Short Day In Casey Anthony Murder Trial
ORLANDO (CBS4) – A trio of forensic experts took the stand Wednesday for a short day of testimony in the murder trial of Casey Anthony.
Chief Judge Belvin Perry recessed the proceedings shortly before noon because he had a scheduled judge's meeting.
Anthony, 26, is accused of killing her two year old daughter Caylee.
The prosecution claims Anthony suffocated the girl by putting duct tape over her nose and mouth in June 2008. The girl's remains were found in a wooded area near the Anthony family home in December of that year. The defense claims Caylee accidentally drowned in her grandparents pool and Anthony's father, George, helped cover up the death.
The first expert to take the stand was FBI geologist Maureen Bottrell was testified that she analyzed 22 pairs of shoes taken from the Anthony home. She said three pairs of shoes had significant enough amounts of soil to compare with soil samples taken from the site where the skeletal remains of 2-year-old Caylee were found.
Another FBI forensic witness, Madeline Montgomery, examined a hair found with Caylee's remains. She told jurors she found no trace in the hair sample of a number of drugs, including ones that can have a sedative or knock-out effect. On cross examination, Montgomery said hair is not the best way to test for drug exposure.
"Even if it had been positive, I wouldn't have been able to say when or how often the person was exposed," Montgomery said.
Michael Sigman, a chemistry professor from the University of Central Florida, told the jury air samples taken from the trunk of Anthony's car showed traces of chloroform, gas and several other volatile chemicals generally found in stain removers or degreasers. Sigman testified that he was not able to conclusively determine if human remains had ever been in the trunk.
Anthony, who had pleaded not guilty to first degree murder, could face the death penalty if convicted.
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