Casey Anthony Gets Emotional During Hearing On Motions

August 21, 2009
wftv.com

ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. -- The case against Casey Anthony was back in court Friday and, for the first time in months, Casey was there and she couldn't hold back tears. Casey Anthony's attorneys filed several motions heard by Judge Stan Strickland, which included keeping the prosecution from taking Casey's check fraud case to court and being able to treat the EquuSearch founder and searchers as a witnesses.

CASEY ARRIVES IN COURT: See Images Raw Video
CASEY GETS EMOTIONAL: See Images Raw Video
IMAGES IN COURT: George & Cindy The Hearing
GEORGE QUESTIONED: Video Of George On Stand
POST HEARING COMMENTS: Cindy Anthony Baez
HEARING VIDEO: Part 1 2 3 4 5 of 5
VIDEO REPORT: Casey Anthony In Court
TODAY'S FOUR MOTIONS: 1 2 3 4

Casey walked into the courtroom around 9:40am wearing a blue, long-sleeve shirt and a pair of grey pants. She was not nearly as happy-looking as previous court appearances (see images watch video) where she was smiling and seemingly upbeat.

Casey saw her parents for the first time in three months when she entered the courtroom. George and Cindy Anthony were all smiles before the hearing started at 9:45am (see images).
Also in court were Casey's attorneys, Jose Baez, Todd Macaluso and Andrea Lyons, and EquuSearch founder Timothy Miller's attorney Mark NeJame, as well as a team of state prosecutors.

Casey's attorney asked the judge to allow her attorneys to interview the head of EquuSearch, claiming his testimony could prove her innocence.

Defense attorneys for Casey Anthony argued that testimony should be taken from the head of Texas EquuSearch, Timothy Miller, about the search for Anthony's toddler daughter, Caylee. The searchers looked near woods where the toddler's body eventually was found in December. They also asked to be allowed to review records on thousands of volunteers who participated in the searches for the little girl last summer and fall.

They hoped that testimony would show it would have been impossible for Anthony to dispose of the 2-year-old girl's body in the woods because she was arrested and in jail two months before the discovery of Caylee's remains.

"There is substantial evidence that we've found ... that the body or remains of Caylee Anthony was placed there after Casey Anthony was locked up," attorney Todd Macaluso argued. "It proves that somebody else placed the remains in the area."

The attorney for EquuSearch, Mark NeJame, said the request was too broad and would create "a tremendous chilling effect" on volunteers for future searches. He said defense attorneys should only be given information on 32 volunteers who searched the area where the body later was found.

Miller held a press conference Thursday with attorney Mark Nejame to show some of the photographs he took in the area where Caylee Anthony's body was later found (photos released) in an attempt to disprove the defense's theory that the body was dumped after Casey was jailed.
WFTV legal analyst Bill Sheaffer says it'll be a hard sell to a jury that the mystery killer took great pains to keep secrets until November, after EquuSearch left, then killed Caylee and went to the area which posed the greatest risk of getting caught to hide her body, Caylee's neighborhood, where the media and law enforcement were often focused.

"Not only does it not raise reasonable doubt, it just defies logic. So the defense is gonna have a problem in that area," Sheaffer said.

Circuit Judge Stan Strickland said he would make a ruling by next week.

"My intention on the EquuSearch records is to grant your motion in some form, I just need to think about what that needs to be," Strickland said.

Casey's attorneys also argued that Anthony's comments to a bail bondsmen should not be allowed at the trial. Casey Anthony's father, George, testified about how bondsmen led by Leonard Padilla were hired to post her $50,000 bond last year.

George Anthony took the stand under oath around 10:45am to answer questions from Jose Baez (watch raw video). The courtroom camera then showed that Casey had begun to cry, wiping tears away with a tissue (see images watch video).

After a few questions from Baez about security guards involved in the case and bounty hunter Leonard Padilla, the prosecution questioned George, asking if he was aware of the fact that Padilla paid the $50,000 for Casey's bail. George said he was not aware and the prosecution expressed surprise that he wouldn't have known that.

The prosecution then pressed George on the security that was provided at their home after Casey's release.

"They bonded our daughter out of jail and secured our house ... that's the bottom line," George said. "They were at my house for numerous amount of days ... protecting us and my daughter."
"You're categorizing that as security only?" a prosecuting attorney asked, which George affirmed.

