Expert: Caylee Autopsy Blurs Case Vs. Mom

Defense Team Member And Leading Forensics Expert Says It Leaves Many Open Questions Prosecutors Have To Answer

(CBS/AP)  Duct tape was placed over the face of slain toddler Caylee Anthony before her body began decomposing, and her remains were scattered among trash bags protruded by roots, according to an autopsy released Friday.

The autopsy says the girl was killed, though the method was unclear. The report also didn't say whether the duct tape was put on before or after her death.

Caylee's mother, Casey Anthony, has been charged in the girl's death. She has pleaded not guilty and says a baby sitter kidnapped her toddler. She waited a month to report Caylee's disappearance to authorities. Prosecutors say they'll seek the death penalty if Casey Anthony is convicted of first degree murder.

The autopsy revealed "little new," says CBS News correspondent Mark Strassmann.

And defense team member and leading forensics expert Dr. Lawrence Kobilinksy points out, "We don't know the exact cause of death, and it leaves open a lot of questions."

Caylee's remains were found less than a mile from her home in woods in Orlando, Fla. last December, six months after she disappeared. They were apparently scattered by animals and while most of her body was recovered, the autopsy says small bones from her wrists, hands, fingers and ankles were missing.

Also found with the remains were glittery pink letters made of cloth that spell out the phrase "Big Trouble Comes Small." The letters appear to be the remains of a shirt.

The report said no drugs were detected in Caylee's remains, no trauma was evident on her skeleton and the decay of the body prevented more specific analysis of her killing. "Although the cause of death cannot be determined with certainty," wrote Dr. Jan Garavaglia, chief medical examiner in Orange County, "the manner of death is homicide."

The report was put out following an order from Circuit Court Judge Stan Strickland. The child's grandparents, who are still standing behind their daughter, Casey, fought its release.

"They are apprehensive and are not looking forward to the speculation and the dissection of the report by everybody who wants to make a comment on it," said Bradley Conway, an attorney for the grandparents, George and Cindy Anthony.

A spokeswoman for the defense attorney representing mother Casey Anthony said she had no comment.

Also released Friday was a forensic report prepared for the Orange County Sheriff's Office by the Oak Ridge National Laboratory in Tennessee examining the trunk of Casey Anthony's car. The analysis found 51 chemicals in a carpet sample, 80 percent of them consistent with decomposition, though some of those compounds may overlap with known or possible gasoline components.

On The Early Show Saturday Edition, Kobilinsky, a professor of forensic science at John Jay College of Criminal Justice in New York, said, "Essentially, we have two distinct areas. We have the vehicle, we have the scene where the child was found. And, of course, the linkage is, I think, weak, and it's is a matter of how you interpret, how you put these things together."

Prosecutors, he told co-anchor Erica Hill, have to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the link was there.

He even called into question the conclusion that Caylee was slain. "The determination that this was a homicide is really based on circumstantial evidence," Kobilinsky said. "The way the body was found, the position, and, you know, the whole story that surrounds the case. "

And the toxicology results in the autopsy, he asserted, don't help prosecutors, either. "I think the prosecution has a story, they say that chloroform has been used in the death of the child, and they have to prove that. So far there is no evidence based upon the autopsy that that was involved in the case whatsoever."

The attorney John Morgan was correct in his assessment that in the Anthony family home it was a volcano ready to erupt. These parents are "the dumbest parents in the world" not to have known their daughter was not working. I have never seen parents so hated by the public and their stories riddle with lies. Baby Killers are the "lowest of the low" and she will get her due in prison or the outside if she ever gets out alive. These dysfunctional parents are headed for divorce or even worst. If the true father of this dead child is found and I think the FBI just might know who he is; he would received all the profits to be made because he is the dad of this tragic child and leave these two "train wreck" grandparents in the cold. What a perfect ending to a terrible tragedy.

