Casey Anthony 'Suffocation' Search Results Left Out of Evidence at Trial
Police involved in the Casey Anthony case have revealed that they failed to notice search terms on the then 22-year-old mother's computer, which included search results for suffocation instructions.
The Florida sheriff's office that investigated Caylee Anthony's death stated in a new report that it overlooked a computer search made from Caylee's home on the day that she disappeared.
"Orange County sheriff's Capt. Angelo Nieves said Sunday that the office's computer investigator missed a June 16, 2008, Google search for fool-proof suffocation methods," USA Today has reported.
The report added that the search was conducted on a browser that was "primarily used" by Casey Anthony.
Caylee Anthony was last seen on June 16th, 2008. The two-year old's body was found 6 months later. Her mother drew suspicion after failing to immediately report that the child had gone missing. She was also tried in court for providing false information to police officers.
In July 2011 Casey Anthony was found not guilty of first degree murder, aggravated child abuse, and aggravated manslaughter of a child, causing public outrage. It was later criticized that the jury had misunderstood "reasonable doubt."
Jose Baez later wrote about the "foolproof suffocation" search in his book, "Presumed Guilty, Casey Anthony: The Inside Story," and police acknowledged that the search term never came up in court. Baez represented Anthony throughout the trial. Baez also later noted that he was "surprised" the term never came up.
The cause of Caylee Anthony's death was listed as undetermined. In court police argued that chloroform had been used, however they were allegedly unaware of the "fool-proof suffocation" term that had been searched.
Prosecutors Linda Drane Burdick said "it's just a shame we didn't have it," while speaking with WKMG news. "This certainly would have put the accidental death claim in serious question."
Baez criticized the report before it aired in an interview with the Sentinel, according to USA Today, describing it as "the standard anti-Casey spin."