George stepped down from the stand just before 11:00am and gestured a sign of support toward a still visibly upset Casey, mouthing "I love you," and sat down in the courtroom audience.
The reason George's testimony is relevant is the defense is trying to claim Padilla and his employees were providing security for Casey, while also providing legal services somehow, so that information they have divulged to investigators is really privileged information that shouldn't enter into the case or into the public arena.

The defense had also made a request for phone calls made by Casey's ex-boyfriend, Tony Lazzaro (read Lazzaro motion). The judge did allow defense attorneys to have cell phone records from June 1, 2008 to Dec. 18, 2008. The calls were monitored by law enforcement after Casey Anthony's arrest in July.

Meanwhile, the judge said he will rule at a later time on a court date for Casey's check fraud case, something the defense filed a motion to get delayed until after the murder trial (read motion).
"I just want to let you guys know that it was awesome to see my daughter today. It's been a long time since I've seen her and it just gives me a lot of peace to see that she actually looks okay and she looks healthy and that's important to me," Cindy Anthony said while leaving the courthouse after the hearing (watch raw interview).

"I think they're absurd, tack them onto, just put them on the [list of] ridiculous accusations that have been made in this case," attorney Jose Baez said after the hearing when asked how he feels about state accusations that he doctored signed documents in the case (watch raw interview).
Casey Anthony is facing first-degree murder charges for allegedly killing her daughter, Caylee Anthony.


LAWYER: PHOTOS DISPROVE THEORY IN CASEY ANTHONY CASE
There were some tense moments Thursday afternoon in the case against Casey Anthony when Casey's father barged into a news conference with his former lawyer and the man who tried to find his granddaughter.

SLIDESHOW: Photos Released By Attorney Mark NeJame
DOCUMENT: Letter From NeJame To State Attorney
DOCUMENT: Response To Motion To Certify Witness
MOTIONS: Compel Evidence Regarding Lazzaro
VIDEO REPORT: George Interrupts Press Conference

"It was all a big misunderstanding," George Anthony said Thursday.

The news conference was held Thursday afternoon ahead of a court hearing Friday and it all involves Tim Miller, the leader of EquuSearch.

Casey's defense team is trying to use Miller to say Caylee's body could have been dumped in the east Orange County woods where it was found after Casey was already in jail.

The Anthonys have left a trail of broken relationships and Orlando attorney Mark NeJame, who worked for them for free, and Texas EquuSearch founder Tim Miller, who brought his non-profit to Orlando to search for Caylee at Cindy's request, are among them.

Thursday, George barged into NeJame's office, uninvited, past reception, to the conference room at the end of a news conference with Miller.

"I need to see you now," George Anthony said as he stormed into the news conference Thursday.

EquuSearch founder Tim Miller was surprised when George barged in, demanding to see his former attorney, Mark NeJame, in NeJame's own office. They went behind closed doors and, minutes later, the Anthonys' current attorney, Brad Conway, rushed in without saying anything and joined NeJame and George.

It happened minutes after NeJame and Miller showed photographs of the scene taken on November 7 where Caylee Anthony's remains were found more than a month later. Miller says he and 32 of his volunteers could not search the exact spot in November where Caylee's remains were later found because there was standing water (see photos).

"I said, my big fear is that if she is deceased, we're looking for a tiny little skeleton and if it's under the water we're gonna have a four-wheeler drive over it, a horse step on it, or even a human and push it in the mud," Miller explained Thursday.

Miller says they just found the photographs and are releasing them to investigators the day before they go to court to fight Casey Anthony's motion to get EquuSearch records for all the volunteers who came to search as well as all communications between EquuSearch and law enforcement.

After about an hour behind closed doors, George and NeJame came out to say they had cleared up a misunderstanding that started with a call that defense attorney Jose Baez made to George on Thursday, but wouldn't say what it was about.

