ORANGE COUNTY, Fla.,None — Casey Anthony's mother, Cindy Anthony, testified on Thursday in court that a stain found in Casey's car trunk was there when it was purchased. Cindy also testified that she used a computer at her home to do searches about chloroform.
Casey is charged with killing her 2-year-old daughter, Caylee Marie Anthony. Caylee's body was found in December 2008, almost six months after she went missing in Orlando.
Thursday marked day 37, including jury selection, in Casey's murder trial.
DAY 37: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 BILL SHEAFFER: Day 37 Analysis CINDY ON STAND: See Images | Raw Video CASEY WALKS IN: See Images | Raw Video IN COURT: Casey, Judge, Lawyers, Parents VIDEO REPORT: Casey's Mom Takes Stand NEWS CONFERENCE: Attorney On Comment To CNN Reporter FACES OF CASEY: Most Recent To Oldest EVIDENCE ARCHIVE: Casey Anthony Case CASEY COVERAGE On Twitter | On Facebook
Early Thursday morning, Casey entered the courtroom, wearing a pink sweater set. She had her hair pulled back in a tight bun.
After a crime scene investigator for the FBI, an FBI hair analyst, and other witnesses took the stand, it was Cindy's turn to testify.
Cindy swore to uphold the truth and then told a totally different story under oath on Thursday than she's told under oath in the past. Her testimony included doing some incriminating searches on the family computer and about being at home during the time of those searches, even though her work records indicate she was at work. She also denied looking up chloroform under oath in the past.
Cindy testified Thursday about computer searches on a computer at the family's home. Cindy said she used the computer to do searches about chloroform.
"You used the computer at your home; which one, the desk top?" asked defense attorney Jose Baez.
"Yes," Cindy replied.
"In March 2008, did you search for items, including chloroform?" Baez asked.
"Yes. I started looking at chlorophyll. I was concerned about my Yorkie, she was having issues," Cindy stated. "There is bacteria associated with chlorophyll production, comes from certain species of plants, some species of plants produce chloroform."
Prosecutors contend that Casey searched about chloroform on the computer. Chloroform is a chemical compound that can be used to knock someone unconscious and it is also is found in human decomposition.
Cindy Anthony also testified on Thursday that the stain found in Casey's car trunk was there when it was purchased.
"Is there a stain in trunk of the car?" asked Baez.
"There's a faint stain, yes," Cindy replied.
"Have you seen it before?" asked Baez.
"Yes, when we bought the car. There were a few stains there when we bought the car," she said.
Lead prosecutor, Linda Drane-Burdick, fired back during cross examination.
"[Ever] search for making weapons out of household products?" Drane-Burdick asked.
"No," Cindy said.
"Chloroform habit?" asked Drane-Burdick. "Never heard that come up?"
"No," replied Cindy. "I know there's chlorophyll 1 and 2."
"On druglibrary org? Scispot.com/chlorophyll?" asked Drane-Burdick.
"Don't know if it came up that way," Cindy replied.
"Were you the one that searched that website 84 times?" Drane-Burdick asked.
"I don't know," Cindy said.
"Did you do 84 searches?" asked Drane-Burdick.
"I don't do 84 searches of anything," she replied.
Cindy's testimony was inconsistent on Thursday with itself and inconsistent with what she's said in the past.
"Do you recall denying looking up chloroform?" Drane-Burdick asked.
"I didn't look up how to make chloroform, I looked up chloroform," she stated.
Cindy claimed to take responsibility only for the searches done on March 17 and 21 that would incriminate Casey, but others that were less involved, she denied doing.
Earlier, the defense called their first witness, Susan Mears, a crime scene investigator for the FBI. The defense admitted into evidence a Gatorade bottle and a syringe. Mears was excused after the prosecution declined to question her.
Afterward, FBI hair analyst Stephen Shaw took the witness stand.
Shaw had testified for the state earlier in the trial. Defense attorney Jose Baez began questioning Shaw about a study he conducted on hair banding, which included 600 hairs taken from 15 living people that were then subjected to different elements.
Shaw was able to give testimony about the hair evidence, but he used a slideshow that jurors were never supposed to see. It was a significant misstep by the defense.
There was a Power Point presentation dealing with hair banding research that Baez successfully objected to earlier in the trial, but on Thursday, he asked about one of the pages in that same presentation, which opened the door for the entire presentation to come into evidence.
"The items that Mr. Baez showed you, those are a small selection of slides that you prepared for testimony, but didn't show correct?" asked prosecutor Jeff Ashton.
"Some of those, yes," Shaw replied.
And with that question, the whole research project was brought into evidence to show post mortem hair banding only happens to hair from dead bodies.
"I have yet to experience or find a hair that I have not been able to, with post mortem banding, been able to associate to a deceased individual," Shaw said.
The testimony was based on research into attempts to replicate post mortem hair banding in hair from living people. Shaw explained that researchers have never been able to replicate the phenomenon.
The defense asked if they tried to replicate the exact situation of the hair connected to Caylee from the trunk of Casey's car.
"I did not replicate all the condition in this case, I'm not even aware of all the conditions in this case" Shaw said.
"In fact, even if you were you aware, you couldn't, right?" Baez asked.
"I don't understand," Shaw replied.
"If you knew more facts about this case, you still don't know how long it was there?" Baez asked.
"That's correct," Shaw said.
Shaw was the latest forensics expert called by the defense.
Separately, an attorney for Casey's parents on Thursday sought to clarify statements to a CNN reporter in which he implied George and Cindy Anthony no longer think their daughter is Innocent (full story) . Attorney Mark Lippman said in a statement that he wanted to "clear any misunderstanding" that came from his conversation with CNN reporter Gary Tuchman, but the statement didn't deny the claim in Tuchman's report Wednesday evening.
Lippman's statement said Cindy and George "simply want justice in this case."
Lippman also said George and Cindy still love Casey, and they will do "all they can" to stop her from being sentenced to death.
In July 2008, days after Cindy called 911 to report Caylee missing, Cindy told WFTV Casey did something.
"For whatever she's done, everybody, she has done something OK? She's holding back or whatever it is, otherwise Caylee would be right here with us. So she has done something. So, I forgive her for whatever that is," Cindy told reporter Kathi Belich in 2008.
Casey is charged with first-degree murder, aggravated child abuse, aggravated manslaughter of a child and four counts of lying to law enforcement. She has pleaded not guilty and faces the death penalty if convicted.
Previous Stories: June 22, 2011: Casey's Defense Team Tries To Tear Apart State's Case June 21, 2011: State: Casey May Have Used Inmate's Child Drowning Story June 20, 2011: Judge Perry Scolds Attorneys, Court Recessed Until Tuesday June 18, 2011: Casey Cries As Expert Talks About Caylee's Skull In Trial June 17, 2011: Casey Court Drama: Sparring Lawyers, Fighting Spectators June 16, 2011: Mistake, Objections Spark Fireworks In Casey Trial June 15, 2011: Defense Motion For Acquittal Denied In Casey Trial June 14, 2011: WFTV Duct Tape Video Used As Evidence In Casey Trial June 13, 2011: Prosecutors Almost Finished In Casey Murder Trial June 11, 2011: Crime Scene, Insect Experts Testify In Casey Trial Day 27 June 10, 2011: Casey Gets Angry, Cries As Caylee Autopsy Pics Shown June 09, 2011: Casey Becomes Sick During Testimony On Remains
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