Casey Anthony Case
Question
Students will choose 1 publicly famous case which involved forensic investigation.
The case can be solved, unsolved or still under investigation.
Part 1:
Students will describe in detail the case, in a 5-page double spaced typed paper. To describe the case, a minimum of 15 terms and concepts from the textbook must be used. All of the terms and concepts must be from chapters of the text book. For our class, we will be covering only chapters 2-11. In addition to the 15 terms and concepts from the text book, credited outside sources may be
used to assist in explaining each term and concept. Please include your opinion to the case.
Part 2:
A power point presentation must be submitted describing the case, terms, and concepts. The power point should include photos describing what you are reporting on. Minimum of 20 power point slides will be required. Citations and a bibliography must be included at the end of the presentation which do not count
as part of the power point slides.
Final citation slide:
Bullet point each term and concepts. Cite what chapter and page each term and concept came from our book or other location where you got it from.
*Above are the professor's notes*
The case that this paper/project will be on is the Casey Anthony case
The textbook needed is Techniques of Crime Scene Investigation (Forensic and Police Science) 8th Edition by Barry A. J. Fisher (Author), David R. Fisher (Author)
Again only terms from chapters 2-11 should be used. If you can't access the book then I'll do my best to provide some chapters to be used.
I will of course pay extra for the power-point to be done as well. There was just no option to select both a paper and power-point.


Solution
Casey Anthony Case
On July 16th, 2008, the first officer
at the scene detective Charity Beasley was informed that a car had been seized
from the residence of the missing kid's family and that it was still being
probed for the disappearance of a child. Since this case went from a missing
kid to a murder, it was challenging from a forensic standpoint. Initially, the
Caylee Anthony case seemed to be nothing more than an investigation into the
disappearance of a child. However, there was a point at which the issue arose
whether the case involved a missing kid or constituted a homicide. Thus, the comprehensive
examination of forensics was the only approach to answer this issue.
Facts
When defendant Casey Anthony stole a
car and money from Cynthia Anthony on July 15, 2008, she called the police to
report the crime to after learning of child’s abduction. Cindy claimed the
defendant’s vehicle smelt like there was a decomposing body.
Zenaida Fernandez-Gonzalez, the nanny acted as
the eye witness who led the first crime officer to the crime scene. Moran (49)
asserts that Casey Anthony was arrested for the negligence of a child, misleading
details, and hindering the incident examination due to the contradictions in
her statements to the police and the delays in recording a statement in timely
manner about the missing person.
Visual Inspection
The first officer at the scene
(Fisher and Fisher chp.2 pg. 27) first process involve securing the integrity
of the scene ((Fisher and Fisher chp.5 pg. 80) by creating a barricade. This
preventing contamination of evidence on the crime scene (Fisher and Fisher chp.8
pg. 194). The first process involved recording the evidence as it appeared;
therefore, the officer took photos (photography) (Fisher and Fisher chp.6 pg.135)
of the outside and inside of the car. This was the primary activity involved
crime scene search (Fisher and Fisher chp.5 pg. 81) to collect any evidence (Fisher
and Fisher chp.6 pg.96) to link with the crime. It involved scrutinizing it
thoroughly and link the visible evidence with the implied crime. Further, the
office recorded the evidence by taking notes to ensure all evidence were documented
(Fisher and Fisher chp.5 pg.79). Lastly, to collect the microscopic evidence,
the officer used magnifying lenses, petri dish, tapes and other supporting
equipment like laser and alternative light sources (Fisher
and Fisher chp.6 pg.115).
Testimony in a Court of Law
Human Hair
Recovered in the Car
The hair recovered in the trunk
strengthened the argument that Casey Anthony put Caylee in the trunk after she
was subdued with chloroform. Due to the lack of hair root or tissue,
DNA as a means of identification
(Fisher and Fisher chp.6 pg.144) of the detected hair was not possible. After
analysis, the hairy material recovered in the trunk resembled Caylee Anthony
hair sample, however, it failed positively identification. Mitochondrial DNA
(Fisher and Fisher chp.9 pg. 212) was
utilized to narrow down the individual's identity. However, mitochondrial DNA
does not identify a single person (Fisher and Fisher chp.9 pg.225). As a
result, the mitochondrial DNA research can only establish that the human hair
recovered in the trunk belongs to the Anthony female lineage. DNA was crucial
in determination of gender of the victim (Fisher and Fisher chp.6 pg.143). The
breakdown features around the root of the human hair recovered in the crime
scene were evident in the FBI laboratory study.
Decomposition
Detection:
Odor's study of the air in Casey
Anthony's trunk was one of the controversial pieces of evidence permitted in
the Anthony case. It was crucial in identification of human remains (Fisher and
Fisher chp.6 pg.129). They could not agree since odor analysis was still in its
infancy and was not widely accepted by scientists. For the Decompositional Odor
Analysis Database, his results included a list of substances to be studied. Socia
and Brown (359) note that more than 40 percent of the substances identified in
Casey Anthony's trunk were linked to the process of decomposition.