"How are you supposed to live through this and counteract all this stuff?" George said.
George says he just wants to know what happened to Caylee, he just wants answers, but he apparently doesn't want the answers he's gotten so far from investigators and the answers he's gotten from his daughter Casey don't make any sense.
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Read this article and more at wftv.com

Effort to find missing 5-year-old girl, Haleigh Cummings

February 12, 2009


SATSUMA - Texas EquuSearch has found a location to use as a staging area in Satsuma. Anyone who wishes to help the group search for Haleigh tomorrow needs be at 914 E. Buffalo Bluff Rd. at 8 a.m. tomorrow, according to Tim Miller, EquuSearch's founder and director.
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Miller said that volunteers, who need to be 18 or older, should wear long pants, closed toed shoes, and comfortable clothes. He also asked that volunteers bring their own sack lunches if possible - the group has plenty of water for volunteers, but there aren't many places to buy food near the staging area, which is less than an eighth of a mile from Haleigh's home.
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Bounty hunter Leonard Padilla confirmed to the Sentinel that he is offering a reward for Haleigh's safe return. Padilla, who is in Satsuma, said that he will give $25,000 to anyone responsible for Haleigh's safe return before midnight Saturday.
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"The first five day of a kidnapping are crucial - after that they start getting panicky and want to get rid of the child," Padilla said, explaining the deadline. Padilla also confirmed reports that George Anthony is in Satsuma and is spending time with Ronald Cummings' and his family, although he said he has not spoken to Anthony."I guess he's commiserating with the family," Padilla said.
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The Gainsville Sun is reporting that George Anthony is with Ronald Cummings' family on its Twitter feed. Check it out and more here.
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Haleigh's father, Ronald Cummings, appeared in a brief interview on the Nancy Grace show last night and revealed new details about the case. Cummings told Grace that Haleigh and her little brother were sleeping in the same bed as his 17-year-old girlfriend, Misty Croslin, when the little girl disappeared, which Capt. Steve Rose of the Putnam County Sheriff's Office confirmed this morning.Cummings also said that he and Croslin had both taken and passed polygraph tests. (update: Misty was actually polygraphed twice and could only say she "thought" she had passed.)
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"I don't have anything to hide - I just want my daughter back," Cummings told Grace. Rose confirmed that Cummings and Croslin had taken polygraph tests but declined to release their results. Rose said that the Sheriff's Office has searchers on foot and in boats in the nearby St. Johns River today searching for Haleigh, but that its aerial search has been hampered by wind and cloud cover.
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He said volunteers with Texas EquuSearch will begin searching previously inaccessible areas on horseback late today or tomorrow. The Sheriff's Office has received numerous tips in the case, but Rose said he was unable to discuss their specifics."We're still looking at all possibilities," Rose said.



Putnam County Sheriff Jeff Hardy just wrapped up a news briefing about the search for Haleigh Cummings. He said searchers have focused on five-square-mile area and will continue looking for the five-year-old girl. "We'll expand the investigation as far as it needs to go,'' He said. "As far as whether or not Haleigh is still in the area, that is an unknown." He said family members, including the 17-year-old girlfriend who found Haleigh missing Tuesday morning, have cooperated with investigators. He wouldn't provide details about evidence investigators have collected.
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Haleigh's father and his family are "hanging in there," according to Josh Duckett, who is acting as a spokesman for the family. "They're doing as well as can be expected," Duckett told the Orlando Sentinel this morning. Josh Duckett is the father of missing Lake County toddler Trenton Duckett.
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Duckett said that he had no qualms about encouraging Haleigh's father, Ronald Cummings, to interview with CNN's Nancy Grace last night. In 2006, Duckett's estranged wife, Melinda Duckett, committed suicide after filming a interview with Grace, during which Grace grilled her about her missing son, Trenton Duckett.
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Melinda Duckett's adoptive parents have filed a wrongful death lawsuit against Grace and CNN, alleging that Grace provoked Melinda Duckett's suicide. Josh Duckett was initially named as a co-defendant in the suit, but he was dropped after a magistrate determined that the family could not establish a claim against him. "I don't have a problem with Nancy Grace's show," Josh Duckett said. "She does things that need to be done, she asks questions that need to be answered and as long as you tell the truth you won't have a problem."
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From today's Orlando Sentinel:
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The search for Haleigh Cummings turned more desperate Wednesday after officials said someone likely abducted the 5-year-old from her bedroom in rural Putnam County.
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"There is no longer any reason to believe that the child simply wandered off outside," said Maj. Gary Bowling of the Putnam County Sheriff's Office.

