thanks, have read - good account in that it appeared unbiased

Will try to post Thursdays and Fridays summary.

 

I think it may be a bit long and the words are overlapping when i copy and paste it  so it may be unreadable. I will post it in sections.

 

Day 3 – May 26, 2011 Thursday in court.

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The Prosecution’s List of Witnesses for May 26, 2011

• First Prosecution Witness: Anthony (Tony) Lazzaro, 24 – Casey’s ex-boyfriend returns for the second day to finish the cross-examination. Casey told him a secret.
• Second Prosecution Witness: George Anthony – Casey’s father is re-called.
• Third Prosecution Witness: Ricardo Morales, 27 – Casey’s boyfriend between February 2008 to mid-April 2008. He sold photos of Casey and Caylee to The Globe magazine.
• Fourth Prosecution Witness: Melissa England, 26 – Troy Brown’s girlfriend, met Casey July 2nd, 2008. They socialized that Fourth of July weekend. Casey said to her, “Oh, my God! I am such a good liar!”
• Fifth Prosecution Witness: Troy Brown – Ricardo Morales’ good friend, Casey’s acquaintance, and Melissa England’s boyfriend.
• Sixth Prosecution Witness: Iassen Donoe, 27 – Friend of Casey’s.
• Seventh Prosecution Witness: Dante Salati, 26 – Has known Casey for 11 years, met in high school.
• Eighth Prosecution Witness: Christopher Stutz, 23 – Has known Casey since 2005.
• Ninth Prosecution Witness: Matthew Crisp, 24 – Has known Casey since 2002. Works in residential property management.

The Prosecution’s Witnesses:
Father, Boyfriends & Friends

The day began and ended with Tony Lazzarro, Casey’s boyfriend during the summer of 2008, when Caylee died.. In the morning, the Defense had to finish their cross-examination, and, in the afternoon, after the jury left for the day, Tony was brought back to proffer information about a secret Casey had told him.

The day’s witnesses included her father, a few boyfriends, guy-friends, and one young woman she met the Fourth of July weekend of 2008. The most notable moment of the day, came when this woman, who had never met Casey before that weekend, described a moment in the car when Casey hung up her cell phone and proudly said, “Oh, my God! I am such a good liar!“

Aside from the self-admission that she is a liar, I learned that Casey will borrow friends’ cars when they are out of town, even though they did not give her permission to use the cars. Perhaps the Prosecution brought these bits of evidence hoping that in the jury’s mind they would conclude that it is not a huge leap to go from liar, to thief, to murderer.

Today, I also noticed that both the Prosecution and the Defense, had finessed a set of questions they asked every person that had seen Casey during those critical 31 days. For the Prosecution, those questions centered around Casey’s demeanor and whether she had mentioned to anyone that her child was missing. For the Defense, the questions tried to highlight that Casey was a good mother and the fact that the witnesses do not know anything about what happened to Caylee – not how she died, or when she died, or where she died.

And, thus, the two sides, already having made their points, insisted, like children who do not want to blink first, to continue to bombard us with the same questions, whose answers we already knew. Casey was happy, no, she did not tell anyone that anything had happened to Caylee, and, no, her friends were not present when Caylee drowned on June 16th in the pool. I think we got the points they were trying to make.

Tony Lazzaro

Tony appeared to be as even-handed as one would hope a witness would be. He seemed to be neither trying to help nor hurt Casey with his testimony. He had cooperated with the police in allowing himself to be wired, to have his phone tapped, and cooperated with the police throughout. He never sold photos of Casey or Caylee and has otherwise appeared to be a stand-up guy.

The morning began with the Defense finishing their cross-examination from the day before. They asked Tony about the loving and caring relationship he witnessed between Casey and Caylee. He described what a good mother Casey was and how smart Caylee was, able to count to 40 in Spanish, which made Casey smile as she sat there at the Defense table.

The lead defense attorney, Jose Baez, then moved on to the gas cans, asking if he remembered duct tape on them, but he did not. In re-direct, the prosecutor simply asked Tony if the gas cans had duct tape, and he said, “They may have,” but he couldn’t remember either way. The prosecutor was also able to clear up with Tony that he was not standing near the trunk, he was near the front of her car, when he handed her the gas cans. As he closed the tailgate of his Cherokee, he saw Casey open her trunk and put the gas cans in her trunk, but he was not close enough to smell any odors from the trunk, nor to see into the trunk.

The defense tried to make a point in having Tony explain that the photos of Casey dancing at the nightclub plastered all over Facebook, were part of promotional photos for the events Tony organized, which were promoted through social media, like Facebook. The photos were taken by friends of his with aspiring photography careers as a way to help them build their portfolios and professional experience.

After the jury was sent home for the day, Tony was brought back so that the Defense could proffer information about a secret Casey told Tony, an undetermined number of days or weeks before Casey was arrested. The secret was that Lee, Casey’s older brother, tried one time to touch her breast, but he was unsuccessful. It is unlikely the Judge would allow him to testify before the jury with this ‘secret.’ But, we’ll see.

George Anthony

The father, George Anthony, was re-called by the prosecution for a second day of testimony. He talked primarily about June 24th, a day he normally would have worked, but he took the day off because he had errands to run, a lawn to mow, and, in the early evening, a job interview.

