By Martie Hevia | Blue Beach Song™

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Day 28 – June 25, 2011 – Saturday

The Defense’s List of Witnesses for June 25, 2011

• NONE

The Defense’s Witnesses:
Abrupt Conclusion and No Witnesses

Morning sparks flew with the pre-9:00 a.m. discussions the attorneys and the Judge occasionally have to iron out issues with witnesses, or motions they want to file, or complaints they may have. This morning began with more allegations by Prosecutor Jeff Ashton of Defense discovery violations and it ended on an unrelated matter (around 6:42 a.m. PT / 9:42 a.m. ET) that caused the judge to recess for the day.

Prosecutor Jeff Ashton complained to the court about a PowerPoint presentation the Defense had just handed the Prosecution. The presentation was produced by Dr. Furton, the Defense’s first scheduled witness for the day. Mr. Ashton alleged that it appeared that Dr. Furton was going to testify about something that was not contained in his original report, and, hence, once again, the Defense had violated the court’s discovery order. Mr. Ashton requested more time to review Dr. Furton’s deposition to compare it to his presentation, and make sure that there were no new opinions in it.

Lead defense attorney, Jose Baez, seemed visibly upset as he emphatically stated that “the State is incorrect, there are no new opinions!” throwing his papers down, expressing anger that the prosecutor was once again making allegations. Mr. Baez accused Mr. Ashton of making unfounded allegations, as evidenced by the statement Mr. Ashton had just made claiming he wanted more time to check if there were any new opinions.

Mr. Ashton quickly found one new opinion, and pointed it out to the court and the Defense. Mr. Baez countered back that the information Mr. Ashton was referring to was not new, because it is data contained in Dr. Rickenbach’s report, an FBI forensic examiner and a prosecution witness.

Judge Perry said he wanted a copy of Dr. Furton’s report and a copy of his PowerPoint presentation, so that he could review it himself and determine if there were any new opinions or conclusions.

Mr. Baez retorted back, “We’re not going to do this again.” angrily stating that if Mr. Ashton had a problem with the PowerPoint he would pull the slides with which he had a problem and he would tailor his testimony to just what the Prosecution knows, adding, “This is completely unnecessary.”

The Judge once again stated he wanted Dr. Furton’s report and presentation to review, and that he would make a determination as to whether Dr. Furton had changed or added any new opinions. Looking frustrated, he said, “You would think this would have grown old by now, but I guess some things never change.”

Mr. Mason said he had a different issue to discuss and asked for a sidebar. All the attorneys went up to the bench, they met for less than a minute, after which the Defense went into a room, with Casey Anthony. It appeared that the Judge may have gone into that room as well, which would seem unlikely since both sides are to be present when talking with the trial Judge, however, the Prosecution team went back to their table and waited.

After 15 minutes, the Defense team and Casey Anthony came out of the room. The Prosecution team approached the bench, some Defense team members approached the bench, and they appeared to be talking by the bench, even though the Judge was not there, perhaps waiting for him. At some point, they all went behind doors with a court reporter.

The Judge returned, and at 9:42 a.m. eastern time, 42 minutes after the trial should have begun, Judge Perry announced, “An issue has arisen today, unrelated to the one we were just discussing, that would require us to recess today until 8:30 a.m. on Monday.” The Judge then turned to the court reporter and said, “Madame court reporter, we have something that we have to do.” Judge Perry got off the bench, with a determined walk, swinging his arms, looking a bit angry, he headed in the direction of the jury room.

What happened after that, I suppose, we will find out on Monday morning.

Final Thoughts

What happened today? One minute the lawyers are arguing about more discovery violations and then a series of private meetings behind closed doors ended with Judge Perry adjourning for the day, before the jury had a chance to come in or any testimony was taken.

Although, I understand why the Judge may not be able to tell the public what was going on behind the scenes, it only makes one wonder… did something happen to one of the jurors… did a juror speak to someone or conduct research on their own related to this trial… did someone get sick or die… did information come out about a witness… did the Defense and the Prosecution work out a deal?

In the void of information, your mind can only wonder why the Judge, who is so adamant about not wasting the jury’s time, abruptly adjourned for the day.

What are your thoughts?

Casey Anthony Trial | Day 29 – Daily Updates (Thoughts & Observations) – Coming Soon

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