Casey Anthony: What was the day’s biggest headline? The fine, the homeless suggestion or Casey’s falling ill? - Hal

Casey Anthony: What was the day’s biggest headline? The fine, the homeless suggestion or Casey’s falling ill?
posted by halboedeker on May, 11 2011 7:08 PM

Vinnie Politan of HLN picked it as Wednesday’s biggest moment in the Casey Anthony case: Chief Judge Belvin Perry said he might look for potential jurors in a nearby homeless shelter.

“I’m told it has a high concentration of ethnic population,” Perry told the court after defense attorney Jose Baez raised the issue about diversity on the panel.

Orlando attorney Diana Tennis told Politan that she was astounded by the homeless possibility. “I’m picturing the sheriff’s office going around …. forcing these people to show them their driver’s license,” Tennis said. “What happens when they say, ‘Uh, no I don’t want to show you my driver’s license? What happens when they say, ‘Uh, no, I don’t want to be on this jury?’ Are we going to be forcibly handcuffing people at the homeless shelter?”

Tennis added that Florida doesn’t have a great mental health system. “A lot of our people on the street and in our criminal justice system are there in a revolving door because they’ve got mental-health issues,” she said. “Is this really the kind of thing that we want to insert in our trial here?”

Jean Casarez told Politan that the homeless might be biased against Anthony because she had a roof over her head.

Orlando attorney Mark NeJame, an analyst for WKMG-Channel 6, said Perry was serious about the homeless proposal. “It’s an unusual alternative,” NeJame said. “I’ve never heard of it. But he’s called them [the defense], he’s playing their game. He’s called their bluff. … There’s an old saying, ‘Be careful what you pray for. You just might get it.’ And I think that’s what happened.”

But two others strands of the story drew heavy attention: Anthony became sick and the judge held a grocery store worker in contempt for trying to avoid jury duty.

What was the biggest development?

At 5:30 p.m., WESH-Channel 2 highlighted Anthony’s health. “Within the hour, she was led out of the courtroom after seemingly falling ill,” WESH anchor Jim Payne said. “She was breathing heavily, she was pale and needed some assistance walking out of the courtroom. Casey returned to the court about 15 minutes later.”

Central Florida News 13 said Anthony was “dizzy and didn’t feel well.” Adam Longo said, “It was just sort of a random occurrence that took us all by surprise.”

WKMG-Channel 6 anchor Lauren Rowe wanted to know what would happen “if Casey falls apart — she can’t sit during jury selection? Can they go ahead without her?”

WKMG’s Tony Pipitone said they could under certain circumstances. “But Jose Baez didn’t want that to happen. He went out and talked to Casey for a time after she left feeling ill,” Pipitone said. “She soon managed to walk back in the courtroom, as you saw, after that 21-minute break.”

The main business was jury selection. A potential juror was fined $450 after talking to an “In Session” producer about trying to get out of jury duty.

Retired Judge O.H. Eaton, WESH’s legal analyst, explained that fine was serious business. “A contempt citation is a criminal offense and it can be punished up to six months in jail and up to a fine of a thousand dollars or both,” Eaton said. “Judges don’t like to put up with a bunch of shenanigans.”

WKMG-Channel 6’s Tony Pipitone said pleading ignorance was no defense for the grocery worker. “Perry spared him a jail sentence, but ordered the Publix supermarket worker to pay a $450 fine,” Pipitone said. “As he made payment arrangements, he told a clerk, ‘At least I got out of jury duty.’ He did, but at a cost he did not want to talk about.” WKMG showed the worker trying to escape a mob of reporters.

Karen Levey, Perry’s spokeswoman, told WESH’s Bob Kealing that the judge might accept fewer than eight alternate jurors to keep the process moving.

WESH’s Amanda Ober talked to jury consultant Susan Constantine about what the defense and prosecution are looking for in jurors. The defense wants more minorities and men, especially males whose ages range from early 20s to late 30s. “Constantine says young men would be more likely to identify with Casey’s party side and may even find her attractive, thus they’d be less willing to to convict her,” Ober said. The prosecution wants mothers and grandmothers who will be judgmental, Ober said.

In a jury selection discussion on HLN, Vinnie Politan observed that ”women can be mean to women more than men can be mean to women.”

Jean Casarez agreed, saying, “Women may follow this case more than men. I think women talk to men about it in the same household. … You know Casey Anthony is a beautiful girl. And I think especially young men – I can see the defense is more interested in those jurors.”

But you know what they say about beauty. WFTV-Channel 9’s Kathi Belich said, “Today Casey showed up with long bangs, an unkempt ponytail and an unironed shirt,” Belich said.

WFTV legal analyst Bill Sheaffer saw the look as part of the defense strategy: “Worn down from this process of the jury selection and the allegations against her.”

Anthony is charged with first-degree murder in the death of her daughter, Caylee.

http://blogs.orlandosentinel.com/entertainment_tv_tvblog/2011/05/casey-anthony-what-was-the-days-biggest-headline-the-fine-the-homeless-suggestion-or-caseys-falling-ill.html