Caylee's Skeletal Remains Don't Offer Many Clues to Her Homicide (duct tape might!)

FoxNews.com ^ | December 20, 2008

[ETL]

The skull and bones found last week in a wooded lot outside Orlando, Fla., were identified as Caylee Anthony's on Friday, and Orange County officials declared the little girl was the victim of a homicide.

How the 2-year-old girl was killed remains a mystery. Orange County medical examiner Dr. Jan Garavaglia reported that the skeletal remains were Caylee's, but the only clue to her death was that her bones didn't suffer trauma.

"They are not intact. They are all disarticulated. They are completely skeletonized," Dr. Garavaglia said. She said some of the bones were "tiny."

Caylee was two months shy of her third birthday when she vanished in June.

Garavaglia said Caylee's remains, which were found not far from the home where she lived with her mother and maternal grandparents, were identified through nuclear DNA analysis.

The news caps a five-month search for the girl, who was last seen in mid-June but wasn't reported missing by her mother until a month later. The mother, 22-year-old Casey Anthony, is behind bars without bond and charged with her daughter's murder.

[ETL]

__________________________________________________

If the mother's fingerprints and/or other such evidence are found on the duct tape, she's done.

From FoxNews.com, December 12, 2008:

If the duct tape-bound remains are proven to be those of Caylee — who has been missing since June — the method used to dispose of the body will become a significant factor in the first-degree murder trial of the girl's mother, Casey Anthony, attorney Scott H. Cupp said.

"That obviously shows a level of deliberation," Cupp said. "One would think something like that would be done prior to the actual event. But you could make a strong argument as a prosecutor that the child's mouth was bound to keep her from making noises."

Cupp, a former prosecutor for the Palm Beach County (Fla.) District Attorney's Office, said photographs of the duct-taped body likely will elicit strong reactions from the jury.

"You could go to town with that, a child with her mouth taped shut," he said. "That kind of stuff you can bring people to tears with."

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,465784,00.html
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Also from FoxNews.com, Dec 12, 2008 (different article):

Pathologists should be able to identify the body quickly from dental records, Baden said, and the plastic and duct tape could provide additional vital clues, including fingerprints. They could also provide clues to how the child died, and to who dumped the body.

"The beauty of duct tape — no matter rain, snow, sleet — that fingerprint will stay there," Baden said, adding that if someone used their teeth to rip it, it could yield DNA evidence too.

"Right now, they would be looking at all the contents of the plastic bag and they would be looking at the plastic bag itself," Baden said. "The fingerprints on the outside often get dissolved away by weather, but the inside of the plastic bag, the fingerprints would be there."

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,465647,00.html
__________________________________________________

(FNC/John Azzilano)
June 20, 2008: Casey Anthony, in blue, seen partying
at club Fusion in Orlando during the time she said her
2-year-old daughter, Caylee, was missing

[angcat]

Putana Diablo should rot in hell.

[unixfox]

Now that the rope is around Casey's neck and being pulled tighter, I believe she will eventually come forward and say she killed her child on accident.

She got scared, had someone hide the body thinking it would never be found.

All in hopes that a judge and jury may give her leniency.

Just my take.

[FReepaholic]

...I believe she will eventually come forward and say she killed her child on accident...

by accident.

[ETL]

I believe she will eventually come forward and say she killed her child on accident.

She accidentally wrapped her daughter in duct tape?

[Verginius Rufus]

The story has an error--the mother never reported her daughter missing. It was the grandmother who finally told the authorities.

We still don't know who Caylee's father is (Casey claims he was killed in an accident but won't reveal the name--given her track record for honesty it's quite possible he is still alive), and the paternal grandparents may be alive and not even realize that Caylee was their granddaughter.

[F15Eagle]

Sounds like she might have taped the kid’s mouth shut and then she suffocated or chocked on vomit and died. IMHO.

And then hid her back there a brief period in the trunk of the car.

She was a cute little girl. Tragic.

