Defense Argues Innocence of Casey Anthony, George Anthony Takes the Stand

Examiner- On Friday, Casey Anthony’s defense team revealed a portion of their strategy before the court.

They claimed their client was in jail when her daughter’s body was placed in the wooded area not far from her family’s home.

Casey is charged with the first-degree murder of 2-year-old Caylee Anthony, who is believed to have disappeared sometime in June of 2008. Her remains were discovered six months later, in Dec.

Mark NeJame, the attorney for Texas EquuSearch, the volunteer group that helped search for Caylee last summer, argued that the area in which Caylee was eventually found was never searched. In a news conference on Thursday, NeJame claimed this portion of land was underwater at the time the search team was looking for her. However, by the time Caylee’s remains were discovered, the water had receded.

Todd Macaluso, with the defense, argued that EquuSearch did in fact search the wooded area and should be subpoenaed.

The defense also argued that testimony from bounty hunter Leonard Padilla’s team should not be allowed during Casey’s trial. Attorney Jose Baez argued that such testimony should be quashed under attorney-client privilege, however the prosecutors thoroughly rejected this notion.

According to Bob Kealing of WESH 2 News, “Jose Baez said Casey did not confess to anyone. But at the same time, he’s trying awfully hard to quash testimony from the woman, Padilla’s employee, who spent 10 days close by Casey’s side last summer.”

Casey’s defense team also questioned her father, George Anthony, in an effort to demonstrate Padilla’s group acted as security for the family. Cale Ramaker of WOFL noted “Casey Anthony started crying when her dad unexpectedly took the stand.”

“What I saw clearly in the courtroom [was] Casey Anthony shedding big tears, sobbing instantly the second her father started talking. Four minutes later, when the camera turns to Casey, she had calmed down,” said reporter, Holly Bristow.

Judge Stan Strickland granted the defense team’s request for the phone records of Casey’s ex-boyfriend, Tony Lazzaro, from June 1 through Dec. 18, 2008.

Misty Fails Polygraph MISERABLY.

PUTNAM COUNTY, Fla. (WOFL FOX 35) - Misty (Croslin) Cummings was babysitting Haleigh Cummings when she vanished from her father's Putnam County trailer in February.

A man who recently gave Croslin a lie detector test says she “failed miserably.”

In video taken by a freelance photographer at the request of Texas Equusearch founder, Tim Miller, you can't see the administrator of the voice analysis, but he worked with Miller in Aruba on the Natalie Holloway case.

He says Misty is hiding something.

"There's things going on with you about Haleigh going missing that you know about that you're not telling me about," he says. "There's nothing I'm not telling nobody. I told you and everybody everything I know. I don't know what you're trying to get out of me. I'm 17-years-old...come on...how much can a 17-year-old take?" responds Croslin.

During a couple hours of this voice analysis, a polygraph and even hypnosis; misty again and again points the finger at other people. Miller says the polygraph test was not effective, adding that misty was not cooperative, even though she was the one who requested it be conducted.

"If it's her mother's side of the family... they came in and took her because they didn't want to pay child support.... or if it was somebody else.... I keep hearing things about my brother... I have no idea if he took her," said Croslin.

Investigators say Croslin insists sometime between 10 p.m. and 3 a.m., the morning of February 9, while she and Haleigh slept in the same room, someone came in and took the child.

The Putnam County Sheriff's Office says misty is their person of interest right now adding that her only consistency is her inconsistency.

In one of the polygraph questions, Croslin is asked, “Have you intentionally withheld any information about Haleigh's disappearance?" to which she answered, “No.” According to the polygraph technician, her answer indicated a 99 percent deception rate.

When asked if she knew the whereabouts of Haleigh, again she answered, “No.” According to the polygraph technician, her answer indicated a 95 percent deception rate.

But when asked if she knew who took Haleigh, again the answer was, “No.” This time, according to the polygraph technician, her answer indicated a 46 percent deception rate.

Casey Anthony's Father Storms News Conference

ORLANDO -- The father of Casey Anthony was so unhappy with his former attorney releasing photos of the scene where his granddaughter's remains were found, he stormed into the middle of a press conference Thursday.

Attorney Mark NeJame, along with his client, Tim Miller, held the press conference to talk about the photos. He also wanted to talk about defense attorney Jose Baez's efforts to force Miller, the head of EquuSearch, to make public the names of search volunteers.

In a legal motion NeJame filed Thursday, he said revealing their identities could "cause a chilling effect on future volunteers" who would want to help in searching for missing children. NeJame also released a letter he sent to the defense laying out his arguments for why EquuSearch should not be compelled to release their files.

In the motion, NeJame argues that none of the volunteers searched the area where Caylee Anthony's remains were found. The photos NeJame released Thursday showed the area where the remains were found were under water at the time of the search, on Nov. 7.

Baez has filed a number of motions, including one that tried to get EquuSearch to turn over maps, communications records and other information on searchers and their involvement with investigators. That motion was denied in January.

NeJame told the press he would hand out documents, disks of information and photos regarding EquuSearch's search for Caylee last year. He said the foliage in the search area was so thick, someone could be within inches of an item and not see it.

The defense has also filed a motion to make Miller a material witness. Judge Stan Strickland is expected to hear that motion in court on Friday at 9:30 a.m.

At one point George Anthony interrupted the news conference and demanded to talk with NeJame in private. After NeJame returned, he had no comment on the discussion.

In the press conference, NeJame said he doesn't object to Miller as a material witness, but continues to say that EquuSearch was acting as a private company, and was not hired by the Sheriff's Office.

Miller and NeJame have teamed up before. They recently held a press conference in Orlando to announce they would help in the search for missing Satsuma girl Haleigh Cummings.

During Friday's hearing, the defense wants to delay Casey's criminal check fraud trial until after the murder trial. They also want bounty hunter Leonard Padilla and his associates to not be able to talk about their conversations with Casey Anthony.