration.

Still to come: The defense has to back up its bombshell opening statements that Caylee wasn’t murdered, but rather accidentally drowned (with her father in on the cover-up) and that Casey got into the habit of lying because of a sexually abusive father and brother. In other words, we’re still sifting through the dry parts of the defense—the real fireworks haven’t even begun.
source
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11:21

Tony Pipitone:
Do not believe Cruz AKA Holloway is here today.

11:28

Tony Pipitone:
This is Furton's first time testifying at trial. He is to rebut Dr. Vass findings.

I have no doubt that JA will be able to defuse Furton's testimony...

Chief Judge Belvin Perry broke this morning's 45-minute delay by saying Casey Anthony was found competent to stand trial after she was seen by three court-ordered psychologists.

The evaluations were completed after her team filed a motion to determine her competency.

Those medical reports from the psychologists are sealed, but not the motion requesting the psychological evaluations, Perry said.
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from wesh blog:

Motion to determine competency says, "Counsel reasonably believes Ms. Anthony is not competent to aid and assist in her own defense."

According to Diane Diamonds report upthread - Baez DID want to ask Lee about the abuse, but JP wouldnt let him. I thought he had chickened out!

From Wesh.com
#CaseyAnthony A judge friend says lawyers request competency evals if client gives new, inconsistent info. or rejects reasonable plea offer.

Maybe after Lee's testimony Fri., KC wanted to retract her accusation that he had molested her...That would be inconsistent with what she had already said...

Bottom line is apparently that Velveeta has many same chemical compounds found in human decomp.

lisette wrote:

From Wesh.com
#CaseyAnthony A judge friend says lawyers request competency evals if client gives new, inconsistent info. or rejects reasonable plea offer.

Maybe after Lee's testimony Fri., KC wanted to retract her accusation that he had molested her...That would be inconsistent with what she had already said...

I had not even thought about that possibility.

Furton testifies that Chloroform is a common ingredient in household items including bleach.

I agree. Had never thought of that!

11:46


Tony Pipitone:
Jury seems to be following along. Number 11 taking notes as he usually does.

lindamarie wrote:Bottom line is apparently that Velveeta has many same chemical compounds found in human decomp.

Yuck!! Will Never eat Velveeta again!

Finnell taking a greater role at bench.. Mason seated per Kathi Belich, WFTV

11:51

Tony Pipitone:
The DEFENSE requested psych evals, jury knows nothing about it.

jurors are really looking around now. Several looking up to balcony, seem restless. per ABC Ashleigh

Look like JA found in the disposition that this Dr is testifying about things now that were different back then. Another sidebar

JB: Home products that can contain chloroform? KF: Yes, cheeses, soft drinks, cleaning products. Objection/sidebar.
Ashton objects and wants to approach, Baez objects to objection. Perry calls sidebar. LOL

Jurors will be back at 1:45. The rest will be back to take care of some matter at 1:30.

If a juror has to be somewhere for an appointment at 12:00, I think they're going to be late! LOL...

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The news that Casey Anthony was examined for competency this weekend stunned TV analysts.
“Those reports have been sealed by the judge, so we’ll never know what the exact findings were,” WKMG-Channel 6’s Mike DeForest reported. “But the big point here is that the judge has looked into the matter and found that Casey Anthony is mentally competent to proceed with this trial.”

Anthony is charged with first-degree murder in the death of her daughter, Caylee.

“Why would the defense ask for that?” DeForest said. He cited speculation that Anthony may be getting ready to testify.

WFTV-Channel 9 legal analyst Bill Sheaffer said competency was a legitimate issue. “Someone on that defense team probably saw something that alerted them to the fact that she just wasn’t altogether being able to participate in her defense,” Sheaffer said. “Whether that was legitimate on Casey’s part is another question, but now that will serve to be an issue on appeal. If she’s convicted, the defense will argue she couldn’t meaningfully participate in her defense.”

WOFL-Channel 35’s Shannon Butler was surprised by the competency evaluation coming so late in the trial. “Are you kidding me? You had all of this time,” she said. “I don’t think there is anyone who really believes Casey Anthony isn’t competent to stand trial. Look at her in there. She clearly knows everything that’s going on.”

WOFL legal analyst Diana Tennis speculated that Anthony might have changed her story on her attorneys. “Maybe she’s bascially told them ‘I’m going to testify, I want to take the stand and I want to say something that’s different than what you said in opening,’ ” Tennis said. ”They’re covering themselves from questions later about why you said one thing and she said something else on the stand.”

What do you think?

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Link to Emergency Motion filed by Cheney Mason for competency evaluation:

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Notice that it is signed by CM and then labeled "One of the Attorneys for the Defendant"

This was reported on Saturday - I missed Casey making this face:

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I missed that - but who was she yelling at? Mason was up there with Baez but Baez was already back LDB
walking in front of Baez -only Mason Sims and Ashton
out of the picture

Arent sidebars published? We need to find out what that sidebar was about

artgal16 wrote:I missed that - but who was she yelling at? Mason was up there with Baez but Baez was already back LDB
walking in front of Baez -only Mason Sims and Ashton
out of the picture

On the video it said "She points and makes a face and appears to say something to CM. Then when Jose Baez turns around she goes from angry to sheepish. "

artgal16 wrote:Arent sidebars published? We need to find out what that sidebar was about

I read on WS or SM that the sidebar transcript from the 25th of June was sealed.

Bozo is trying to skirt the rules again...

Better let him proffer Bozo or you will get in trouble again...I think he's decided that's best also...

He's decided to go out and talk to Dr. Furton about the basis for his opinion..JA is saying that it is just something that he looked up on the Internet...Thereby, hearsay...

1:39

Tony Pipitone:
Yes, Dominic Casey, Jim Hoover, John Allen are all in the wings.