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Family members begged for the safe return of the girl they call Doodlebug on the second day of a massive search in this sparsely populated county about 80 miles north of Orlando."Just bring her back," said Haleigh's maternal grandmother, Marie Griffis. "There are plenty of places you can drop off a kid, no questions asked."

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Haleigh lives with her father, Ronald Cummings, 25, and his girlfriend in a double-wide in Satsuma, an isolated riverfront community northeast of Ocala National Forest. The girlfriend, Misty Croslin, 17, put Haleigh to bed about 10 p.m. Monday while Cummings was working at PDM Bridge.
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Croslin woke up about 3:30 a.m. Tuesday, noticed Haleigh was missing and called 911 for help."I just woke up and my back door is open, and I can't find my daughter," Croslin told a 911 dispatcher. She said she had been sleeping and the door was not open when she went to bed.

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A screen door on the side of the couple's Satsuma home had been propped open with a cinder block. The main door was slightly ajar, but authorities found no obvious signs of forced entry.

Cummings just returned home while Croslin was talking to the dispatcher."I just got home from work, and my 5-year-old daughter is gone. I need somebody to be here now, I'm telling you," he told the dispatcher. "If I find whoever has my daughter before you do, I'm killing them. I don't care if I have to spend the rest of my life in prison."

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Officials issued a statewide alert for Haleigh on Tuesday, triggering a search that quickly drew as many as 130 officers from several law-enforcement agencies with bloodhounds and helicopters.
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The Florida Department of Law Enforcement, FBI, and Volusia, Marion and Flagler sheriff's offices are helping Putnam County deputies and investigators. The search continued Wednesday and included divers exploring the nearby St. Johns River.

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Bowling said 44 sex offenders live in a 5-mile radius of Cummings' home, but most have been contacted by law enforcement since Haleigh disappeared. Many sought out authorities on their own."Right now, we don't have a lot of clues indicating where she's at," Detective John Merchant said. "I'm always positive, though. We want to find her alive."No suspects have been named, and no one has been ruled out.
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"All the world's a suspect right now," Bowling said.Family members said Haleigh was unlikely to leave on her own."Haleigh is a very indoor-type child," said Griffis, her grandmother. "If she goes outside, she wants you to be with her -- she would never go outside by herself in the dark."Griffis said Haleigh is bright and loves drawing, makeup and playing with gadgets.
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Her mother, Crystal Sheffield, 23, was at her home in Baker County near the Florida-Georgia state line at the time of her daughter's disappearance. She was in Putnam County on Wednesday, talking with investigators and waiting for news on her daughter's whereabouts. She gets custody of Haleigh and her 3-year-old brother, Ronald Jr., every other weekend. This weekend the family was planning to celebrate Ronald's fourth birthday.
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Joshua Duckett, father of missing Lake County toddler Trenton Duckett, stepped in Wednesday as a family spokesman."I've been through it, and it definitely helps the family to have someone who can say, 'Hey, I know what you're going through,' " said Duckett, whose son was last seen Aug. 26, 2006.
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Also Wednesday, bounty hunter Leonard Padilla, who inserted himself in the case of missing Orlando toddler Caylee Marie Anthony, joined the ranks heading for Putnam County. At a staging area near Cummings' house, he said curiosity had drawn him to Haleigh's search.

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Meanwhile, a volunteer group from Houston that helped look for Caylee in Orlando last year said it is gearing up to help in the search for Haleigh.Caylee's remains were found in December, and her public memorial was Tuesday. Tim Miller, founder of Texas EquuSearch, said his organization has been in contact with Putnam County officials. Some volunteers may drive and others may fly to Florida, he said.

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Anyone with information about Haleigh's whereabouts is asked to call the Putnam County Sheriff's Office at 386-329-0808.

Grandmother of Haleigh Cummings: 'Just bring her back'

Haleigh Cummings was last seen at her home on Green Lane in Satsuma, a small town about 80 miles north of Orlando.

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Helen Eckinger and Gary Taylor

Sentinel Staff Writers
February 11, 2009

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Haleigh Cummings, 5, was last seen at 10 p.m. Monday in the bedroom of her Satsuma home. (MISSINGKIDS.COM / February 10, 2009)

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SATSUMA - Five-year-old Haleigh Cummings is afraid of the dark and would not have wandered off into the night, her family told the Orlando Sentinel today as investigators stepped up a massive search for the Putnam County girl.

