Big Day for Prosecution in Casey Trial as Chief Medical Examiner Calls Child's Death Homicide

Dr. Jan Garavaglia testified at the State vs. Casey Anthony trial on Friday and stated there were many "red flags" and much "foul play" to indicate that Caylee Marie Anthony's death was not an accident, but in fact a homicide.

Casey Anthony, 25, is accused of murder in the first degree upon her child in 2008. If found guilty by the jury, Anthony may have to face a death sentence.

Garavaglia, the chief medical examiner for Orange and Osceola counties, said during direct examination that it was in fact a murder because of three reasons: 1) the death was not reported to authorities, 2) the body was in a container, and 3) the body hidden.

She explained because of the "preponderance of evidence ... there was no other logical conclusion could be found. [A person] who has a legal, ethical obligation to care for a child, not reporting that child missing, the fact it's tossed in a field to rot in a bag, is a clear a indication the body was trying to be hidden."

During cross examination, Defense Attorney Cheney Mason asked the doctor, "You're saying circumstantial evidence to you says it probably was a homicide?"

"Not probably," replied Dr. Garavaglia. "I think that is the only logical conclusion based scientifically on some of the scientific information we have, based on observational information we have on homicide and children dying."

She told Mason that based on her studies on children and accidental death, specifically by drowning, that 100% of the time, the unexpected incident is reported because there's the chance that the child could survive. "No matter how stiff that body is," the examiner explained, "they always call 911 in hopes that the child could be saved."

She also added the duct tape, "There is no child that should have duct tape on their face when they die or after they die."

Garavaglia said there was enough evidence to classify this as a murder, but no cause of death was ever found, therefore she claimed it as homicide by undetermined means.

But during the trial, after a bench-approach, the judge, Belvin Perry, Jr., instructed the jury to step out - but for no set time - in order for a matter to be discussed; that matter being the state proposing that duct tape could be the murder weapon in this case.

Karin Moore, a law professor at a Florida college, said Dr. Garavaglia's diagnosis was an opinion based on the manner of death. "She could not say the child died of asphyxiation," said Moore, who was a defense attorney for 22 years. "What she looked to was the manner of death ... She ruled out accident, and on what basis? I don't know."

A video by Forensic Anthropologist Michael Warren presents a photograph of the accused mother and her 2-year-old daughter, but what makes this photograph different is there is a picture of the toddler's skull superimposed with duct tape around the mouth of the once-smiling little girl. Casey stared blankly, her eyes frozen onto the screen as she watched her daughter's face disintegrate.

Assistant State Attorney Jeff Ashton explains the the purpose of this video is to indicate "whether the tape is the murder weapon, and in this case it is."

Doctor Warren explained to Baez during cross examination that the video was "to illustrate the width of the tape could cover the nose and the portal to the mouth."

Defense Attorney Jose Baez described the presentation a "disgusting fantasy" that is not supported by anything that can be testified. He suggests that it may cause confusion on each of the jurors, and would be misleading. The jury was brought back in and viewed the video, but showed no reaction.

The doctors in this case also told the jury that there was no trauma to the bones found an the body was so decomposed that they were unable to identify if there was any trauma to the child at all prior to death. The only disruption to the bones was carnivore damage. Casey cried and put her head down when the doctors revealed that animals in the woods chewed on Caylee's remains.

Susan Constantine, body language expert and jury consultant, as seen on CNN, says Casey showed a lot of body gestures that indicated fear, worry, and for the first time, empathy. As the doctors continued to characterize the crime scene, Casey placed a tissue up to her nose.

"She was having a recall of the odor," from when she experienced it three years ago, Constantine said.

When the jury left for the final recess for the day, Baez requested a motion for a mistrial for unprecedented evidence, saying he believed the video was based on "possibility," which is what Warren referred to it as. Ashton added, "The duct tape was sufficient to be the murder weapon essentially." Judge Perry denied the motion.

(Photography by Joe Burbank, Orlando Sentinel)