When he went out to the shed to get his lawnmower, he discovered that the eyelet plastic piece on the shed doors, to which the lock had been attached, was broken off and the door was ajar. He looked around and noticed that the only things missing were the gas cans with gasoline. He needed them to mow the lawn. Instead, he called the police and made a report around 10:30am. A police officer came out, took the information, and left him the paperwork. On the way out to go purchase additional gas cans and gas, he warned his next door neighbor Mr. Burner (who testified yesterday about lending Casey his shovel) that someone had broken into his shed.

In the early afternoon, after he and his wife, Cindy, deposited a check, she went to work and he relaxed in the living room. Around 2:00 p.m., he heard the garage door open and was happy to see his daughter. Casey looked surprise to see him, and he asked her where Caylee was. She seemed to be in a hurry, saying she only had 10 minutes to grab some clothes and go to work. He told her what happened to the shed and the missing gas cans, and she said she didn’t know anything about it. However, in yesterday’s testimony we heard Tony Lazzarro describe how they broke into the shed and took the gas cans.

As she was gathering her clothes, George told her that he needed to get the triangular supports that he had in the trunk of her car because he was going to be tuning up her mom’s car. She yelled that she would get it for him, but he told her that he had the extra key and he could get it. She ran past him, outside to her trunk, took the gas cans out, closed the trunk, went to him, handed him the gas cans and said, “Here are your ****ing gas cans!” He said he didn’t want to get upset before his interview and suggested they talk about it later.

The prosecution asked and he answered that he never had a chance to look in the trunk, Casey had quickly shut the trunk, got in the car and left. He said he did not smell any other smell but that of gasoline. The prosecution asked him about the photo of the round metal gas can that had a piece of duct tape on it, and he explained that when Casey gave him the gas cans back, that particular gas can, which he has had for 25 years, was missing the small plastic vent piece, and without it, the smell of gasoline and the fumes would fill the shed, so he put the tape over the hole.

The lead defense attorney, Jose Baez, seemed to be on a warpath with George Anthony on the duct tape and the gas cans, on why he called the police to report them stolen, on a lot of minutia that was mostly avoidable. For instance, Mr. Baez asked Mr. Anthony why he called the police on June 24th to report the gas cans missing, but he didn’t report his granddaughter missing. Mr. Anthony answered that, as far as he knew at the time, his granddaughter was not missing and was with her mother. But Jose Baez, couldn’t or wouldn’t listen, and asked the same question in any number of ways.

The second misunderstanding involved the photos of the duct tape on the gas can. Mr. Anthony was shown a photo, earlier, that the prosecution had admitted into evidence, dated August 1st 2008, showing a small piece of duct tape on the metal gas can that was missing the vent piece. Mr. Anthony did not deny, in fact, he had already admitted, to putting that piece of duct tape on that can. However, Mr. Baez tried to hammer him on a statement Mr. Anthony made in a deposition taken on August 9, 2009, where he denied putting the large piece of tape on the gas can as depicted in a different photo taken in December. Mr. Anthony tried to explain that there are two different photos and that he, Mr. Baez, is confused.

They bantered and argued, the prosecutor objected, the Judge reprimanded Mr. Baez that he cannot question a witness on a photograph that has not been admitted into evidence. And, yet, Mr. Baez continued to try until the Judge angrily called a sidebar Mr. Baez tried again, after the sidebar, to question Mr. Anthony on a photograph that is not evidence, and the Judge angrily said, “Did you all hear anything I said in sidebar?!” He excused the jury, he excused the witness, and the arguing continued. Things got very contentious between the Judge and Jose Baez, and it was clear that Mr. Baez was simply not understanding basic protocol.

Next, Jose Baez focused in on the argument George and Casey had about the gas cans on June 24th. He kept asking Mr. Anthony if he had told the police, the day they reported Caylee missing, July 15th, about the argument with Casey over the gas cans. George Anthony explained that he was very upset, having just found out that his granddaughter was missing, and he could not remember everything that the detectives and he talked about on July 15th and 16th, because the focus was on finding Caylee. Mr. Anthony did tell the police about the argument on July 31st, but Mr. Baez wanted to know why he had not told the police about the gas can argument before then, and after July 15th when they found out Caylee was missing. As an outsider, it really seemed like minutia. Why would a grandfather who is distraught finding out the babysitter kidnapped his granddaughter find it pertinent to tell the police about a gas can argument the night they reported Caylee missing?

The gas can arguments continued in the re-direct by the prosecution and the re-cross by the Defense, but I doubt that you, me, or the jury need to hear – or write – any more about gas cans.

Ricardo Morales

Ricardo Morales was Casey’s boyfriend between February 2008 and mid-April 2008. He talked about how Casey and Caylee would sleep over 4-5 nights a week. They all slept on his bed, Casey in between him and Caylee. He had taken a number of photos of Casey and Caylee, which he had posted on his MySpace page, and a couple of them were introduced into evidence. He said the break-up was amicable, they stayed in touch, and on occasion Casey and Caylee slept over. He said that they came over on June 7th, and on June 9th and 10th. He noted that the morning of June 10th was the last time he saw Caylee.