[jeansee7]

When Dr. G made her conclusion of Homicide... she did this based on all evidence not just pieces.... The entirety... the child was not sick...video shows healthy child... Grandfather sees her alive and well last time she is seen... This child certainly did not throw herself into garbage bags and laundry bag with Duct tape covering her mouth and nose into a swampy woods area...KNOWN TO her mother as a teen hangout and place to bury your pets....bones being chewed on by animals and plants and roots appear to show the remains were out there for 6 months....This would fit of last time Child was seen...
Now would not good common sense say HOMICIDE? No accident with this duct tape and child not being reported for over 31 days as missing...Too many actions by the mother that shows guilt and covering up the henious act...lies,stealing,hiding and avoiding her family....all in my opinion

[momba22]

In all of the many years I observed and read about this type of behavior, I have never seen or heard of a family more hated, vilified, despised as these Anthonys. After the trial, whatever the outcome, where will they go??

[fwdavenport]

No loving mother could go a day much less a month without knowing where her child was. And all the partying with out a care in the world while her child is missing. How many more guilty people, some that have been proven of committing other murders after being released, are we going to allow to endanger innocent, trusting in the system, citizens before we start locking them up and throwing away the key?

[bondgirl362436]

How can they know that the child did not die from Chloroform? All that was left of the child was a skeleton. No skin or anything to test only bones. The child could of had bruises on her at the time of death, could have been strangled etc. But since she had been in the woods nearly six months there is no skin to test, no blood test could be run to find out more about how this poor child died. The main thing we know is, she was killed. How, we will never know, but I do believe she died at the hands of her own mother. She has never acted like she has grieved over her child. Whenever you see her on TV she has a smurk look on her face. All the pictures of her partying and entering "hot body contest" within the 30 days her child was missing. She did not care. She wanted her dead. And she still would not have reported it if the grandmother had not pressed her about where the child was. No reasonable mother would be partying while her child was missing. She is guilty, plain and simple.

[jxknowles]

I'll keep an open mind on the homicide case until I hear all the evdidence. That said, Casey Anthony's behavior as a mother alone warrants life imprisonment.

[npkppprc]

The only people claiming lack of evidence is the defence dream team. Look at the totality of the case, the whole family is involved with the cover up. This was no accident and the child deserves justice.

Everyone keeps going back to the day June 16 when George saw Caylee and Casey leaving for a job that she did not have. The truth is she left in a fit of rage on the night of June 15 after a horrible fight with her nasty mother. George is lying to cover up the fight, lying seems to be a family tradition.

What a joke this Kobilinsky is. I think one can tell which side is signing his paycheck. The precious angel's body is speaking volumes and they know it. Smoke and mirrors can only go so far in the obvious case of murder. When the lying grandparents take the stand this will be the final nail in Casey coffin. Remember you heard it here first, just like Susan Smith she will get pregnant behind bars.

[hamiltongrad]

Remember Richard Jewell, falsely accused of the Atlanta bombing ?

[jeansee7]

Big difference here ...... a completely different set of circumstantial evidence....Who else could or would of harmed this child? Who?
NO one else had a motive... Noone else had this child in their possession.... CASEY ANTHONY DID!

[emimiaga]

I don't know who killed this little girl and neither does anyone else except the murderer. There does not seem to be a smoking gun which links the mother to the murder - a lot of damning questions yes but no direct evidence. I am tired of these trials in which the accused is tried and hung in the kangaroo court we call "The Media". I do want justice for this little girl but locking up "the usual suspects" is not justice. More and more I see many trials in which people are convicted by circumstantial evidence especially after the media has already painted the accused as a monster. I often wonder would I know, much less prove, precisely where I was and what I was doing, say, on 6 April 2007 at 945 AM? Or any other date?

[jeansee7]

Well Casey leaves with Caylee in her control and responsiblity of her well being... Father sees this... a few hours later that same day... Casey is seen on Video surveilance of video store with boyfriend renting murder movies.... and NO CAYLEE!!! All calm and cuddling up to him... Cold calculated MURDER IMO..... She did not care where her child was... because she knew...where she was in that swampy woods...

The grandmother is so evil one must agree with the great grandmother theory that Casey was saving Caylee from the fate she endured being raised by the horrible grandmother. Now this could be the the true motive.

[hamiltongrad]

Punish yes, but Understanding and Dialogue too... What made her SNAP ?

IF this mom did this terrible act, we need to both punish her, but still we need to understand and dialogue with her so others will not "snap" into some awful regrettred action. Europe in general has a more enlightened response to such tragic happenings, recognising stress and abuse by men/jobs/ societal complicatyion and expectations/ physiologic unbalances of " trying to do it all " - too many women face these problems alone. Just like a signal for help, SOS, the signs may be clear but the response not there, the call for help the desparate as it is, gone unheeded.

