Clearwater Just the Right Change of Venue to Find Jurors for the Casey Anthony Trial

Well, it happened.

Judge Belvin Perry, Jr. got what he wanted.

It may have taken nearly two weeks but 12 jurors and a handful of alternates were selected in Pinellas to decide the fate of an Orlando mother accused of killing her daughter.

The case against Casey Anthony is set to begin today in the Orange County Courthouse in Orlando.

Anthony, 25, is accused of killing her daughter Caylee, 2, in 2008. The case has drawn national attention since then.

Perry, a Ninth Judicial Circuit Judge, set a change of venue for jury selection because of the national attention the case has drawn and has potentially tainted the jury pool in the Orlando area.

And while media outlets from across the country descended on the Pinellas County Courthouse in Clearwater for the last two weeks, it still was business as usual at the hub of the sixth judicial circuit.

An administrative order was issued banning the use of electronic devices at the courthouse while jury selection was going on. This included cell phones, cameras, digital voice recorders and laptops.

And even as more than 200 potential jurors and nearly 100 members of the media streamed through the courthouse, traffic was not a problem and neither was finding a parking spot, according to courthouse officials.

Pinellas County Sheriff’s deputies were able to direct people to additional parking, according to Ron Stuart, spokesman for the court.

Judge Perry sought the change in venue becuase of the media attention. And it seemed like finding a jury 100 miles east was, at times, mission impossible.

But after more than 200 juror interviews, 12 were chosen and so were five alternates. They will spend up to eight weeks sequestered in Orlando.

But this is not the first time Pinellas was the site of a change of venue.

The Gateway Murders trial against Fred Cooper is the most recent case heard in Clearwater court from another district, according to Gay Inskeep, trial court administrator.

Cooper murdered Michelle and Steven Andrews, both 28, at their Gateway home in south Lee county. Cooper supposedly was in a jealous rage after finding out Steven was having an affair with his girlfriend Kellie Ballew.

Cooper shot Steven in the head then suffocated Michelle Dec. 27, 2005. 

The love triangle case got national attention also because it was thought that the Andrews' toddler Lucasz called 911. 

After three days of deliberations, the jury was at an impasse. The judge called a mistrial Oct. 17, 2008.

Prosecutors then sought a change of venue.

Soon a new trial convened at the courthouse in Clearwater. A Pinellas jury found Cooper guilty March 3, 2009.

It took them six hours to come to the decision.