Casey Anthony defense rests without defendant testifying
ORLANDO, FL
Her attorneys also never produced any witnesses bolstering the
claim made in last month's opening statements that Anthony had
acted without apparent remorse in the weeks after her daughter's
death because she had been molested by her father as a child,
resulting in emotional problems.
Instead, their 13-day case primarily focused on poking holes in
the prosecution's contention that Anthony killed Caylee in June
2008 by covering her mouth with duct tape. Prosecutors said the
woman dumped Caylee's body in the woods near her parents' home and
then resumed her life of partying and shopping. Their case relied
on circumstantial and forensic evidence, and it did have holes.
They had no witnesses who saw the killing or saw Casey Anthony with
her daughter's body. And there was no certain proof that the child
suffocated.
The defense said in its opening statement that Caylee drowned
and that Anthony's father George, a former police officer, helped
her cover up the death by making it look like a homicide and
dumping the body near their home, where it was found by a meter
reader six months later. George Anthony has vehemently denied any
involvement in Caylee's death, the disposal of her body or
molesting his daughter.
If convicted of first-degree murder, Anthony, 25, could receive
the death penalty.
The defense's final witnesses Thursday included Krystal
Holloway, a woman who claims she had an affair with George Anthony
that began after Caylee disappeared. She said he told her in
November 2008 that Caylee's death was "an accident that snowballed
out of control." George Anthony has denied having an affair with
her but admitted visiting her home on several occasions.
They also recalled George Anthony to ask if he had supplied duct
tape he used to put up posters of his granddaughter when she was
missing. He said he couldn't remember. Lead defense attorney Jose
Baez also asked him if he buried his pets after their deaths in
plastic bags wrapped with duct tape. Anthony said he had on some
occasions. Prosecutors have contended Caylee's body was disposed of
in a similar manner. Under prosecution questioning, he said he had
never thrown their carcasses in a swamp.
The prosecution Thursday afternoon began its rebuttal case with
photographs of clothing taken at the Anthony home. Court was
adjourned for the day later in the afternoon, with prosecutors set
to continue Friday morning. Closing arguments would follow,
probably on Saturday, and the jury would then get the case that
evening or Sunday.
Caylee was last seen in mid-June 2008. For the next month, Casey
Anthony avoided her parents, telling her mother and her friends
that Caylee was with a baby sitter named Zanny.
Casey's parents soon got a notice that their daughter's car had
been towed. George Anthony and the tow lot operator both said the
Pontiac Sunfire smelled like death.
Prosecutors played a tape of a frantic 911 call made by
Anthony's mother, Cindy, reporting her granddaughter missing. She
tells the operator, "It smells like there's been a dead body in
the damn car."
Casey Anthony then told detectives that Caylee had been
kidnapped by the nanny, and a massive search was launched.
Over the next several weeks, hundreds of volunteers scoured
central Florida for any clues to Caylee's whereabouts. Meanwhile,
numerous photos surfaced of Casey Anthony drinking, some of them
allegedly taken in the month after Caylee disappeared.
Caylee's skeletal remains were reported in December 2008 by a
municipal meter reader. A key part of the defense case was trying
to discredit the meter reader, Roy Kronk, saying that he had
actually discovered the body in August.