The goal here is to restructure society not for more efficient blame - that is easy - but the harder thing to do is to bring light to where we need to venture so others will not suffer abuse and snap into violence.

[gramto8]

Hamiltongrad,

Not every mother that does awful things to their children 'snaps.' Some of them are just plain evil. In fact, quite a few of them are evil. They are so bound up in themselves that they do not care about their children and feel the kids are in the way. They should have thought of that BEFORE they got pregnant or should have allowed someone who wanted the child to raise it.

[gramto8]

Hamiltongrad,

Not every mother that does awful things to their children 'snaps.' Some of them are just plain evil. In fact, quite a few of them are evil. They are so bound up in themselves that they do not care about their children and feel the kids are in the way. They should have thought of that BEFORE they got pregnant or should have allowed someone who wanted the child to raise it.

[gramto8]

Sorry about the duplicate. It told me it didn't go through and to try again....

[cregis]

I believe there is evidence that the shirt George Anthony saw her wearing the last day he saw Caylee was in the bag. To me that is evidence Casey killed Caylee the day she left or the next day. Remember Casey told the police that Caylee talked to her on the phone, I believe the day before the police were called. If anyone believes anything Casey says, I've got a bridge...

[Newster1]

. Her psychosis led to the killing of the child. Persons who experience hallucinations and delusions during the criminal act are insane."

Well you can say that of most xtians, they are delusional and experience hallucinations about some invisible Santa Claus that lives in the sky somewhere and talks to them, they hear voices in their heads.

[realitychec6]

Casey Anthony will never talk. That is already evident. She's smart enough to know if she never tells anything, she stands a better chance of being acquitted of this crime. Her parents are obviously liars and after saying mixed pro and con remarks about their daughter, decided to stand behind her. The publicity they have recruited has been done so to try and help their daughter's case. The things Casey said at the beginning, or course, weren't believable but she soon shut up completely to help herself and a case with very little evidence.

[sean58z]

Casey is a paranoid schizophrenic. Most cases demonstrate partial amnesia. The Judge may never hear how Caylee died due to Casey's lack of memory. Her psychosis led to the killing of the child. Persons who experience hallucinations and delusions during the criminal act are insane.

In view of what has happened with Scott Peterson (remember him?)and all the publicity this is getting, I would be very surprised if they could find a jury that won't convict Casey Anthony.

Seems to me that there is more evidence here than there was in the Scott Peterson case.

Too many lies and deception coming from both Casey Anthony, her brother and her parents.

[Thalia-9]

by Livinontheedge June 20, 2009 9:45 AM PDT
In all they really have no evidence pinning this crime to her. All they really have is the phone call her mother made saying the car smelled like death. Hell I drive past a tyson plant each day and the smell of the chicken parts they use to make feed for animals makes my car smell like decomposition too, but I did not kill anyone.
I think the prosecuter is going to need a little more than a mothers statement and speculation as to what happened to get a conviction.

all they rally have is a phone call from the grandmother saying the car smelled like death? what about the failure to report her missing for a month or 2? what about her out partying the entire time the child was missing, or the constant "she's with the babysitter" when the grandparents repeatedly tried to see her while she was missing? or how about all the research of cloriform (spell?) and other ways to kill they found on the mothers computer? or how bout the "I dropped her off 'here' with the babysitter, which was a longtime abandoned apartment complex?? "only a phone call"?...not so much.

[Thalia-9]

by jincstress June 20, 2009 8:35 AM PDT
Just being scientific here...the autopsy couldnt determine cause of death...but they know it was homicide? ( ok..the presense of duct tape makes that likely) but its irresponsible to label it homicide with no proof or confession. It could have been an accident that was staged to look like a homicide- just splitting hairs here- sure, but split hairs cause murderers walk free.

what do you mean "irresponsible to lable it a homicide with no proof or confession"??? you think little caylee just decided to waltz in to the wood w/ a roll of duct tape and trash bags, bound herself before hopping in to a the bag cause she just couldn't take the stresses of life anymore at 3? good grief.