“I still think Caylee’s alive."

I decided to leave the house early yesterday because this hearing was going to be a real doozie. We had Mark NeJame representing Texas EquuSearch, and testimony from Cindy and Lee. As Bob Kealing from WESH reported days earlier, it was the first time in over a year that the Anthony family would be in the same place at the same time. George was there to lend his support.

When I arrived at the courthouse, around 1:00 PM, I ran into Bob. We discussed the case and rode up the elevator together, along with his camera operator and several other people. Also accompanying Bob was an intern from UNCW. He finishes his internship soon, so it was good that he got to go to a very important hearing. I pretty much hung around with that crowd and had a good chat with other reporters and Red Huber, the award winning photographer with theOrlando Sentinel. I also had a very good conversation with a certain court administrator who set my mind at ease over false allegations made against me. I'll leave it at that, but needless to say, no one was able to frighten me into staying away from the courthouse, and no one was on the lookout for a fictitious "gun-toting impersonator of the law" with a beautiful bald head.

It was around 1:30 when a deputy opened the courtroom doors and and called out to all media people. I was invited in with the others. Soon, Jose Baez and Cheney Mason entered and began to settle into their stations. Jose nodded and greeted some of the reporters and then waved to me, saying, "Hello, Dave."

Of course, I returned the gesture.

Moments later, Cindy and George entered with Brad Conway. I was in the second row and Cindy called me by name and asked if I would mind moving back a row. Of course, I didn't mind. No matter what, testifying in court is never a fun thing and I certainly wanted her to be as comfortable as possible.

After about 5 minutes, the door was opened to the public and everyone filed in. I had arrived early because of the crowd I anticipated. The courtroom and gallery soon filled up with spectators, and many went up the stairs to the balcony. I chose to sit behind the defense because I was with a media friend who sat there, and also for another very good reason. I wanted to be up close and personal to the most important people there, aside from Casey and all of the attorneys, meaning prosecution and defense. Besides, I see nothing wrong with sitting wherever I choose, whether anyone likes it or not, and in order to get the feel and mood of people, what better way than being near? I have never been one to believe that the side one sits on in a courtroom is the stand one takes, and as a writer, I need to approach a story from all angles, not just one.

I wondered where Lee was and, presto, just like that, there he was. He shuffled into the row with his girlfriend, Mallory, in the lead. After they both hugged George and Cindy he took a seat next to his mother, with Mallory to his right, directly in front of me. No matter what people may think, I found her to be a fresh-face in the courtroom. By that, I mean she had a clean and wholesome All-American look.

At 1:53, Casey entered the room. Seven minutes later, like clockwork, Chief Judge Belvin Perry walked in and took his seat behind the bench. The first issue of the day dealt with the reconsideration of a prior ruling made by Judge Strickland pertaining to Texas EquuSearch records. Judge Perry announced that both sides would have 5 minutes to address the issue. Within seconds, Baez asked for and was granted a sidebar with the judge, NeJame, Mason and Linda Drane Burdick. Jeff Ashton was not present at this time. 12 minutes later, the sidebar broke up, the attorneys walked back to their respective stations and the judge announced that Mr. Baez had withdrawn the TES motion. He said that the defense could inspect the documents again, they could take notes, and a special magistrate, Jim Glatt, would oversee the task. There would be no deadline, but he expected it to be done by some time next week, and a hearing would be set thereafter. With that, NeJame was excused and the court moved to the next motion, the 911 calls made by Cindy precisely two years earlier.

On May 10 of this year, the court asked for a response to an order regarding the theory of admissibility of those 911 calls. Yesterday, Linda Drane Burdick opened the issue by saying it should be treated like a motion in limine or else go to trial and file an objection of admissibility at that time, which would delay the trial. To give you an idea of the complexity, we must first understand this motion in limine. It's a motion used by attorneys in civil or criminal cases to preclude prejudicial or objectionable evidence before it is seen or heard by a jury. The primary advantage of the in limine motion is to avoid the futile attempt of trying to undo harm done where jurors have been exposed to damaging evidence, even where later stricken by the court.¹

There were three people set to testify, Cindy, Lee and Debbie Polisano, who was Cindy's supervisor at Gentiva, where she was a nurse. Lee had come with his erstwhile attorney, Tom Luka. Cindy was called to the stand first. Debbie Polisano was no where in sight. While sitting close to Cindy, I could plainly see she was very nervous. As she walked toward the witness box, Lee was asked to leave the courtroom and not discuss the case with anyone. This is a standard procedure and it eliminates the possibility of contriving the same or similar testimony given by the first witness.

