Search for Caylee Continues -- Online
Helpful Volunteers and Bloggers or Interfering Vigilantes?
Search Tips Can Cause Problems
According to police, though, so far none of these searches have turned up any useful information related to the case."I know we had items found throughout this incident," Solomons said. "To the best of my knowledge, none of those items have been associated with Caylee or Casey."
Despite that, authorities aren't exactly asking these search groups to back off, either. Instead, the deputies that Locke and other searchers have interacted with have issued certain rules, according to Locke.
He said police told them not to touch any evidence they think might be related to the case, but to flag it and call investigators immediately.
"Our intentions are not to interfere or cause problems for the case," Locke said. "They have our information. If they want us to stop, they know how to get in touch with us and tell us to stop."
Larry Garrison, a spokesman for the Anthony family, maintains that volunteer participation is extremely important.
"We desperately need more people looking for her," he said.
Wilson insists that the search group is extremely careful to not touch anything, to watch where they step and mark perimeters with ribbons. When they find something, they take photos.
"We're observant of everything around us," she said. "We know we can trust each other."
That careful observation, along with some type of coordination with authorities, is essential to ensure that the crime scenes are not contaminated, according to Thomas Mauriello, a forensics expert and criminology professor at the University of Maryland.
"If, in fact, these people could help in searching areas that [authorities] couldn't have the resources to do, then they could be helpful," Mauriello said. "The key is to give them some very quick information -- in the event that you see something that might be evidence, not to touch it."
Still, he expressed doubt about how civilians might handle certain situations that even the professionals can sometimes botch. Defense attorneys in the O.J. Simpson case blasted police for allowing too many officers into a crime scene; too many people involved in a search -- cops or otherwise -- can contaminate a crime scene, he said.
"God forbid they saw a body and have 25 people surrounding where the body is, because that's where your evidence is," he said. "The key is ensuring that evidence is not lost."
But Wilson says her group is not looking for a body, but clues.
"We're not giving up on the fact that she could be alive and someone's got her," she said. "It's not good, but until it's definite, I'm going to hold out every possibility. I'm going to try to be positive. The more positivity we have, the better."
Nancy Quade from ABC News Research contributed to this report.
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