However, he saw Casey again on July 1st when she stopped by and on July 15th when she went to the airport to pick him and his friends up. The prosecutor asked Ricardo if Casey had Caylee with her, but she didn’t. Once again, the prosecutor went through his routine questions about Casey’s demeanor, and whether or not she let anyone know that her daughter was kidnapped, was missing, or died. Of course, Ricardo, answered just like everyone else thus far: Casey was her usual self, very happy and excited, nothing was different about her demeanor, and, no, she never said anything about a missing Caylee.

‘The Defense brought out the fact that Mr. Morales had sold photos of Casey and Caylee for $4,000 to The Globe magazine, but he didn’t seem to be ashamed or embarrassed, as much as Mr. Baez tried. They also introduced into evidence what appeared to be a spoof of a print ad which Ricardo had posted on his MySpace page, with a man and a woman dressed up and the tag line: “Win her over with chloroform.”

Jose Baez, the lead attorney for the defense, also used Ricardo to talk about his observations of how good a mom Casey was and how Caylee was never neglected. One thing struck me when Mr. Baez asked Mr. Morales if Casey had ever hit Caylee, or tortured Caylee, or disciplined Casey. Ricardo Morales responded that Casey had issues with trying to put Caylee to sleep. The prosecution never followed up with that, but given what a big part of the speculation about why Casey may have used chloroform on Caylee revolved around Casey trying to put Caylee to sleep, I wondered why nothing more was said of it.

Melissa England

Melissa England, who lived in Virginia during 2008, had never met Casey, but she dated Troy Brown who did live in Central Florida and who was good friends with Ricardo Morales, Casey’s ex-boyfriend. On July 2nd, when she flew out to spend the Fourth of July weekend with Troy, she met Casey for the first time at a club. Melissa described Casey as happy and outgoing, and upon hearing that Troy was called in to work the next day, Casey offered to take her out shopping.

Melissa mentioned that Casey told her she was getting a tattoo the next day and invited her to come. Melissa politely declined, but accepted the offer to go shopping. (Casey got a tattoo, Bella Vita – Beautiful Life – supposedly after Caylee died, but before anyone knew she was missing.) Casey did pick her up the next day to go to the mall. Melissa noted that Casey was driving around in her boyfriend’s, Tony Lazzarro’s, Jeep Cherokee, even though we know from Tony Lazzaro’s testimony that he did not give her permission to drive his car.

After the mall, Casey and Melissa went out to dinner, had light conversation, where Caylee was brought up and it appeared that she was fine, because Casey was talking about moving out with Caylee to find an area with a better school district. After picking up Troy to go out on the town, Casey got on her cell phone to cancel plans she already had with friends, making up a story about the car getting a flat tire. According to Melissa, when Casey hung up, she proudly said, “Oh, my God! I am such a good liar!” They went out with some other friends to a bar and club and by all accounts Casey was happy and in a great mood until her brother called, a number of times, and each time it made Casey very upset to the point of crying. After a few more phone calls, Casey said she just wanted to go home, so they all left.

Saying their good-byes outside the bar, Casey asked Melissa and Troy if they had plans for the weekend. Melissa said, yes, and invited Casey, Tony and Caylee to go with them bowling, and Casey said it was a great idea, but Melissa never saw Casey again.

Troy Brown

Troy Brown was questioned about a Facebook conversation Casey initiated on June 24th 2008 (transcript submitted into evidence) about Amy moving into her parents’ house, “She hasn’t moved into the house yet, hell, I haven’t even been living at the house the last nine days. Drama!’ Troy was asked, but he did not know what Casey meant by ‘drama’ and he didn’t ask. He was asked about Casey’s demeanor and she was very happy, except for when her brother called her while they were out at the club. She was visibly upset and crying, and said after a few more calls from her brother, she wanted to go. I can only assume the Prosecution will be calling Lee Anthony to the stand to find out what that was all about.

Iassen Donoe

Iassen Donoe met Casey in January 2007, they kept in touch through AOL instant messenger. The prosecution was interested in instant messages between him and Casey on June 13, 19, 20 and July 14, 2008 the topic of which was: Casey Moving Out Soon. (The transcript was submitted into evidence.) What I found most striking, was not the details about moving out, but Casey’s response, on July 13, to a question Iassen asked about Caylee’s childcare arrangements and Casey responded that Caylee has a nanny and she loves her.

Dante Salati

Dante Salati went to high school with Casey and has known her for 11 years. He was interesting as a witness because he lived at Saw Grass Apartments from 2005-2008 and Casey had been there to visit him. Saw Grass Apartments is the complex where Casey claimed the nanny, who allegedly kidnapped Caylee, lived and where she would drop Caylee off. The last time he saw Casey was on July 1st, at a bar-restaurant, where she seemed “normal, free of worry, happy,” and, no, she did not tell him her daughter was kidnapped, murdered, or that anything had happened to her.

The Defense focused their cross-examination on using Mr. Salati as a character witness, “You’ve known her 11 years and know her to be a nice person, caring, an attentive, loving mother to Caylee?” “Yes,” he answered. “Never saw Caylee go hungry, or poorly dressed, or tortured, or abused in any way?” He replied with a firm, “No. Never saw a change in her behavior or demeanor.”

Christopher Stutz

Christopher Stutz has known Casey since 2005. I am not sure it was necessary to bring him in as witness. He began to talk about Casey sleeping over at his place with Caylee in mid-May. The Defense objected and the Judge admonished the jury to disregard that testimony. He saw her in around June 17th, 2008 and the Prosecution asked him about her happy demeanor and the Defense asked him about what a good mom Casey was.

