Imperfect Justice_ Prosecuting Casey Anthony - Jeff Ashton [99]
We filed a motion asking the judge to hold a hearing in chambers to inquire and make sure that whatever deals had been struck, the defendant knew about them and waived any conflict. The defense was furious, and filed the first of many pleadings calling us every despicable thing you can think of. I remember that the judge seemed annoyed that we had raised the issue, but in the end I think he saw the wisdom in the precaution. The court had an obligation to ensure that counsel was free of conflict, so Judge Strickland set it for hearing.
We all went into the jury room on the twenty-third floor of the courthouse. Altogether there were the three of us along with Baez, Casey, Judge Strickland, and the court reporter. First, Judge Strickland inquired about the sale of photos and confirmed that Casey had sold the photos and videos of her daughter to ABC for $200,000, which was being used for her defense. Baez claimed the money did not go directly to him but was eventually deposited in his trust account, saying that his fee was $89,000 and change, and the rest was for expenses.
Baez stated that Baden had a separate contract with Casey directly, but that she had received no money yet. He indicated that he had no deals finalized for right to publication of any story nor did Casey. The judge did not make any more detailed inquiry into potential negotiations, but Casey did confirm the information provided by Baez that she had sold the photos.
I was so disgusted by her at that moment. At the time when the sale had taken place, I was confident that Caylee was already dead and that Casey knew it. What kind of mother would sell pictures of her dead child for profit? I was also upset with ABC for participating in such checkbook journalism. I would have liked to inquire further about potential deals being cut, but clearly the judge felt that was enough and was not in the mood to press further. Ultimately, I was satisfied that we had done all we could to avoid that potential land mine.
When Baez and company finally ran out of money in March 2010, and Casey was found indigent, it was clear that the State was not going to pay expenses for out-of-state attorneys to travel. We suspected that Baden would probably bail out, but to her credit, she stayed on through the completion of the depositions of the forensic experts, and finally withdrew in October 2010.
EVERY TIME A NEW ATTORNEY joined the defense team, Baez touted him or her as having special expertise, whether it was in forensics, cross-examination, or procedure. The media ate it up. It seemed as though everyone who hooked up with the defense was suddenly anointed a great lawyer and part of the “dream team.” But O. J. Simpson’s, this defense was not.
Perhaps the strangest entrant to the case was Todd Macaluso, a personal injury shark from California. As required of any attorney from another state who is not a member of the Florida Bar, Macaluso filed a motion seeking the court’s permission to enter pro hac vice, or “for this occasion.” These are motions by lawyers who have not been admitted to practice in a certain jurisdiction, but are allowed to participate in particular cases. In the filing, Macaluso was required to state that he was a member of the California Bar, in good standing, without discipline pending.
He filed that form making that declaration, but Linda went online with the California Bar and discovered that he was under investigation for some questionable acts with clients’ money. One of our local reporters also discovered this, and asked Baez about it before we could spring it on them in court. Macaluso filed a corrected pleading, blaming his secretary for the oversight. Judge Strickland let him be involved in the case despite the pending investigation.
Later on, at the indigency hearing where we learned that the defense was out of money, we also found out that Macaluso had bought his way into the case by giving the defense $70,000. In truth, he had very