ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. -- New numbers show the case against Casey Anthony will cost the courts more than $360,000, according to a report in the Orlando Sentinel.
Most of that money will cover sequestering the jury.The hotel bill for 12 jurors and eight alternates is expected to cost more than $125,000 and close to $50,000 will go toward meals.
Transportation, security, juror wages, and miscellaneous expenses are expected to cost more than $170,000.
STATE FILES RESPONSE OVER HAIR EVIDENCE IN CASEY CASE
The state filed its response Wednesday to a defense motion trying to keep key evidence about a hair found in Casey Anthony's car trunk out of court.
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READ: State's Response On Hair Evidence
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A hair in the trunk did show signs of decomposition, but the defense says there's not enough "science" to back up that claim.
Prosecutors submitted more than 300 pages of case law to back their claims.
The judge still has to rule on the issue.
DOCUMENT RAISES QUESTIONS ABOUT EVIDENCE IN CASEY CASE
A newly released report (read it) shows Casey Anthony’s defense is trying to claim the Orange County medical examiner botched Caylee Anthony's autopsy.
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READ: Defense Dr. On Caylee Autopsy
VIDEO REPORT: Defense: Autopsy Was Botched
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The defense is trying to prove that the duct tape on Caylee's mouth was placed there after Casey was already in jail.
Casey's defense team is working hard to discredit the Orange County medical examiner Dr. Jan Garavalia and her findings of Caylee's autopsy.
“Many have tried to discredit her, few if any have been successful,” said WFTV’s legal analyst Bill Scheaffer.
The defense hired their own expert Werner Spitz, a Michigan forensic pathologist, to perform another autopsy. He questioned the timing of when the duct tape was placed over Caylee's mouth.
“The defense is also trying to attack the integrity of the crime scene and implying that the body was placed there after Casey was in jail, that the duct tape was placed on Caylee after Casey was in jail,” said Scheaffer.
Spitz claimed he didn't find any of Caylee's DNA on the duct tape that was supposed to be attached to her hair.
This statement contradicts the Orange County medical examiner's findings. But Scheaffer said this argument may not be enough to convince a jury.
“I don't believe that this in and of itself is going to be enough to raise reasonable doubt,” he said.
The defense's doctor also said the cause of Caylee's death is undetermined and that there's no scientific evidence it was murder.
ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. -- The Orange County Sheriff's Office is mourning the deaths of two deputies that died within just days of each other.
Homicide detective 48-year-old Michael Erikson collapsed and died Wednesday night. The department was already reeling from the death of 40-year-old Deputy Sebastian Diana over the weekend.
Orange County Sheriff Jerry Demings said his deputies are shaken to the core about the deaths. Both men were on the force for more than a decade and were very well-liked and highly respected.
“He was a very neighborly guy, very outgoing, very well respected here within our organization,” said Demings.
On Wednesday, Erickson collapsed while playing racquetball with a neighbor at the YMCA aquatic center off International Drive.
Erickson worked for the sheriff's department for 13 years and was set to testify in the Casey Anthony murder trial. Erickson was the first detective to interview Lee Anthony in 2008 and also interviewed Casey's neighbor, who loaned her a shovel during the time Caylee was missing.
WFTV’s legal analyst Bill Sheaffer says any statements detective Erickson made before his death can be used at trial.
“The state can use his deposition as substantive evidence as though he was there in person,” said Sheaffer.
Just days before Erickson’s death, the sheriff's office lost Diana, who contracted a bacterial infection after giving a 3-month-old mouth-to-mouth resuscitation back in 2006.
The child didn't make it and Diana was sick off and on for the past few years. Family members said his heart finally gave out.
“In many ways the life he was trying to save may have caused his own life,” said Demings. “That's what law enforcement officers do. They put themselves in harm's way every day and that's what it's all about.”
Because he died in the line of duty, Diana’s family will receive a portion of his pay and benefits for life.
Both men leave behind a wife and children.
