Monday, August 22, 2016

Melissa Calusinski: Illinois; Bulletin; CBS News reports on Friday's hearing; "With bombshell testimony Calusinski dares to dream of freedom."..." Calusinski isn’t just sad. She is angry, she says. In a “48 Hours” interview this week, she reacted to word that a key prosecution witness may have lied during her murder trial. “I just can’t believe people like that could get away with something like what he did,” she says. Dr. Manuel Montez testified that he’d examined and felt the skull fracture. But a deputy coroner testified Montez never examined the body, and experts say enhanced X-rays show there was no skull fracture. The bombshell offered hope. Calusinski dares to imagine freedom."..."Friday, her attorney said the cards were stacked against Calusinski when her defense team was given JPEG copies of X-rays that were unreadable, instead of a better version that shows there is no skull fracture. “There was a manipulation done of the images,” defense attorney Kathleen Zellner says. The state tried to show the defense team didn’t view them correctly or reach out for help with the software." Reporter Roseanne Tellez;


"Attorneys on Friday continued sparring in court over whether Melissa Calusinski deserves a new trial in the 2011 death of a toddler at a daycare center. CBS 2’s Roseanne Tellez reports from Lake County Court. Calusinski isn’t just sad. She is angry, she says. In a “48 Hours” interview this week, she reacted to word that a key prosecution witness may have lied during her murder trial. “I just can’t believe people like that could get away with something like what he did,” she says. Dr. Manuel Montez testified that he’d examined and felt the skull fracture. But a deputy coroner testified Montez never examined the body, and experts say enhanced X-rays show there was no skull fracture. The bombshell offered hope. Calusinski dares to imagine freedom. “I would be the happiest person,” she says. “I’d just cry.” Friday, her attorney said the cards were stacked against Calusinski when her defense team was given JPEG copies of X-rays that were unreadable, instead of a better version that shows there is no skull fracture. “There was a manipulation done of the images,” defense attorney Kathleen Zellner says. The state tried to show the defense team didn’t view them correctly or reach out for help with the software. Who will the judge believe? What if it’s not the defense? “I would be very crushed, sad,” Calusinski says. “But I know it’s not the end just quite yet.” The hearing continues Sept. 16 with an independent expert weighing in on those X-rays. The Lake County coroner has said the little boy died from a prior injury, aggravated by his habit of head banging."
http://chicago.cbslocal.com/2016/08/19/with-bombshell-testimony-calusinski-dares-to-dream-of-freedom/