Casey Anthony Trial: It's Pinellas County

The guessing is over: it's Pinellas County. Although most experts say the best jurors are males who know little of this case, because there is little to defend Casey with, it may be that the best strategy is to find jurors who feel empathy...

not with Casey,

not with Cindy or George,

but jurors who feel sorry for Jose Baez

He will be front and center of the defense non-strategy.

The defense will want jurors who are easily bored and distracted, with low attention spans, low IQ, and who may perceive Baez as the "David" versus the State's "Goliath."

As prosecution presents circumstantial evidence, there is little the defense can say as rebuttal. But when the state presents scientific evidence, Baez can hope for jurors who will quickly be lost and even annoyed by the science. Expect to hear him ridicule the science (remember "junk science"?) rather than counter. Defense experts cost money and the defense was all about saving money for themselves.

Look for questions about background and look for Judge Perry to grow very impatient with Baez sinking every single juror that Prosecution gives the thumbs up to.


The Defense wants a juror with ADHD who hears "blah, blah, blah" when the prosecution talks about the chloroform, air science, and death bands.

We will cover any of Baez' statements this evening. .

ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. -- The search for the 12 jurors and 8 alternates who will sit in Central Florida's highest profile murder trial in decades is set to begin in Pinellas County, WFTV learned Monday. The jury selection location will be in Clearwater. Chief Judge Belvin Perry kept the location secret until early Monday morning.

Most people around the state know something about the Casey case. That's part of the challenge in locating an impartial jury.

Casey is accused of murdering her 2-year-old daughter, Caylee Marie Anthony, putting the body in the trunk of her car, and then discarding it near their home.

WFTV’s jury expert Dr. Randy Fisher said Casey's defense team will work to find potential jurors who've heard as little media coverage about the case as possible.
"It typically tends to create a perception of guilt in the defendant, since most of the media coverage tends to come from the prosecution,” said Fisher.

"You don't get the best juror, you get the best juror you can, because a whole lot of other jurors would be much worse,” said WFTV’s legal analyst Bill Sheaffer.
Everyone will be on alert for jurors who want media attention---to write a book on the trial.

He said jury experts are critical to capital cases.
Fisher profiled the type of juror the defense should look for.

"The ideal potential juror would be a male who doesn't know much about the case, and hasn't discussed the case,” said Fisher.

An ideal juror for the defense should mildly oppose the death penalty, but not so much that they're disqualified. The defense also does not want jurors with prior experience on a jury, Fisher said.

"There's something about going through the jury process that changes one and makes one more conviction prone,” said Fisher.
He said the state's ideal juror is a woman who knows about the case and has been on a jury before.

"Women are primarily responsible for child rearing and tend to react negatively to the facts of Caylee's death,” said Fisher.

this is the standard thinking of jury selection on mothers that kill.  However, it may be that Baez seeks out females who view him as the underdog:  females without children.  He may seek female jurors who have come from difficult backgrounds and who appear to have not overcome.  About the last thing he wants is a female who was exploited, only to overcome and become a success in life; either career success or maternal success;  this would be the worst possible juror.  Baez will seek the lowest possible denominator to counter the Prosecution's scientific evidence.


Once a jury is selected, jurors will be transported to Orange County to begin trial proceedings. Casey's trial is expected to last two months, possibly longer.

Chief Judge Belvin Perry still hasn't announced whether air tests that prosecutors said prove Caylee's body was in Casey's car trunk will be admitted into trial.
WFTV will be covering the Casey Anthony trial everyday, from every angle. Stay with WFTV and WFTV.com for the latest developments.