A large portion of Vass' odor analysis
research was conducted on the remains of people interred at varying depths in
the earth. However, the expert was unable to explain why no chemicals were
discovered in the trunk of Casey Anthony's car. An important component in human
decomposition and other peer-reviewed studies, were missing from the trunk of
the deceased that could provide crucial evidence (Socia and Brown 362). There
was no explanation given for the lack of this component. Doctor Furton argued
against drawing any conclusions about decomposition from the results.
Also identified in the air samples were
amounts of chemicals linked with decomposition. Compounds related to human
decomposition were isolated using the gas chromatography-mass spectrometer
which constitute a computer program (Fisher and Fisher chp.5 pg.95). Excessive
chloroform was one of the compounds analyzed, which raised some red flags.
Stained
Paper Towel or Blood Sample
Analysis of a blood stained object
(Fisher and Fisher chp.8 pg. 206) discovered
with many fly pupa was requested. Acidosere profile was responsible for the
discoloration. According to Moran (47) many scientists disagreed with this
assertion, believing it to be supported by the fact that adipocere, a substance
that may form from fatty acids, was also detected in the trunk's waste.
Presence of Chloroform
from Chemical analysis
Analysis of the air in the trunk by
Dr. Vass revealed a significant concentration of chloroform. FBI lab also
verified that chloroform was found in the trunk. As for whether the chloroform
originated from a supposed rotting corpse could not be established because of
the lack of evidence. This involved sketching chemical release graph (Fisher
and Fisher chp.5 pg. 95) to ascertain
decomposition of human body.
Insect
Activity:
Dr. Huntington, a defense expert
witness (Fisher and Fisher chp.4 pg. 69), questioned the conclusions of the
insects. Aside from decomposing debris, this insect activity also often found
in human waste. This means that insects in the tree do not prove that the wooden
material has decomposed within. Common flies, including larvae, pupa, and
adults, are located in the garbage bags that feed on organic matter such as
food and fecal matter an mostly used as a source of evidence (Conner 84). However,
Dr. Huntington asserted lack of conclusive evidence that the larvae had come
from human remains, who explained that the maggots' digestive tracts had not
been checked for DNA.
Cyber
analysis
The laptop belonging to Casey
Anthony was examined by executing a search warrant (Fisher and Fisher chp.2 pg.
29). Chloroform and self-defense were recently searched topics. As evidence of
premeditation, the prosecution acknowledged these facts and presented them in
court. The search was not tied to Casey Anthony or Cindy Anthony, other than
the history found on the laptop. Cindy Anthony stated that she was the one who
searched such phrases on the computer, but timestamps (Fisher and Fisher chp.2
pg. 35) from her workplace revealed the impossibility of that happening.
Physical Weapon
Caylee Anthony's head was partly
covered in duct tape (Fisher and Fisher 80) and was translated to be a weapon
in the case. During the trial, duct tape covering Caylee Anthony's lips and
nose was used to illustrate how the tape would suffocate her.
Verdict
Casey Anthony was declared not
guilty by a jury after 33 days of testimony of the accusations of assault,
aggravated kidnapping and manslaughter in the first degree are all charges
filed against him. She was convicted on four false information charges and
checked to forge in a criminal inquiry. An alleged defamation lawsuit was
brought by the nanny. The state also requested the defendant to pay for the
expenses of lying to the law police and the search. Therefore, Caylee's Law was
enacted in numerous jurisdictions due to this incident, making it a criminal in
such places to neglect to notify incidence of a missing person (Fisher and
Fisher chp.8 pg. 218).
In summation, the case provided a
baseline for applying forensic evidence in analyzing cases and making fair
decisions for both the defendant and complainant. For instance, the application
of expert evidence was crucial in explaining the complex situation in the case
that could have led to guesswork. However, the application of scientific
evidence can only be accepted if it is certified by the relevant authority to
prevent confusion between facts and opinions.
Works Cited
Conner,
Heather. "From Crime Scene to Courtroom." Journal of Forensic
Identification 64.1 (2014): 84-100.
Fisher,
Barry A., and David R. Fisher. Techniques of Crime Scene
Investigation. 8th ed., CRC P, 2012.
Moran,
Riley. "Casey Anthony and the Social Media Trial." Women
Leading Change: Case Studies on Women, Gender, and Feminism 4.1
(2019). 44-56. Retrieved on April 24, 2022 from https://journals.tulane.edu/ncs/article/view/2414
Socia,
Kelly M., and Elizabeth K. Brown. "“This isn’t about Casey Anthony
anymore” political rhetoric and Caylee’s law." Criminal Justice Policy
Review 27.4 (2016): 348-377. Retrieved on
April 24, 2022 from https://doi.org/10.1177/0887403414551000




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