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"We are absolutely treating this like an abduction," said Major Gary Bowling of the Putnam County Sheriff's Office. "There is no longer any reason to believe that the child simply wandered off outside. "Haleigh, who is nicknamed Doodlebug, lives with her father and his girlfriend in this rural county about 80 miles north of Orlando.

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The girlfriend, Misty Croslin, 17, put Haleigh to bed about 10 p.m. Monday. She woke up and noticed Haleigh was missing about 3:30 a.m. Tuesday, right before Cummings returned home from work at PDM Bridge.

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"Haleigh is a very indoor-type child," Haleigh's maternal grandmother, Marie Griffis, said today. "If she goes outside, she wants you to be with her -- she would never go outside by herself in the dark."

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Griffis said Haleigh is bright and loves drawing, makeup and playing with gadgets. She said that if someone has abducted Haleigh, she hopes the person will release the girl.

"Just bring her back," Griffis said. "There are plenty of places you can drop off a kid, no questions asked."

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Detective John Merchant of the Putnam County Sheriff's Office said that a screen door on the side of the couple's Satsuma home had been propped open with a block, but authorities found no obvious signs of forced entry. "I just woke up and my back door is open, and I can't find my daughter," Croslin told a 911 dispatcher.

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She told the dispatcher she had been sleeping and the door was not open when she went to sleep. Merchant said 44 sex offenders live in a 5-mile radius of Cummings' home, but all have been contacted by law enforcement since Haleigh disappeared.

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"Right now, we don't have a lot of clues indicating where she's at," Merchant said. "I'm always positive, though -- we want to find her alive." In addition to Putnam County deputies, officers from the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the Volusia, Marion and Flagler Sheriff's Offices are searching for Haleigh. Search dogs are combing through woods in the area, and divers are searching the nearby St. Johns River.

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Haleigh's mother, Crystal Sheffield, 23, was talking with investigators today in Putnam County and waiting for news on her daughter's whereabouts. She was in Baker County near the Florida-Georgia state line at the time of her daughter's disappearance.

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In the 911 call originally placed by Croslin, Haleigh's father told officials he needed their help immediately. "I just got home from work, and my 5-year-old daughter is gone," he said, seeming to become more agitated as the call progressed. "I need somebody to be here now, I'm telling you."If I find whoever has my daughter before you do, I'm killing them," he said. "I don't care if I have to spend the rest of my life in prison."He apparently hung up on the dispatcher, who then called back, trying to get additional information from Croslin, while constantly assuring her that deputies were on the way.

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Joshua Duckett, father of missing Lake County toddler Trenton Duckett, said he was acting as a family spokesman and would try to find additional photos of Haleigh to help with the search. Meanwhile, a volunteer group from Houston that helped look for Caylee Marie Anthony in Orlando last year, said it is gearing up to help in the search for Haleigh. Tim Miller, the founder of Texas EquuSearch, said his organization has been in contact with Putnam County officials. Some volunteers may drive and others may fly to Florida today or tomorrow, he said.

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"It's pretty ironic. We have another child disappear seven hours before Caylee's memorial," he said. Bounty hunter Leonard Padilla also joined the ranks heading for Putnam County. At a staging area near Cummings' house, he said that curiosity had drawn him to the scene."It was either this or Universal [Studios]" he said. Anyone with information about Haleigh's whereabouts is asked to call the Putnam County Sheriff's Office at 386-329-0808.

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On Nancy Grace, Haleigh's father said that the story he got from his girlfriend was that they were all in the same bed, girlfriend got up to go to the bathroom, when she went back to bed Haleigh was gone. Already she has told two different versions of that night. Dad has taken and passed a lie detector test, not sure about his girlfriend, but a small video clip showed a slight girl who was weeping crocodile tears.

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Putnam County Sheriff stated that search dogs have picked up no scent yet. Maybe it's a rush to judgement, but I have a strong hunch Misty has done something to her. Just my own opinion as a true crime junkie.

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If not--this is going to give the Anthony/Baez case one plausible alternative to Casey murdering Caylee.

