Casey Anthony's Murder Trial Will Likely Be Delayed

The March murder trial date for Orlando mother Casey Anthony will likely be delayed.

Circuit Court Judge Stan Strickland said Friday he would rule on the trial date later and granted a request by Anthony's defense team to inspect the crime scene where the remains of her 2-year-old daughter Caylee were found.

He denied a defense motion to remove prosecutors from the Anthony trial.

Caylee's death was declared a homicide after her bones were discovered in December in a wooded area close to the family's home. Anthony, 22, is charged with killing the child.

Strickland set another trial status hearing for late February or early March to weigh when the criminal proceedings can begin. Attorneys on both sides said the trial likely won't take place until later this year.

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Anthony's lead lawyer Jose Baez told the judge that he intended to seek a change of venue because of the publicity the case has generated in Orlando.

Strickland said he would consider the change of venue motion after the paperwork is filed and a hearing is set. Moving the trial out of Orlando might not be necessary if the trial doesn't begin by the end of the year, according to the judge.

"We want her to have her day in court," Baez said after the hearing. "She is innocent and wants her day in court."

Anthony has been ordered to appear at all hearings before her trial, despite efforts by her lawyers to waive her obligation to come to court because of the "media circus" surrounding the case. Strickland on Thursday struck down Baez's latest attempt to stop Anthony's court appearances.

Anthony came to Friday's hearing in a business suit, not prison garb, and without shackles or handcuffs as she has in prior court appearances. She scribbled notes and whispered to her attorney during the proceedings. At one point, she and Baez chuckled about something they were writing.

Her parents, George and Cindy Anthony, were not in court, but their attorney Brad Conway was.

Among other matters Strickland considered at the Friday morning hearing were the state's request to strike the defense's witness list — which the prosecution said was moot — and an emergency motion that the State Attorney's Office be recused from the case.

The motion alleged that someone in the prosecutor's office in Orlando filed a complaint with the Florida Bar against Baez in an effort to interfere with her right to effective counsel.

The motion also alleged that the complaint was an attempt to taint a potential jury pool and that the case should be taken from the State Attorney's Office in Orlando and given to the Office of State Attorney General.

Strickland ruled there was no evidence that Anthony's rights had been violated.

Strickland decided to rule later on the defense's request to have access to the records of Texas Equusearch volunteers who helped look for Caylee.

An attorney for the search group, Mark NeJame, called the request a "fishing expedition" and told the judge he didn't have jurisdiction to issue a subpoena for the records because the search group was based in Texas, not Florida. None of the volunteer searchers were in the exact spot where Caylee's remains were found, NeJame said.

The judge was expected to rule on the request by late Friday.

Texas Equusearch organized hundreds of volunteers to search areas in Orlando, including an area near where Caylee's remains were eventually found.

The case has been marked by dramatic twists and turns and intense media scrutiny.

Last week, Caylee's grandfather George Anthony was hospitalized after disappearing and then sending messages saying he wanted to end his life. Police found him despondent and in a motel room.

Casey Anthony is behind bars, charged with first-degree murder and other offenses. Caylee's skull, bones and clothing were found in a bag by a local water meter reader; the skull had duct tape and a heart sticker around the mouth.

Anthony has maintained that she last saw her little girl when she left her with a baby sitter in June. The child wasn't reported missing until July. Police say the story about the nanny is part of Anthony's intricate web of lies.

Click here for more on this story from MyFOXOrlando.com.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.