Matthew Crisp

Matthew Crisp has known Casey since 2002 and works in residential property management, helping people find apartments. On June 19, 2008, he worked at Winter Parks Apartments and recalls Casey calling him up and coming in with her boyfriend, Tony Lazzaro. Mattew took Tony out to look at the apartment, but Casey could not go because she did not have an I.D. He saw her again on July 7th, when she called him and suggested they get together for lunch. He asked Casey about Caylee and she said that Caylee was on a play-date with a girlfriend of hers who also has a child.

The Defense cross-examined, asking if Caylee had ever looked abused, neglected, or unhappy. Mr. Crisp answered with, “Of the times I saw her, no.” When the defense attorney, Mr. Mason, boomed, “Do you know how, when or where Caylee died?” Matthew Crisp donned an expression of disbelief and said, “No’ followed immediately by an uncontrolled chuckle. Yes, the questioning is wanting.

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Final Thoughts

Casey seems like a complicated young woman, who has mastered the art of being a chameleon. Most of her friends and acquaintances say how happy, outgoing, caring and kind she is. Her father knows a Casey that can steal from her family and say, “Here, take your ****ing gas cans.” And, Melissa England, a stranger she met once, remembers someone who took pride in her ability to lie, “Oh, my God! I am such a good liar!”

Who did Caylee know?

What are your thoughts?

 

 

Day 4 – May 27, 2011 Friday at court

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The Prosecution’s List of Witnesses for May 27, 2011

• First Prosecution Witness: Mallory Parker – The fiancée of Casey’s brother, Lee.
• Second Prosecution Witness: William Waters, 32 – An acquaintance of Casey’s; she attended his Fourth-of-July Party.
• Third Prosecution Witness: Catherine Sanchez – AMSCOT district manager; reported Casey’s abandoned car to be towed from the parking lot.
• Fourth Prosecution Witness: Simon Birch – Johnson’s Towyard operations manager; was with George Anthony when they first smelled the human decomposition odor.
• Fifth Prosecution Witness: George Anhony – Casey’s father re-called for a third day.
• Sixth Prosecution Witness:Anthony Lazzaro – Casey’s boyfriend during the 31 days Caylee was missing.

The Prosecution’s Witnesses:
Odors, Tow-yards, Text Messages, and Videos

The Prosecution called six witnesses today, and once again we saw both George Anthony and Tony Lazzaro. Most of the day focused on Casey’s abandoned car, the towing of the car, and the odor detected in it. The prosecutors also introduced 12 different video surveillance footage from a number of stores and one bank showing Casey on shopping sprees, but not relentlessly looking for her kidnapped daughter, as she had once claimed. The day ended with Mr. Lazzarro on the stand, the Defense objecting, the jury being dismissed early, sidebars, discussions, and adjournment.

Mallory Parker

The morning began with Mallory Parker taking the stand. She is Lee Anthony’s fiancée, Casey’s future sister-in-law. Perhaps in a show of support for his fiancée, Lee Anthony made his first appearance at the courthouse. Only noticeable, because, unlike his parents, Lee has not been in court all week – until today.

The Prosecution asked Mallory about the attempts she and Lee made to find Casey, at the behest of Lee’s mother, Cindy Anthony. On July 3rd, around 10:00 p.m., Lee got word from friends that Casey had been seen downtown (they live in Orlando) and he, Mallory, and a friend of theirs headed downtown to see if they could find Casey.

Mallory testified that she sent Casey 5-6 text messages, before she responded, asking if she was downtown so they could meet up. Casey never admitted to being downtown. She asked Mallory if Lee was with her and said that she didn’t want the family to worry about her, she just needed space. Mallory asked Casey to come to the family get-together that weekend and to bring Caylee. Casey said she would try.

Lee made repeated phone calls to Casey and managed to talk to her a number of times. This testimony tied in with yesterday’s testimony by Troy Brown and Melissa England, who said they were at a club with Casey in downtown Orlando having a great time, until she began to get calls from her brother, Lee. Those phone conversations upset Casey so much she started crying, and decided to leave.

The cross-examination by the Defense brought Casey to tears as her future sister-in-law described a genuine bond between Casey and Caylee, as she cried on the stand. Defense attorney, Jose Baez, asked Mallory if Caylee had ever gone without food, or if she had ever been neglected, tortured or abused, and Mallory replied, “No, sir. Their relationship was amazing.”

William Waters

William Waters was a co-worker and friend of Amy Huizenga. Amy is the woman whose check book Casey stole and whose bank account she emptied. Casey was charged with 13 counts of check fraud, to which she pleaded guilty. But before that, Amy was the friend to whom she told a fanciful story about her parents leaving her their house to live in, and with whom she made plans to move into the Anthonys’ home within weeks.

Amy and Casey attended Mr. Water’s Fourth-of-July party. William was asked about Casey’s demeanor on July 4th, and he described what we have come to know as ‘typical Casey:’ happy, outgoing, care-free. The only time William Waters noticed a change in Casey’s mood was when he overheard a phone call Casey was having with her boyfriend, Tony Lazzaro, as they talked about Tony moving back to New York and she did not want him to. Mr. Waters said she was angry after ending the phone call.