Jose Baez asked the first questions. Mostly, the conversation centered on what transpired the day that led to the calls, from learning of the car at the tow yard to calling Casey with no response to finally finding her to frantically calling police. It was a nerve wracking day. She said that she took her lunch hour to pick the car up with George after he called to let her know. They met at the house. She took $500 with her. George never told her about the smell until they returned with Casey's car. He said he had to drive with the windows down because it was like something had died - like a dead body, in the car. George needed to go to work and Cindy took a few things out of the car to air out in the yard. She threw a pair of Casey's slacks in the washer and returned to work. She said that she didn't say anything to anyone at work about the smell of death, but did discuss the problem with her supervisor, Debbie Polisano, who was still nowhere to be found.

When she returned home around 6:00 PM, she took the slacks out of the washer and placed them in the dryer. She then went back to the car and again noticed the smell while removing dolls belonging to Caylee, and a bag. She put them in the back yard, too. This is when she found copies of Amy Huizenga's resumé. After calling Casey with no reply, she called Amy, who was at the Florida Mall. Meanwhile, George phoned Lee and asked him to go home to help his mother, as she attempted to locate his sister. Without going into all of the details, which we practically know by heart now, let's just go straight to the 911 calls. The first one came at 8:09 PM as Cindy pulled into Orlando PD's Southeast Community Police Office (SECPO) on Pershing Avenue. Unknown to her was that the office closed at 5:00 PM and it was now over three hours later. She told the dispatcher that Casey had stolen money and the car, but the car had been found. Casey sat next to her mother. Since it was not an emergency, she drove home and was instructed to call OCSO because it was out of Orlando's jurisdiction. This is because the Hopespring neighborhood off Chickasaw Trail is in an unincorporated area of the city and falls under county control.

Lee was waiting inside the house. The three of them conversed and during that time, Lee told his mother that he had smelled the car as he walked in the garage. The second 911 call was made around 8:44 PM, and Cindy testified that the dispatcher was lackadaisical about her claims and found it to be a non-urgent event. At this time, she was not aware that Caylee was missing. Meanwhile, Lee began talking to his sister about the situation. This is the conversation Cindy overheard that brought about the third 911 call at 9:41 PM. Casey hadn't seen her daughter in 31 days, she was abducted by a nanny named Zanny and Cindy was panicking fast.  Lee later testified that his mother pounded Casey's bed and screamed, "What have you done???!!!"

During this 911 call, Cindy testified yesterday that she did it out of desperation in order to force the police to arrive at the house faster. She said she had never smelled a decomposing body in a car before. Rotting and burned flesh, yes, but not from anyone expiring in a hospital or in the morgue, where bodies are refrigerated. She said she never put two and two together. She never felt that Caylee was the cause of the smell in the car.

When Linda Drane Burdick cross examined, she cited pages and sections from prior interviews; what she said during depositions with Corporals Eric Edwards and Yuri Melich, and FBI Special Agent Scott Bowen. Some of it didn't seem to line up with what she had just said. Suddenly, there were more instances of "I don't remember" than during the defense's more friendly engagement with her. She reiterated that she didn't connect Caylee with the smell. Burdick handed Cindy copies of the 911 transcripts in an attempt to refresh her memory and force her hand. (Jeff Ashton arrives at 3:13) Cindy knew that Casey had told Lee that they had to wait until the next day to pick up Caylee and this is when the 31 days came into the conversation that shocked Cindy. Burdick maintained that none of the three 911 calls were premeditated, particularly the last one, and that's what made it an excited utterance as opposed to hearsay. To make this clear, an excited utterance is a statement relating to a startling event or condition made while the declarant was under the stress of excitement caused by the event or condition. (See: Hearsay Exemptions if Witness is Able to Testify)

We took a 10 minute break at this time. While out in the hall talking to someone, Jose Baez passed by me on his way to the men's room. He patted me on my shoulder and I asked him one quick question. "Are you a baseball fan?"

"I LOVE IT!" he exclaimed, and continued on. It was just something I knew in my gut, it wasn't really important, but it does show he's got a life outside of this case.