[Beagle8U]

And none of the evidence will be admissible in court because the cops botched the case big time.

The body was discovered, and reported to the cops, in mid August. What, and by whom, was done to the crime scene in 4 months?

[ETL]

I suppose you could be right. Perhaps she, or someone else?, put the duct tape on to try to better conceal the body, which was placed/dumped about 10 feet or so from a fairly busy road.

[Popman]

And none of the evidence will be admissible in court because the cops botched the case big time.

I don't know if the cops botched it big time, certainly it wasn't the cleanest case on record.

Suppose they find inside the plastic bag and duct tape Moms fingerprints. Why would a judge toss that evidence?

Clearly if the bag was unopened the evidence would have not been tainted

[ETL]

I wonder if traces of substances such as chloroform would be detectable in the bone marrow or hair samples?

[Big Horn]

This is so sad. How could anyone kill a beautiful little girl. Capital punishment for anyone that kills a child.

[Battle Axe]

How ironic that Dr. “G” was the forensic pathologist involved. I watch her show all the time. Hopefully all is preserved and they will nail whoever is guilty to the wall.

[NicNacPattyWac]

The perp’s lawyer is sticking with the “some other dude did it” defense (and yesterday implied she was in jail when the body was dumped). The grandparent’s new lawyer (Conway) was on Dateline last night and is echoing the same mantra (his spin is she would have never dumped the body so close to the house). There were even talking heads pointing their long pointy fingers last night at the meter reader who found the body last week.

This case broke while we were in Florida on vacation and I’ve followed it ever since; the perp is not going to talk and has lied so much it’s hard to keep track of her many stories. Her parents will continue to believe she had nothing to do with it (Zannie the nanny, who doesn’t exist, did it). Nancy Grace reported on Thursday, after being told a body was found, the perp needed to be sedated, then a short time later regrouped and ordered some pork rinds, candy and playing cards from the commissary. Yesterday, after the body was identified, her family’s pastor came to see her but she refused the visit and instead wanted to see her lawyers.

If anybody deserved the death penalty it’s her, but I’d be happy to see her spend the rest of her life in prison and never get out. She killed that baby b/c she was jealous of the attention her parents gave the little girl and also b/c she wasn’t into being a mommy (wanted to party instead). All I want for Christmas is the perp’s fingerprints to be on that duct tape!

[ETL]

Clearly if the bag was unopened the evidence would have not been tainted.

Bones were apparently found scattered around the area, certainly, at least in part, by scavenging animals. I don't know if the skull was placed alone in a separate bag. If it was it would open a whole new chapter in this story.

[DieHard the Hunter]

The poor wee girl! It takes a special sort of monster to do that sort of thing to a three-yr-old kid!

I hope they put whoever did this onto the electric chair and set it for slow-cook.

> “They are not intact. They are all disarticulated. They are completely skeletonized,” Dr. Garavaglia said.

Within the space of just on six months?

[Lynne]

This case is so very sad, but I am glad she was found and can now be buried. I just thank God it was her, and not another little child’s bones.

[Beagle8U]

The bag was open and bones were falling out.

The judge will throw it out because it was reported 3x, four months ago, and the cops never secured the crime scene.

[CE2949BB]

The judge will throw it out because it was reported 3x, four months ago, and the cops never secured the crime scene.

I fear you may be correct.

[Virginia Ridgerunner]

Orange County medical examiner Dr. Jan Garavaglia reported that the skeletal remains were Caylee's, but the only clue to her death was that her bones didn't suffer trauma.

Dr. G: Medical Examiner!!!!

[ETL]

There were even talking heads pointing their long pointy fingers last night at the meter reader who found the body last week.

Yes, it's disgusting. I heard one jerk (maybe Gerardo?) remark that the guy should have opened the bag to see what was in it. Could you imagine anyone so dumb as to do such a thing. They would probably have charged HIM with the crime! -made him into another Richard Jewel. He called the police 3 days in a row before they finally made a half-*ss effort which came up empty.