William Waters had mentioned his plans to go to IKEA the next day, and Casey wanted to go, as well. She told him that she needed furniture, because she and a friend of hers, who also had a child, were going to get a house together, and share a nanny because it would be cheaper. They were planning to move within the next two months. At the same time that Casey is telling Mr. Waters this story, he is aware that Amy thinks she and Casey are moving into Casey’s parents’ house soon.

The prosecutor asked him the same demeanor questions they have been asking everyone who knew or met Casey during the 31 days Caylee was missing… did Casey tell them her daughter was missing, kidnapped, or dead… did she mention that she needed help finding her daughter or that anything was wrong? No. She was always happy, outgoing, spunky, fun, typical Casey. Mr. Waters was also asked if he knew whether or not she had a job at the time and he told the prosecutor about her Universal Studios event coordination job. Little did he know at the time that this was just a figment of Casey’s imagination.

The defense cross-examination seemed more a soliloquy, “In her world, she had a job and she loved it… She was friendly and cared for people. In her world she was happy.” The Defense ended their short cross-examination by asking Mr. Waters if he had any information about June 16th about how, when or where Caylee died? And he said, “No.”

The prosecution’s re-direct was short and sweet: “Was she convincing in her stories about the job, the move, etc.?” Mr. Waters answered “yes,” and the witness was excused.

Video Surveillance Footage

The Prosecution and the Defense agreed to the following stipulation about the video surveillance footage that was admitted into evidence: The copy of the video surveillance recorded, is a true and accurate representation of the business records. The parties have agreed to this fact and it should be considered true in your deliberations.

These videos show Casey on shopping sprees, not looking for Casey, as she had stated to police she was doing during the time Caylee was missing. The video surveillance videos also show Casey writing checks to pay for shopping sprees and withdrawing money at a bank.

The jury, who by now know that Casey does not have a job, are left to wonder how Casey is paying for all the groceries, and boxes of beer, and clothes for herself. What the jury doesn’t know, and I suspect will not be allowed to know, is that Casey pleaded guilty to check fraud charges that included her admission of stealing her friend’s checkbook and emptying out her bank account.

One more thing worth noting, the videos never show Casey buying any toys, clothes or toiletries for a two-year old little girl. I wonder if the jury will notice that as well.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Catherine Sanchez

Catherine Sanchez is a district manager at AMSCOT. She worked at the AMSCOT where Casey abandoned her car in June 2008. Ms. Sanchez first noticed the car parked, back end first, next to the dumpster on June 27, 2008. The next day when she went to work, Saturday, June 28th, she noticed that the car, the Pontiac Sunfire, was still there.

She walked up to it, wrote down the tag number, but did not touch it. She walked around the car to see if there were any notes indicating it had broken down. But no notes were left on the car. Ms. Sanchez looked inside the vehicle, she noticed it was messy, she saw a blanket in the back seat, but did not try the door handles.

After writing down the tag numbers, she called the Orlando non-emergency police number to report an abandoned vehicle and to make sure that it was not stolen, before having it towed, as company policy dictated. She discovered that it was not stolen. Her boss told her to wait one more day before having the car towed. On Monday, June 30th, the vehicle was still there, so she called Johnson’s Towing and they towed the car.

The prosecutor asked if when she had approached the vehicle on June 28th, whether she noticed any odor coming from the vehicle. Ms. Sanchez said that she assumed it was the smell of the trash in the dumpster. The defense attorney came up and asked, “So, you smelled trash on June 28th and you didn’t smell any other smell but trash?” She responded, “Yes, the smell of trash.”

Simon Birch

Simon Birch was the operations manager for Johnson’s Towing, the company that towed Casey’s car on June 30th. the prosecution asked him about their procedures and paperwork and security. He described the procedures they follow to send a certified letter after 4 to 5 days of the vehicle being in the tow-yard; he talked about the high security fences and gates; but all any one really wanted to know was if he had smelled the odor of human decomposition.

This is a huge point for the Prosecution, because even though Cindy Anthony in her 911 call mentioned that her daughter’s car smelled like there had been a dead body in it, later on,when Casey was arrested for Caylee’s murder, Cindy Anthony changed her story and said that there was a bag of trash in the trunk, and that was the odor she had smelled.

The Prosecution smartly solicited Mr. Birch’s expertise and experience in dealing with the smell of human decomposition versus trash. It just so happened that he had experience with both. He had worked in waste management and had been exposed to a wide range of odors and garbage smells. Mr. Birch had also towed for many law enforcement agencies over the years, which included vehicles where victims had died in their car, but whose bodies had not been discovered for days or weeks. He had dealt with these types of situations 6 to 8 times in his career. Just recently, in relation to July 2008, the vehicle of a suicide victim, whose remains had not been found for several days had been brought into the tow-yard. “It is a smell you never forget,” he said. He had also towed vehicles from food restaurants and garbage trucks, he even had a car full of groceries, where the victim was in a car accident and the car was not picked up for weeks.

The prosecutor, asked him, if, with that experience, he could distinguish the difference between trash and human decomposition in a car. He replied that in his experience, the smell of human decomposition is completely unique, there is nothing else like it. Once you smell it, you never forget that smell. He mentioned that cars are actually very well-sealed, so the odor stays well-contained, unless you can open the car.

