Casey Anthony's Attorney Grills Investigators

Casey Anthony's Attorney Grills Investigators

Posted: 12:25 pm EDT April 3, 2009
Updated: 6:49 pm EDT April 3, 2009

ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. -- Casey Anthony's defense lawyer questioned more witnesses in the case Friday. They include two sheriff's office investigators and the supervisor of the county meter reader, who found Caylee's remains.

BAEZ TALKS ON 4/3: Before Depositions | After Depositions
VIDEO REPORT: Sheriff's Investigators Questioned

The defense is focusing on the sheriff's office investigation of Zenaida Gonzalez, the Orange County meter reader's tip in August about the scene where Caylee was found four months later, and meter reader Roy Kronk, who went back to what he says was the exact same spot in December, once the flood waters had receded, and found Caylee.

Sheriff's investigator Awilda McBryde is the one who investigated Casey Anthony's computer and found only one reference to Zenaida Gonzalez. It was a keyword search of Zenaida on July 16, the day after Casey had told a 911 operator that the babysitter, named Zenaida Fernandez Gonzalez, had taken off with Caylee a month earlier.

"The defense might try to say Casey wasn't developing her defense, but in fact doing a search to locate her," WFTV legal analyst Bill Sheaffer told Eyewitness News.

Investigator McBryde said she never found any photographs, video, email or any other communication with a Zenaida Gonzalez on that computer. McBryde is also the investigator who met with Zenaida Gonzalez of Kissimmee, who had been to the Sawgrass Apartments the day after Caylee disappeared. The Sawgrass apartment complex is where Casey says she last saw Caylee with Zenaida.

McBryde showed that Zenaida photos of Casey and Caylee and Zenaida said she had never seen the mother and daughter and never met them.

The defense, though, won't get specific about what information it's looking for in Friday's depositions.

"I hope to accomplish getting to the truth. That's all I can tell you," Baez said before the depositions Friday morning (watch raw video).

"Hasn't Casey told you the truth?" WFTV reporter Kathi Belich asked.

"I want to find out what investigators know. That's part of the whole story," Baez replied.

The defense also questioned Deputy Jerold White, who signed off on meter reader Roy Kronk's tip about finding something suspicious in August at the exact same area where he found Caylee in December. Deputy White had closed out the tip without action after it came in from Crimeline, writing August 14 in his notes that "the area has been searched" after checking with Detective Yuri Melich. Actually it hadn't been checked until the next day and then for less than a half hour by another deputy who is now under investigation.

The defense might try to argue Caylee's body wasn't there, even though a botanist has told investigators the plant growth in the spot where Caylee's remains were found shows she had been there at least since August.

"We have our own botanist looking at that and I've looked at the investigators' reports and we plan to address that in court and I believe we will be able to do that," Baez said Friday afternoon.

The defense also questioned Kronk's supervisor, Alex Roberts, under oath Friday. Roberts trained Kronk and was the first one Kronk called on December 11 after he had found a small skull hidden in a trash bag.

There will be even more action in the case next week. More documents are expected to be released that should show Deputy Michael Cain's first statements to
homicide investigators. He's the Orange County deputy who was called to the crime scene a full month before Caylee's body was found.

Also, on Thursday, lawyers plan to question Casey's parents in the civil lawsuit against Casey.

http://www.wftv.com/news/19086937/detail.html