[A_perfect_lady]

Sounds like she might have taped the kid’s mouth shut and then she suffocated or chocked on vomit and died. IMHO.

My mom thinks Casey was drugging the child and leaving her in the car while she partied (so she wouldn't have to pay a baby sitter) and the child died. If she was drugged AND duct taped, that would certainly be a possibility.

[ETL]

"They are not intact. They are all disarticulated. They are completely skeletonized,” Dr. Garavaglia said."

Within the space of just six months?

Presumably the work of scavenging animals, bacteria and insects. Does sound strange though.

[txrangerette]

Animals tore at the bag and scattered the bones.

Happens EVERY time.

Throw it out?

The remains are hers, DNA testing proved it.

The tape around her skull will hold key evidence, most likely. If still adhered and if containing key fingerprints, fibers tied back to Casey and the home, etc, it will come in.

There is MUCH more about this case that we haven’t been told than we have been told. And there’s this that somebody figured out from a crime scene photo that was released. There appears to have been a little child’s book there in company of the remains, and the panel and Nancy Grace said it appeared to be like the - and possibly the exact same - book Caylee was looking at on the videos we’ve seen of her.

The judge you claim will “throw it out” is the same judge that already quickly wrote a search warrant for the Sheriff’s Dept. to do another exhaustive search of the home after the remains were found and way before DNA said they were Caylee. Because items found with the remains linked back to the Anthony home.

You mean THAT judge is going to “throw it out”???

Nope.

[Popman]

My mom thinks Casey was drugging the child and leaving her in the car while she partied (so she wouldn't have to pay a baby sitter) and the child died. If she was drugged AND duct taped, that would certainly be a possibility.

Wow, if this true, the death penalty is too good for her.

Lock her in room stuffed in a garbage bag with duct tape over her mouth, hands tied behind her back and throw away the key. Come back in six weeks and toss the bag into the dump

[Beagle8U]

The mom's lawyer will say that the body was reported to the cops 3x, and they waited until the evidence that would prove her innocent was destroyed.

This case will be OJ#2 and the murdering bitch will walk!

[Maelstorm]

“My mom thinks Casey was drugging the child and leaving her in the car while she partied (so she wouldn’t have to pay a baby sitter) and the child died. If she was drugged AND duct taped, that would certainly be a possibility.”

That may very well be the case. It would still be dreadful. It is interesting how we feel better when we believe it wasn’t a certain kind of outright selfishness such as her deciding to kill her daughter but instead she uses chloroform, tapes her mouth shut and leaves her in the trunk of her car where she suffocates or sometime and somehow that is better...

[mewzilla]

I hope the prosecution’s got a taphonomist on speed dial. It looks like they could use one.

[2111USMC]

He called the police 3 days in a row before they finally made a half-*ss effort which came up empty.

Quite frankly, this raised some flags with me, too.

The utility worker was insistent on the cops searching this one particular area. He phoned them three days in a row in October.

What caused him to so doggedly point attention to this spot. What did he know or how did he know?

[ETL]

I hope the prosecution’s got a taphonomist on speed dial.

Are you sure you meant 'Taphonomist'?

Taphonomy:

1. The study of the conditions and processes by which organisms become fossilized.
2. The conditions and processes of fossilization.

http://education.yahoo.com/reference/dictionary/entry/taphonomy

[mewzilla]

There's a branch that deal with stuff like this, forensic taphonomy :)

A well-quallified expert could be very helpful :)

[ETL]

He phoned them three days in a row in October.

It was August.

"Authorities have ruled the cause of Caylee's death a homicide by underdetermined means. The Orange County Sheriff's Department, meanwhile, has begun an internal investigation to determine why police failed to find the remains after receiving Kronk's tips in August."

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,470485,00.html

[mewzilla]

What is Taphonomy?

:)

[patton]

A what?

[patton]

Oh.

[mewzilla]

If the prosecution consults one, however, I bet the defense will, too. Dueling taphonomists, film at 11.

[patton]

You know, I am glad I am not on this jury. I really don’t WANT to see the pictures.

