"Under cross-examination, prosecutor Jeff Ashton tried to discredit the importance of DNA not being found on the items.
"If the method of killing someone does not involve bloodshed, then the absence of blood doesn't matter, does it?" Ashton asked.
"Correct," Seubert responded."
REPORTER KYLE HIGHTOWER; THE ASSOCIATED PRESS;
A backgrounder on this high profile Florida case cane be found on Wikipedia at:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Death_of_Caylee_Anthony
Massive Orlando Sentinel coverage (including photographs and videos):
http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/local/caylee-anthony/os-casey-anthony-trial-day-20-20110616,0,5560028.story
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"The defense concentrated on the reliability of the prosecution's forensic evidence Thursday when it called its first witnesses in the murder trial of Casey Anthony, the Florida woman accused of killing her 2-year-old daughter," the Associated Press story by reporter Kyle Hightower published earlier today begins, under the heading, "Defense focuses on DNA in Anthony trial."
"An FBI technician testified that the duct tape found attached to the decomposed skull of toddler Caylee Anthony was contaminated during testing by another technician," the story continues.
"Heather Seubert, who examined the tape at an FBI lab, told jurors that DNA on the tape did not match the victim, her mother Casey or her grandparents. Instead, it matched another forensic examiner who analyzed the duct tape.
The child's skeletal remains were found in a wooded area near the family's home in December 2008.
FBI lab technician Lorie Gottesman later testified that it was her DNA found on the duct tape. Gottesman, who is a forensic document examiner, said she wore gloves during her examination.
"I have no idea how it happened or when," she told jurors.
Casey Anthony's defense team began presenting its case on the third anniversary of the last time Caylee Anthony was seen alive.
The 25-year-old mother is charged with first-degree murder Caylee's summer 2008 death and has pleaded not guilty. The state contends the child was suffocated by three pieces of duct tape being applied to her face. The defense said in its opening statement that she drowned in her grandparents' above-ground swimming pool.
If convicted, Anthony faces a death sentence.
Defense attorney Jose Baez also got Gottesman to detail for jurors her inability to locate any traces of the outline of a heart-shaped sticker on the exterior of the duct tape, despite subjecting it to advanced video enhancement.
A FBI physical scientist testified during the prosecution's case that she noticed the outline of a heart on one of the three pieces while examining it under ultra-violet lighting. There were no pictures taken of what she saw, though. After subjecting the tape to chemicals during fingerprint testing, it was no longer present.
Later, Seubert noted several items of evidence submitted by the prosecution that she tested for the presence of unknown DNA, blood and semen. Those items included pieces of a spare tire cover from the trunk of Casey Anthony's car, a shovel she borrowed from her parents' neighbor, several items of clothing from Casey's bedroom and a shovel found with her daughter's remains.
Seubert said a few had stains or other areas of interest on them, but none of them showed any testable signs of DNA, blood or semen.
Also, a pair of shorts and remnants of a shirt that were found at the site of Caylee Anthony's remains also didn't show a confirmable presence of blood. DNA could also not be obtained from the items.
Under cross-examination, prosecutor Jeff Ashton tried to discredit the importance of DNA not being found on the items.
"If the method of killing someone does not involve bloodshed, then the absence of blood doesn't matter, does it?" Ashton asked.
"Correct," Seubert responded.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The story can be found at:
http://www.bradenton.com/2011/06/16/3280387/defense-focuses-on-dna-in-anthony.html
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
PUBLISHER'S NOTE: The Toronto Star, my previous employer for more than twenty incredible years, has put considerable effort into exposing the harm caused by Dr. Charles Smith and his protectors - and into pushing for reform of Ontario's forensic pediatric pathology system. The Star has a "topic" section which focuses on recent stories related to Dr. Charles Smith. It can be found at:
http://www.thestar.com/topic/charlessmith
Information on "The Charles Smith Blog Award"- and its nomination process - can be found at:
http://smithforensic.blogspot.com/2011/05/charles-smith-blog-award-nominations.html
Harold Levy: Publisher; The Charles Smith Blog; hlevy15@gmail.com;