“Did you notice any odor coming from this vehicle?” Mr. Birch said that he had not smelled anything during his cursory review of the vehicle, which included looking in, under, and all around the vehicle. However, he said, that when he put his hand up to the window to look inside, while shielding the glare, he did notice a strong odor, which he immediately recognized as the smell of human decomposition.

On July 15th, Mr. and Mrs. Anthony came to retrieve the car, having received notice that their car, which Casey exclusively drove, had been towed. Mr. Birch escorted George Anthony to the vehicle. Mr. Anthony looked in the windows, opened the door and the smell was immediately noticeable and strong. George Anthony got in the car, tried to start it, but it would only crank or turn over. Both George Anthony and Mr. Birch noticed that the gas gage was on empty and Mr. Anthony mentioned that he had brought gasoline with him and Mr. Birch escorted him out to get the gas can. No one had opened up anything other than the driver’s door. Mr. Anthony was escorted back to the car and he poured the gas. Mr. Birch could not recall which happened first, George Anthony getting back in the car to start it or the two of them walking to the trunk to see if they could find the origin of the odor.

The tow-yard manager, Mr. Birch, suggested they open the trunk and he noted that they were both standing side-by-side. The odor that came out of the trunk was even stronger, and a few flies flew out. Inside they found a standard white garbage bag. No other items were in there. One of them suggested they look in the bag to see if the origin of the smell was there. The prosecutor asked what Mr. Birch remembered seeing in the bag, and he remembered a pizza box and papers, he said it was very light and there were no food items. There was nothing in the bag that would have created that smell. Mr. Birch offered to dispose of it for George Anthony and threw it in the dumpster.

Next up was the Defense cross-examination by Jose Baez. Mr. Baez seemed to focus on how long it took the Anthonys to pick up the car after the tow-yard had sent them the certified letter, but it wasn’t clear why. Mr. Baez made a couple of good points. First, asking Mr. Birch why he did not call the police if he really thought that what he smelled was human decomposition. Second, he asked Mr. Birch if the form letter sent to the Anthonys included information on how many days the car was at AMSCOT. He said they don’t have that information, but Mr. Anthony knew it had been at AMSCOT for three days because he told Mr. Birch as they walked toward the car. Later on, during Mr. Anthony’s cross-examination, Jose Baez asked Mr. Anthony if he had called AMSCOT, and Mr. Anthony said he had called them from work, after he and his wife had picked up the car. Mr. Baez asked and Mr. Anthony denied having told Mr. Birch how many days the car was at AMSCOT when he went to pick up the car.

The prosecutor asked if the foul odor of decomposition had traveled with the bag, once it had been separated from the car, and Mr. Birch said, “It didn’t appear to.”

George Anthony

George Anthony testified that his wife found a postal notice for a certified letter from Johnson on Sunday, July 13, 2008. This point became a big issue with Jose Baez, the defense attorney, who saw something sinister in the delay between Casey’s car arriving at the tow-yard on June 30th and the Anthonys picking it up two weeks later. Mr. Anthony explained that they rarely use their front door, using the garage door instead and perhaps had not seen the notice earlier. Not knowing the letter was from a tow-yard, Mr. Anthony started his new job on July 14th and was not able to go to the post office until July 15th, the day they picked up the car.

After he read the letter, he immediately called his wife, because the letter stated that Casey’s car had been towed on June 30th. As far as the Anthonys knew, the car was still with Casey and she was in Jacksonville. They headed to the tow-yard making sure to bring with them cash, the registration and their driver’s licenses. Mr. Anthony made a point of bringing a gas can with gas in it. His experience had taught him that that was the thing to do. As he approached the car, within 3 feet of the passenger door he detected the smell of a decomposing human corpse. A smell he remembered from his days as a police detective in Ohio, a smell you never forget.

When George Anthony got to the car, he checked for damage, and didn’t see anything. He put the key in the driver side door, opened it, and the odor was more intense. He got in and rolled down the passenger window, and tried to start the car, it turned over, but realized it was out of gas. As he walked to the trunk, George Anthony said to himself, “Please, God, don’t let this be Casey or Caylee.” He opened the trunk, and saw a white garbage bag, he could see through the light colored plastic that there was a Pizza box, he could see “Arm & Hammer,” and maggots. The manager pulled it out and tossed the bag away.

George Anthony then went back to the other car to get the gas can, returned, and was able to start the car, and drive it out. The prosecutor asked if, with the bag out of the car, the smell was gone, but he said, no, it was still very present. He was forced to drive home in the rain with the windows down all the way. He put the car in the garage, opened all the doors, the trunk, and the sunroof to air the car out. Since he had just started a new job the day before, he felt he needed to return to work and Cindy was going to try to track down Casey.

The Defense cross-examination spent a great deal of time wondering why it took so long for the notice of a certified letter to arrive via the United States Postal Service from a location that is just 1-1/2 miles away; wondering why Mr. Anthony brought a gas can with gasoline and how did he know the car would need gas; wondering why Mr. Anthony did not call the police when he smelled the odor of human decomposition; and wondering why he didn’t call Casey to make sure she and Caylee were okay.

