On day 15 of Casey Anthony?s murder trial, a forensic anthropologist showed a video demonstrating how Caylee Anthony could have died with duct tape over her nose and mouth.
Dr. Michael Warren, an anthropology professor at the University of Florida, presented a video simulation of Caylee?s face dissolving into a skull with duct tape on it Thursday afternoon.
The video simulation, which Warren created with the prosecution, shows a photo of Caylee?s face superimposed over her skull, with a scale diagram of the duct tape and how it was found over the skull over that. The photo of Caylee?s face slowly dissolves to show the skull with the duct tape.
Warren said he used Photoshop files and turned them into a Quicktime video.
Warren said the purpose of the video is to demonstrate that it?s possible the duct tape was wrapped around Caylee?s mouth and nose, which the state has said is how Caylee died.
The video was shown to the courtroom without the jury present and, despite objections from the defense, Perry decided it could be shown to the jury under the limitation that jurors are reminded the evidence is used only to illustrate the expert?s opinion.
?Experts are like all witnesses, with one exception: The law allows experts to give his or her opinion,? Perry told the jurors.
Perry said it is up to the jurors if they believe a witness; testimony.
Local 6 reporter Tony Pipitone, who was in the courtroom, said the jurors watched the video closely, and many appeared saddened.
During cross-examination, lead defense attorney Jose Baez pointed out that the video is only a suggestion of how Caylee could have died. Warren said he is not testifying that this is definitely how Caylee died, just that it is a possibility.
Before Warren, the sate called Garavaglia, the chief medical examiner for Orange/Osceola counties.
Garavaglia explained that her colleague Dr. Gary Utz began the process of collecting and examining the remains because she was out of town and would not return until the next day.
Garavaglia showed a photo of a Winnie the Pooh blanket found at the scene where the bones were found.
In Garavaglia?s autopsy, she concluded that Caylee?s manner of death was homicide, but she did not determine a cause of death.
On Friday, Garavaglia specified the cause of death as the "specific injury or disease that ultimately causes the death."
"The cause of death was homicide was homicide of undetermined means. I believe we can reliably say it's a homicide, but I don't know the means for which that homicide occurred," Garavaglia said.
Garavaglia said three factors contributed to her conclusion that Caylee's death was a homicide. First, Caylee was not reported missing. She said an accidental death, such as drowning, would have been reported. Second, the Caylee's body was hidden, and finally, there was a presence of duct tape on Caylee's face.
When asked if there was anything found near the body that could have caused Caylee's death, Garavaglia said there were two options, but she could not speculate based on the remains.
"If that duct tape was over the nose and mouth, that's a possibility. Suffocation with a plastic bag was the only other thing I saw," Garavaglia said.
Garavaglia said a child could die from an excessive dose of chloroform. Traces of the chemical were found in car and air samples taken from the trunk of Anthony's car.
"I believe it's scientifically defensible to say it's a homicide, but I do not believe we have enough scientific information to say the means that that homicide occurred," Garavaglia said.
Garavaglia said that there was no noticeable trauma to Caylee's bones, but it is impossible to know if there was trauma to her tissue.
"It's very difficult, when the body is that decomposed, to say why they died," Garavaglia said.
As testimony about the remains of Caylee Anthony continued for a second day Friday, Casey Anthony broke down in tears and had to be comforted by one of her attorneys.
Like Thursday, Anthony became emotional while listening to state witnesses testify, crying and taking deep breaths. She kept a tissue to her mouth and nose for much of the testimony and did not look at photos being shown to the jury.

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