[ETL]

What caused him to so doggedly point attention to this spot. What did he know or how did he know?

What IS strange about his account is that he says he found the bag recently when he went in the woods (about 10-20 feet from the road) to take a pee. Did he not recall that it was the same spot he reported to the police back in August?

[ETL]

"Taphonomy is the study of the processes of death, decay, and preservation. This branch of the sciences is utilized in a number of fields, from paleobiology to forensics, and it is a rich and diverse field of study."

Thanks! Your source was a lot better than mine.

[2111USMC]

Yes, that is weird.

From the link you provided earlier:

He said he also had notified authorities in August that he had "spotted something suspicious — a bag" in the same area -- but he declined to elaborate further, saying only that he continues to cooperate with the investigation.

So the guy notices that the flood waters have receded and thinks "gee, think I'll go down and take a whiz by that plastic bag I saw four months ago"?

Very strange.

[NicNacPattyWac]

From what I’ve read, Geraldo is a friend of the perp’s lawyer (Baez). It’s easy for the talking heads to quarter back in hindsight, but at the time LE was trying to locate the body it was like looking for a needle in a haystack considering the vast amount of woods and water in the Orlando area; and the perp gave them nothing to go on.

Although LE dropped the ball regarding the meter reader’s calls in August, they also had rec’d around 6000 other tips that needed to be checked. At the same time the grandparents were constantly screaming to every media outlet how LE should be looking for a “live Caylee”.

[freedommom]

So the guy notices that the flood waters have receded and thinks “gee, think I’ll go down and take a whiz by that plastic bag I saw four months ago”?

Very strange.

GOD spoke to me on behalf of a child who was being molested.
Maybe God spoke to this man and he felt like something was wrong. In my past when God spoke to me I was consumed
and felt I must help this helpless child.

[ETL]

You lumped your response with the comments of the person you were replying to. It's not clear who said what. Italicization is typically used to quote other posters.

In the event you're not familiar with HTML, here's a link to a good website which explains the basics:

http://www.davesite.com/webstation/html/tag_ref.shtml

:)

[2111USMC]

Quite possible.

The Higher Power is at work all the time.

[MountainWoman]

here’s my question for you since it’s sounds like you know a lot about this case...

what the hell is going on with the parents, cindy and i forget his name? i was watching NG and she said that they want immunity now...why? did they know something that they didn’t tell? did they help cover up for Casey?

thanks. :)

[LouisianaJoanof Arc]

tapes her mouth shut and leaves her in the trunk of her car where she suffocates or sometime and somehow that is better...

A thought just occurred to me, June in Orlando, she would have suffocated very quickly from heat in the trunk of a vehicle. The mom would know that. My gut is she was placed in the trunk after death.

[hoosiermama]

which was placed/dumped about 10 feet or so from a fairly busy road.

Am voting for placed (in the early fall) The area was search with dogs, on foot etc. in mid summer. Why wasn't it found? It wasn't there.

[wndycndy]

“My mom thinks Casey was drugging the child and leaving her in the car while she partied (so she wouldn’t have to pay a baby sitter) and the child died. If she was drugged AND duct taped, that would certainly be a possibility.”

That makes perfect sense...and the duct tape to keep her quiet until she was knocked out...if this is true just think what a horrible selfish b*tch Casey was not to even care about the brain damage she would be giving her child. She did not care about that little girl thats for sure.
Cindy

[ETL]

From what I’ve read, Geraldo is a friend of the perp’s lawyer (Baez).

I heard Geraldo one day on Fox News a year or so ago say that he was a "fellow traveler" of Jane Fonda's in the Vietnam "anti-war" (pro-communist) movement. That the two of them used to visit each other at their homes during that period. The dopey Fox News panelists on with him didn't express any problems whatsoever with the comment, nor ask him a single question about it.

[ETL]

"which was placed/dumped about 10 feet or so from a fairly busy road."

It was me who said the above in post 9. It wasn't in the article I posted.