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Texas Search Team To Help With Kesse Case

Equusearch Juggles Caylee Anthony, Jennifer Kesse Search Efforts
October 10, 2008

ORLANDO, Fla. -- A Texas search team arrived in Central Florida on Friday to help search for Jennifer Kesse nearly three years after her disappearance.

Kesse disappeared nearly three years ago from her Orlando condominium.
On Thursday, Texas Equusearch came to assist in the search.

Police have had more then 950 leads in the case, but Kesse's mother, Joyce, said it's awareness people need to be reminded she's missing.

Jennifer Kesse would be 27 years old now.

"It's extremely hard," father Drew Kesse said. "I'll be honest. It's hard to be back in this city."

The missing woman's parents met with investigators Friday morning. They said there's been nothing new happen in the case, but they're grateful for the help from the search team.

"There are a lot of emotions going on," said Tim Miller of Equusearch. "We've got two children in basically the same area."

Equusearch is in town to help look for 3-year-old Caylee Anthony, and they've also been briefed on the Kesse case.

A few years ago, police combed a wooded area off John Young Parkway -- not far from Jennifer Kesse's condo where she was last seen. Texas Equusearch will take another look in that area.

"It's when we're going to do it," Miller said. "I think it's going to be a lot sooner than later."
Jennifer Kesse was last seen near her condo near the Mall at Millenia in January 2006.

"We're going to go out and take some rides around some of the areas to get a better grasp," Drew Kesse said.

Jennifer Kesse's car was found near Texas Avenue and Americana Boulevard. A few days later, surveillance was found of someone driving her car. Police said they don't know who was driving.

"With any luck, maybe we'll find something this time," Drew Kesse said. "As you know, with Joyce and me, we'll never give up. Jennifer is what it is all about."

Texas Equusearch members said they're not sure when they'll begin their search. They said they're still trying to coordinate the Kesse and Anthony searches.

Background:

May 3, 2008: House Passes Kesse Bill
April 23, 2008: Bill Proposed By Kesse's Parents Passes
April 3, 2008: New Photos Released In Kesse Case
February 26, 2008: Psychic Says She Knows Location Of Duckett, Kesse
January 24, 2008: Kesse Remembered 2 Years After Disappearance
November 2, 2007: Jennifer Kesse's Family Receives Phone Threats
August 10, 2007: Jennifer Kesse Pictures Found On Dating Sites
July 27, 2007: Investigators Hope Inmates, Playing Cards Will Help In Kesse Case
July 12, 2007: Police Consider Underwater Technology In Kesse Search
June 6, 2007: Kesse Family Hopes Billboard Will Help Investigation
May 18, 2007: New Tape Produces Leads In Kesse Case, Police Say
May 18, 2007: Key Video Released In Kesse Case
January 24, 2007: Search For Kesse Hits 1-Year Mark
December 24, 2006: Kesse Family Hope For Christmas Miracle
December 22, 2006: Kesses Continue Search For Missing Daughter
October 24, 2006: Search For Jennifer Kesse Hits 9-Month Mark
October 3, 2006: Kesses Hand Out Cards With Missing Daughter's Picture
September 27, 2006: Kesse's Parents Still Receiving Leads On Her Disappearance
July 24, 2006: Six Months Later, Search For Kesse Continues
April 24, 2006: Kesse Family Raises Reward
April 18, 2006: Kesse's Family Produces PSA About Contacting Attorney
March 30, 2006: Kesse's Family Offers New Reward
March 8, 2006: Reward In Kesse Case Dropping
March 3, 2006: Missing Woman's Parents Hope PO Box Will Encourage Tipsters
February 28, 2006: Tips In Jennifer Kesse Case Starting To Slow Down
February 23, 2006: Kesse Family Vows To Remain Hopeful
February 22, 2006: FBI Describes Person Of Interest In Kesse Case
February 20, 2006: Kesse Family Hopes FBI Will Release More Information
February 17, 2006: Police Return Jennifer Kesse's Car To Parents
February 17, 2006: Mistaken Clues Interfere In Kesse Search
February 15, 2006: Kesse's Family Vows To Continue Search
February 12, 2006: Police Send Message To Public In Kesse Case
February 9, 2006: New Clues Found In Kesse Disappearance
February 7, 2006: Searchers Look For Clues In Kesse Disappearance
February 6, 2006: 'Person Of Interest' Sought In Kesse Case
February 1, 2006: Family Recruits Volunteers To Search For Missing Woman
February 1, 2006: Missing Woman's Parents Discuss Struggle
January 30, 2006: Searchers Use Horses To Look For Kesse
January 27, 2006: Friends, Family Search For Missing Woman
January 26, 2006: Missing Woman's Car Found Near Apartment
January 25, 2006: Police Find Few Clues In Search For Missing Woman

