Casey Anthony trial: Closing arguments begin
(CBS/WKMG/AP) ORLANDO, Fla. - The case that has been broadcast across the country starting with 2-year-old Caylee Anthony's disappearance in 2008 and continuing up to her mother Casey's murder trial, reaches a milestone today with the expected start of closing arguments in the Orange County courthouse.
Pictures: Casey and Caylee Anthony, Personal Photos
After more than 33 days of testimony and 400 pieces of evidence, prosecutors and defense attorneys in the first-degree murder trial of the 25-year-old Florida mother are to deliver final arguments to jurors in the death of Anthony's daughter, Caylee.
Judge Belvin Perry gave attorneys on both sides Saturday off to prepare their final arguments for Sunday morning, reports CBS affiliate WKMG.
The arguments are expected to last all day Sunday, and jury deliberations could begin as early as Sunday evening, according to the station.
During opening statements in May, prosecutors contended that Casey Anthony killed Caylee in June 2008 by suffocating her with duct tape and then dumping her body in the woods near their home, so she could resume her life of partying and shopping. They claim she crafted elaborate lies to mislead everyone from investigators to her own parents.
Defense attorneys countered that the toddler accidentally drowned in the family swimming pool, and that Anthony's blasé attitude was a way for her to deal with the emotional distress caused by sexual abuse from her father, George Anthony.
Despite the prosecution and defense's theories, jurors heard that a medical examiner never determined exactly how Caylee died, and Casey Anthony's DNA was not found with her daughter's skeletal remains.
The defense team never offered proof of how the toddler died either and never any evidence that George Anthony molested his daughter. Since Casey Anthony did not take the stand, both of those claims went unsubstantiated.
Casey Anthony as pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder in Caylee's death and could get the death penalty if convicted of that charge.
She is also charged with aggravated child abuse, aggravated manslaughter of a child and four counts of providing false information to law enforcement. The child abuse and manslaughter charges each carry a 30-year prison term if she's convicted.
The Casey Anthony case was recently reported on by "48 Hours Mystery."