When court resumed, Jose came back to rebut. Cindy made it clear that she wanted police to continue looking for a live Caylee, and that she made statements to law enforcement to force them to continue searching for her granddaughter. It was at this time she said, "I still think Caylee's alive."

A minute later, she was excused and Debbie Polisano was called. She was still not at the courthouse. The judge reminded the defense she was subpoenaed to testify and the subpoena stated 2:00 PM. Instead of getting angry, the judge shifted to Lee, who was outside awaiting his call. It was now 3:48 PM.

Here is where I will end it for the day. There's plenty more, but over the weekend, I want to explain more of the dynamics in the courtroom - family, attorney interactions and some of the people sitting in the gallery. I will also go more into why the 911 calls were allowed. There is something else. I have been saying all along that I felt Cindy was (and remains to this day) in denial. This is something that has been so difficult to absorb, I don't think any of us know how we would react if handed the same set of circumstances. Would any of us come out unscathed? I'm not making any excuses, but sitting where I did, I could see clearer than a TV screen, HD or not.

Judge Perry’s lightning speed steals Mason’s thunder

“Be patient and you will finally win, for a soft tongue can break hard bones.”

- Proverbs 28:13

The last time I was inside the courtroom on the 23rd floor, Casey Anthony pleaded guilty to all fraud charges. That was four months ago on January 25. In June of 2009, I wrote a post titled, Guilty as CHARGED? that clearly spelled out why I thought she had no solid defense against those charges. The word CHARGED was my way of saying she charged her purchases on a checkbook she stole from her friend, Amy Huizenga. Why this defense chose to take it completely out of context in its motion to dismiss Judge Strickland is far beyond me, but so it was written, so it was done. God save the judge.

This time, on Friday, the courtroom took on a completely different atmosphere, as a new judge sat on the bench. Known as a no-nonsense jurist, Chief Judge Belvin Perry, Jr. lived up to his reputation. The mood was clearly stoic and reserved. As much as Judge Strickland deserved the same dignity and respect that Cheney Mason did not afford him, quite clearly, this time he sat quietly in the courtroom like a timid church mouse. Was he expecting this sort of outcome after Judge Strickland dismissed himself? Only time will tell, but if there is true justice in the world, Cheney Mason will not stand between it and the mockery he made of the court by filing the motion to dismiss and the later objection he filed in response to the court’s order.

When I got to the courtroom, it was a matter of minutes before Judge Perry entered. I noticed that Casey was wearing a light pink shirt and her hair was tied snugly back in a ponytail. She seemed to be in good spirits until Judge Perry entered the room. From that point on, gone were the smiles and hand-rubbing. As serious as the judge was, so was she. The more relaxed attitude of Judge Strickland’s court was washed completely away. This was business as usual, but a tougher version of it mixed in with a heavy dose of reality. Judge Perry had no qualms about discussing the dreaded death penalty.

He first addressed the monumental list of State witnesses, over 250, and the small number, 36, that had already been deposed. This is something he wants done. Let’s get a crack on it. MOVE, MOVE, MOVE!  He told the defense to file a proposed deposition schedule. He will not allow for any excuses. In light of this, he gave prosecutors and the defense strict orders to get their evidence and witnesses in order. Prosecutors said that some out-of-state witnesses were reluctant.

“I’m quite sure that Sheriff Jerry Demings will aid us in going to make those witnesses available for deposition,” Judge Perry said. In other words, depose them or the court will. There will be room for one courtesy call ONLY.

On record, Jose Baez listed himself as lead counsel for the day. Will that change by the time the trial gets underway? That’s anyone’s guess, but I did notice he addressed the judge as “Judge” on several occasions, instead of “Your Honor.” Some habits die hard.

Moving on, His Honor was irked that the defense still hadn’t talked to the JAC (Justice Administration Commission) about how much money the case will cost Florida taxpayers.

“I got time next week and the following week. That needs to be done like yesterday,” Judge Perry said. A hearing on the matter has been scheduled for this Thursday. He ordered attorneys to block out several days the following week (next week) to argue over unresolved motions, including all non-death penalty motions, whether the state’s death penalty is unconstitutional, whether jurors will be allowed to view pictures of Casey partying, and allegations of Roy Kronk’s domestic violence. This will most likely be held on the 10th or 11th.