Casey Anthony Wants To Travel To Search For Caylee

ORLANDO, Fla. -- Casey Anthony wants to be allowed to travel to assist in the search for her missing 3-year-old daughter Caylee, according to defense motions released on Monday.

The motion, one of eight filed in Orange County Circuit Court, also asks that the time and date of the travel be kept secret from the public.

A hearing on the motions is scheduled for 10:30 a.m. Friday at the Orange County Courthouse in Orlando. Anthony made a brief visit with her home confinement manager on Monday morning, and then went to her attorney's office in Osceola.

While with her home confinement manager, she mapped out where she could go this week and when. Any violation of that schedule would send her back to jail.

Other motions filed by Anthony's attorney, Jose Baez, seek:
* Any polygraphs the state has taken in the case, as well as the names of anyone who has or will take one.
*Files on any investigation in Zenaida Gonzalez, the name Casey Anthony gave as her nanny for Caylee.
*Copies of forensic evidence in connection with the investigation into the disappearance of Caylee Anthony.

These include tests from the Body Farm at the University of Tennessee, which investigators say showed body decomposition in Casey Anthony’s car trunk.

The release of any investigations conducted by the Department of Children and Families in relation to the case.

The passenger list an AirTran flight from Orlando to Atlanta on July 2 where there was a reported sighting of Caylee.

Anthony has been charged with child neglect and obstructing a criminal investigation. She also is charged with check fraud and is out on bond and living with her parents, Cindy and George Anthony in east Orange.

As early as this weekend, the head of Texas Equusearch said he'd like to resume his group's recovery efforts in and around Orlando. He said he would love to have Anthony's help.
"If she said she was willing to take us to areas of interest, I'd be on the next plane out," Tim Miller said.

A spokesman at the Orange County jail declined an on-camera interview, but said this kind of request is highly unusual and would likely require Anthony's attorney to be with her at all times. For his part, Baez has argued since a July interview that confining Anthony stalled the search for Caylee.

Baez turned down an interview request but his spokesman said Anthony is not interested in helping Texas Equusearch as that would be equivalent to admitting her daughter is dead. The spokesman said she is only interested in pursuing live sightings.

Equusearch Team Returns To Search For Caylee's Body

Investigators Say Very Likely 3-Year-Old Is Dead

October 4, 2008

ORLANDO, Fla. -- Saturday marked 72 days since 3-year-old Caylee Anthony was first reported missing, and investigators said they now believe it's very likely that she is dead.

Last month, a group that specializes in the search for victims was in Orlando looking for Caylee's body.

On Saturday, Equusearch said it will be coming back.

"This case has had such national exposure that I truly believe that if this baby was out there alive, someone would have seen her and brought her home by now," said Deputy Director of Equusearch Mandy Albritton. "It's been way too long for a little 3-year-old to be missing."

Albritton said the main focus will be on finishing the search of the 25-square-mile area where they had previously been looking.

"Thirty percent of that search area we could not get into," she said. "However, if Orange County has found other areas of interest that they want us to look at, we will definitely go there and search those areas, as well."

Casey To Meet With Corrections Workers

September 8, 2008


ORLANDO -- Casey Anthony, the mother of missing 3-year-old Caylee Anthony, will meet with corrections workers Monday as part of the conditions of her home confinement.

During the meeting, Anthony is expected to get approval for any other trips she wants to make in the coming weeks, such as visiting with her lawyer in Kissimmee.

Casey was released Friday on a $500,000 bond for charges of child neglect and lying to authorities, as well as smaller, unrelated bonds for theft and check fraud charges.

Search Called Off

As for the search for Caylee, the search and recovery group Texas EquuSearch temporarily called off its ground search for the missing toddler, citing environmental conditions and concerns.