True to form, Jose Baez and George Anthony butted heads and created some fireworks as Mr.Baez accusingly asked: “Mr. Anthony, the reason you drove that car home, didn’t call the police and went to work is because you knew that Caylee was already dead?” No, Mr. Anthony said, but Mr. Baez continued, “And, as a former detective you know that the best way to not be considered a suspect is to be as far away from the scene of the crime.” The prosecutor shouted “Objection!”

The prosecutor, clearly agitated, began his re-direct. “Mr. Baez asked you about distancing yourself from evidence? If Caylee drowned and you threw that little girl’s body in the woods there would be no evidence in the car?” “No.” “So there would be nothing in the car to run away from.” “Objection!” shouted Mr. Baez. And Mr. Anthony was excused as a witness.

Tony Lazzaro

Tony Lazzaro was back on the stand in reference to AOL instant text messages between Casey and himself, between April 29 and June 12, 2008. The prosecutor was only able to ask Mr. Lazzaro to identify his and Casey’s AOL instant messenger names. He was asked if the transcript before him was true and accurate and then the Defense objected. A sidebar was called, which took so long the Judge excused the jury for a while so that they could finish their discussion in open court outside the presence of the jury.

The Judge seemed to be trying to determine the prohibitive versus prejudicial value of the text messages and for what purpose the prosecutor wanted to use them. As Judge Perry began reading aloud the text messages between Tony and Casey, I had to laugh.

Tony: “Yo.”

Casey: “Yo”

(And trust me when I say it only got worse,)

After some colorful language and phrases that referenced sexual acts, which I will skip over, the gist of the text message conversation between Tony and Casey on June 10th, was that Tony was insisting on coming over to Casey’s house, her parents’ house, to have sex, and he was not going to take no for an answer. Casey wrote back “just a few more days and then you can come over whenever you want.”

Judge Perry seemed to be ruling against admitting the transcript into evidence because the prejudicial factor was greater than the prohibitive value, and he did not find ‘motive’ to be an essential element to be proved.

The jury was brought back in, only to be excused for the day, with plans to return to court on Saturday at 9:00 a.m. The Judge planned on taking a break, getting copies of the transcript, and further discussing admission of other text messages. But upon returning from break the prosecutor asked for a sidebar and the Judge declared that the court was in recess until tomorrow.

---

Final Thoughts

It was a tough day hearing about human decomposition odors, knowing it was a little two-year-old they were really talking about, but perhaps it bothered me more that Casey, the two-year-old’s mother, sat there at the defense table with no reaction to the discussions about her daughter.

There were a few loose wires that started sparking for me…

It is intriguing isn't it! So many twists and turns.

 

Thanks for the bumps Sweet xx

 

 

 

 

@ Stonks that link was really interesting, just read it , cheers xx

 

There is so much to follow. I think the summaries are helping those just learning about the case. I thought they would get lost in the other thread as it is so hard to read and follow.

 

 

Judge Belvin Perry talks with the jury at the end of court on Friday.

 

 

 

 

 

Day 5  (Saturday 28th May) of  the Murder Trial will be half day session

thanks for the updates ev, makes interesting reading, and to think it's only just getting started! I'm struggling with the happy, no worries attitude of casey while her daughter was missing- how can someone pull that off so well if they're not pure evil?

I will post my views and see what you think? I am probably wrong on a lot of counts, but so far its what i have picked up from it.

 

It is hard to understand, and i think we sort of search to find the answers as to why people do the things they do.

Are any of the posts on this page overlapping? some of the words are overlapping to me?  I'm not sure if it is the pc i am on today

 

 

My Views on the case and Casey.

 

 

 

Casey (The accused) may or may not have had a sexually abused upbringing. i know some are calling her bluff, as her defence have just made it known recently, and of course a lot of sexually abused victims keep it quiet, thats part of the stigma attached to abuse. 

 

Anyway, I feel Casey may have a dissociated personality, where one can detach from emotions and feelings, certainly if she did kill her daughter (Caylee) (accidentally or intentionally) it has been shown she carried on as normal after her daughter went missing. Casey had nights out, stayed at boyfriends house, and made on her daughter was staying with a nanny during the period of Caylees disappearance. 

 

The nanny and her job did not exist, they were made up , she apparently told her family and everyone she knew she had a job and a nanny.This is untrue, she didnt have a job or a nanny.

She also stole from her family, forged cheques. 

 

I feel she has a sociopathic personality or traits of one, due to all these actions being classic symptoms of a sociopath. Detachment from emotion, charming, beguiling, cunning, deceitful, Lying, even believing your lies, only interested in taking from life, puts their needs above all others.

 

Its very hard to spot a  sociopath just by first meeting them, as they are clever and can act like a regular person on the street. 

 

IMO only now, i think she wanted a lifestyle that her daughter for her unfortunately got in the way.

She made up she had a nanny, and a job ! but she was out on an evening and through day without her daughter, saying her daughter was with a nanny. There was no nanny, so where was the daughter???

 

Did she infact hide her daughter or lock her in a room somewhere? Possibly covering her mouth to stop any noise, or as she admitted to an inmate in a letter,said she had used chloroform to help put her to sleep.

 

I think this is the case, and it went tragically wrong, she went back one time and found her daughter had died. (IMO) Accident?  not sure.  Killed her daughter? Possibly, without intent

 

Definate neglect of the highest order.