Judge Perry really got down to the nitty gritty of changing the venue. Stating that it would be too cost prohibitive to move the entire trial to another county, he proposed moving a jury here if one could not be seated within the confines of Orange County. He said, “I have done a number of change of venue cases. Once I grant it, the location will not be disclosed. It will be disclosed at the last possible moment.”

He does not want the media to know until the last minute. That way, all publicity surrounding the location and jury selection will be kept under wraps. It seems apparent this judge wants the trial to take place right here in Orange County due to the massive costs of uprooting everyone, including over 250 witnesses, mostly from the Orlando area. He has no problem moving a jury here instead, if necessary. Most assuredly, this is something I was positive Judge Strickland would have decided. Many of us felt the same way, so it’s nothing new, but what may be is sequestering. If the judge decides to sequester jurors, which cuts them off from all outside influences, it could make jury service much more tiresome.

When asked, Jose Baez said, “This is really not just about the publicity. This community is intimately involved in this case by way of searches, by way of protesters.” He noted that the types of people the defense would want to hear the case may not be able to handle the stress of two months away from home and family.

“It is no secret that this case has received widespread publicity,” Perry said. He went on to say that the only way to make sure they are not infected or polluted during this proceeding is to sequester them.

Judge Perry asked the prosecution how long it expected to take to argue their case. Linda Drane Burdick responded that it would take about 3-4 weeks. The judge asked the defense the same question. Baez answered, about 3 weeks. The judge then set a working schedule of five-and-a-half days per week, meaning a half-day on Saturdays. He said that he would submit a list of movies for the jury to watch and each side could strike any from that list, no questions asked. Remember, there will be no TV for a sequestered jury.

Finally, he brought up the DEATH PENALTY phase. This was something Casey could not order her attorneys to “make him stop.” I almost swear I saw the hairs stand up on the back of her neck. Her parents were in front of me and I watched Cindy cringe.

How long will it take the state to argue? Jeff Ashton stood and said it would be done in a day. Baez then stood and said it would take the defense anywhere from 3-5 days.

Judge Perry reminded the court that we live in an adversarial system of justice, which is “the two-sided structure under which criminal trial courts operate that pits the prosecution against the defense. Justice is done when the most effective adversary is able to convince the judge or jury that his or her perspective on the case is the correct one.”¹

He wanted to move the trial date up a week, to May 2, but Andrea Lyon reminded the court over a speaker phone (in absentia) her daughter graduates college that week. The judge accommodated her and allowed the date Judge Strickland set to stand at May 9, 2011. Meanwhile, he expects to hold status hearings every 45 day. With that, the hearing came to an abrupt – no, not yet… Baez corrected the judge, who called Andrea Lyon “Miss Lyons.”

“There’s no ‘s’ at the end of her name, Judge, and it’s Professor Lyon.”

The Honorable Judge Belvin Perry, Jr. stood corrected and walked away from the bench. So it was written, so it was done.

Order Regarding Deposition Schedule

Order Setting Motion Hearings 5-03-2010

EquuSearch: Running out of patience before us?

As soon as members of the media showed up at Mark NeJame’s office this past Friday, Casey Anthony’s defense team ran out the door, tails between their legs. They had arrived only minutes earlier to look over records belonging to Texas EquuSearch.

Now, TES officials say they want to try to break the standoff with Casey’s team in court. One source said that, with Chief Judge Belvin Perry now in charge, they want him to decide when enough is enough. They are fed up with playing the waiting game. For more than eight months TES has waged a large legal battle over keeping most of the searchers’ records private.

In August of 2009, Casey’s defense team won the right to pore over records of 32 searchers who looked closest to the location where Caylee’s remains were eventually found. The defense later filed a motion to copy all of the records of roughly 4,000 people who looked for the toddler at all other locations, including south of OIA. Judge Stan Strickland denied that motion.

The defense made claims that at least two of the searchers looked in the very spot where Caylee rested and found nothing. Texas EquuSearch is getting fed up with the defense and is planning on filing legal paperwork to have the new judge order Mason & Co. to review the records and be done with it. Mark NeJame declined to comment.

In one other bit of news, and if my source is correct, Baez will stand behind the shadow of Cheney Mason because Mason has tried a number of cases before Judge Perry. Mason is also known to be a one man band with lots of attorneys he can turn to for assistance. He has surrounded himself with an excellent blend of specialists, all independent and all within the immediate vicinity of his office. In other words, he rents them space.