Many volunteers were seen crying and hugging each other after learning the search was over, saying they hoped they could just keep looking into something was found.

"I'm saddened that they're having to pull out right now," said Martha Stoetzer, a volunteer in Orlando. "Honestly, I wish we could keep going. I wish we could keep searching. I think there's been a lot of close calls, a bunch of great leads."

"It's very disappointing. It's very disheartening," said Michele Benigno, a Minneola volunteer. "I don't really quite understand the reasons behind it. I understand what they're saying about the wetlands, but I mean, I think they could still pursue it."

Counseling was offered to some searchers overwhelmed by the news.

Casey Anthony to leave jail again

Bianca Prieto, Walter Pacheco and Susan Jacobson

Sentinel Staff Writers
September 4, 2008

TODAY'S UPDATES:

Casey Anthony to leave jail again Friday morning 6:20 p.m.

Casey Anthony, mother of missing toddler Caylee Marie Anthony, is expected to leave the Orange County Jail mid-morning on Friday, officials said late Thursday.

Anthony's bail of 500,000 on a child-neglect charge has been posted, a jail spokesman said. Bail already had been satisfied on 11 less-serious charges. Before leaving, Anthony, 22, must meet with a home-confinement worker to iron out terms of her electronic monitoring.

Sheriff's investigators seek volunteers 4:33 p.m.

Orange County sheriff's investigators are asking for more volunteers to help search for Caylee Marie Anthony, the missing Orange County girl whose disappearance has made national news. Volunteers are asked to meet at the search-command center, 6317 TPC Blvd., no later than 8:30 a.m. on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. They will receive maps of the area and be assembled into search teams...

Tim Miller said he is working hard to find Caylee Marie, whether she is alive or dead. Miller has been on the ground searching for the missing child's possible remains in areas around Orange County since last Friday."We are holding on to that little bit of hope that Caylee is still alive," Miller said. "But if not, it's important that her little body is found..." Miller's own daughter went missing September 10, 1984, 24 years from this Tuesday, and the police would not look for her because they believed she was a run-away, he said. Her body was recovered in a field in Feb. 1986. She had been murdered."I wish I would have had one person out there looking for my daughter," he said. "My heart goes out this family, it truly does."

Cindy Anthony fires back at EquuSearch leader 3:12 p.m. Cindy Anthony, the grandmother of missing 3-year-old Caylee Marie, fired back today at comments made by EquuSearch's founder, Tim Miller, regarding the family's role in searching for her granddaughter.While Anthony admits the group's search efforts are appreciated, she thinks Miller "misrepresented his intentions..." Anthony maintains that Miller agreed to look for a living child and not a dead child. Garrison said the family has received "massive amounts of e-mails from people who believe Caylee is alive and they are looking for her."But, the number of volunteers helping EquuSearch look for the missing girl has dwindled from 150 to less than 50 after news emerged that traces of chloroform were found in the trunk of Casey Anthony's car and air sample tests showed there human decomposition gases in the vehicle...

Cindy and George Anthony retain high profile lawyer 2 p.m. Mark NeJame has confirmed this afternoon that he will be representing Cindy and George Anthony, but he will not represent their daughter, Casey. NeJame told the Orlando Sentinel yesterday that he had met with the couple for several hours regarding the legal process and media. The Anthonys wanted to learn from NeJame about how they could refocus the case on the search for their missing granddaughter.

Chloroform at a high level was found in the trunk of the car driven by Casey Anthony. Sources told the Orlando Sentinel that the chemical -- which can be used to knock people out -- was detected by preliminary tests conducted by an FBI laboratory. It was detected in the same trunk that an official last week said air-sample tests show once held a decomposing human body. The role of the chloroform in Caylee's disappearance was not clear Wednesday. However, there is evidence showing that Casey Anthony may have been researching the chemical on the Internet, sources said. Chloroform has been depicted in movies and on television when a person uses a rag soaked in the liquid to cover the mouth and nose of another, making the victim lose consciousness. A person can die if too much of the chemical is inhaled. Chloroform also is the byproduct of contact between chorine used in swimming pools and skin, sweat or urine. Commercially, it is used in refrigeration, photography, and as an industrial cleaning solvent...