 

Does she deserve to get the death penalty?

 

Not in my opinion, but i do think if convicted she should be put away for life.

 

Her father has me feeling slightly odd about him as well, some things dont add up. It may be a minor thing, or something like a hidden sexual abuse situation, that Casey confided to her boyfriend well before Casey went missing. Not sure if she confided this info to anyone else. (She claims she was sexually abused by her father)

 

 

Interesting points. Where though was she keeping her daughter locked up? She didn't have an alternative address did she? She went from living at home to moving in with Tony as far as I understand it.

 Oooh just read this earlier and I'm intrigued and instantly engrossed  and at the same time kinda sorry for Cindy but I'm sure as I get to learn more I'll get a better handle on things ( if you know what I mean) Thanks Ev 

Thank for all this Eve Eve  - I've just finished reading ... wish I'd had the time to start watching this trial from the start. 

 

I have it on now.

Interesting points. Where though was she keeping her daughter locked up? She didn't have an alternative address did she? She went from living at home to moving in with Tony as far as I understand it.

 

 

Hiya Soozy    Who knows is the question to that, and kept me awake a  while wondering lol

 

You will do, but you will be left  with more questions than answers as well

 

 

 

Missy

I'm glad I'm not the only one losing sleep. This has really upset me beyond belief. I have grand sons and I simply adore them more than words can say (my kids are OK too ) To see a family torn apart like this is too horrific for words. If it was a 'simple' accident - as is claimed then we could sort of understand. but all the lies and deception ......................just terrible.

I'm being advised to take a break, and i think its good to do so

 

I remember the OJ Simpson trial, and how that had everyone transfixed. So many needed Counselling after the trial and mainly because it wasn't on any more, after weeks and weeks of watching they had withdrawal symptoms! 

That was compulsive viewing

Cindy and George Anthonys lies....

 

http://hubpages.com/hub/Anthonys-Are-Liars

The analise of Cindy Anthonys myspace....

 

http://seamusoriley.blogspot.c...s-myspace-entry.html

Yes I've read that .......................it's before Caylees body was found. Who on earth would want to actually believe that their daughter had killed their grand daughter. Casey is and always has been an accomplished liar - they simply wanted to believe her and were ha[ppy to believe that Zanny had absconded with Caylee.

I've seen some of the comments ....................are they experts? Is it really an analysis or just people gossiping? I find that post by Cindy totally understandable - there is no spin - just a heaartfelt plea to her daughter.

 

I'm not sure where you're coming from on this. What I am sure of though is everyday folk/crack pots/and the like aren't experts - yes it's an analyis but .............not one that I give much credence to TBH.

Soozy as I said earlier I Believe nothing and Question everything..if you want to believe the mother is a saint so be it but I'm still neutral to it all until the end....

Thanks for the feedback ev, I have to agree that casey suffers from some kind of mental illness, in which case, should they be letting her stand trial as a sane person..? I don't know. I just want to know for sure what happened, I so hope the trial uncovers some truths

Kathi Belich ( reporter for WFTV, in the court room every day) talks with Bill Sheaffer - a well respected criminal lawyer of over 30 years, who is also there every day..... 

 

http://www.wftv.com/video/28059284/index.html

 

Thank you for that link, Scotty.

interesting link Scotty 

I doubt it too. Casey has been a prolonged and seemingly convincing liar for many years. It would appear she simply doesn't even know the truth herself. She was lieing on a daily basis to EVERYONE in her life ....................i don't think we'll ever know the whole truth.

 

IMO she is one very disturbed individual - convenient to blame her father but ...............my guess is - it's just another one of her lies!

Soozy, I have been listening to some telephone conversations between Casey and her family, in the first few months when she was in jail. The lies just roll off her tongue, she doesn't even pause for a second. I honestly don't think she can distinguish fact from fiction.

I too have spent considerable time today looking back on 'evidence' ...........it really beggars belief .............................at the moment - I'm not buying 'child abuse;' as an excuse for all this.

 

Maybe though - her parents might concede this if it means saving their daughter. What a dreadful predicament for them to be in. They have lost their grand daughter and face losing their daughter too. What an horrendous situation! I'm sure they don't want to see their daughter executed.Actually - I'm sure like all of us they just want to know the truth. I don't think it'll ever come out TBH.

Okay, now just finished reading this thread .... when you were talking up there ^ about where she could have kept the little girl during the day, as she had no other address. Maybe she was kept in the boot of the car, with the tape? Of course im just thinking aloud and probably this is nothing like what happened, but they do go on a lot that she drove other peoples cars?

thank you my lovely. i will read that after ive ploughed through the 21 page discussion above (im currently on p.5 ).  Im really glad ev started this thread, you can read in chronological order, that other thread is very long, but equally  i will try to stop waffling in this one and start to waffle in the other

yes, yes its true

 

get reading you read this first then read the long 21 pager there will be questions!!! (and i need someone to argue about it with)

yayyy, i can argue with you too *wonders if i can get food related arguments into it like the old days* x

I'm very good at arguing a point or two ..............TBH - I think i missed my vocation in life 

right, cause im so good and kind i will argue with you all okay

 

I'll argue with you ....................I'll argue with anyone It's what I'm renowned for  .............let's make it a three way thing 

OOOOOOOOOOOOOH! I love a good row............who's first?