The Two Faces of Casey Anthony

The judge in the Casey Anthony trial recently gave an interview about his experience presiding over the most famous criminal trial since OJ. He talked about the two faces of Casey Anthony and expressed his shock over the lack of a conviction in the case. He was stunned when he read the verdict and actually had to re-read it because he couldn't believe it. He felt that although it was circumstantial, there was plenty of reasons to convict. The other thing he talked about was Casey herself. The sad victim that she portrayed when the jury was present was far different from the cursing, demanding woman she was when the jury left the room. Casey Anthony knew just what she was doing. There is no doubt in my mind that Casey was guilty of something that should have put her behind bars. There's got to be at least 100 reasons why I feel that way. Why didn't that jury see them? It seems to me that they looked for proof-positive of her guilt and overlooked or misunderstood exactly what "circumstantial" evidence is. People have been convicted with less. People who didn't murder their innocent toddler. Casey Anthony is living in a prison of sorts. She'll be 30 years old in a few years and what is her life like? She cannot go out in public freely. She doesn't have a job or any kind of career. Although she does have supporters out there (there are wack-jobs everywhere), she certainly will never ever have anything resembling normalcy. Is that punishment enough? Well...it is all the punishment she will receive in this lifetime. Maybe we can learn a lesson from the judge's story about what really went on behind the scenes. Being a juror has got to be a difficult thing to do but maybe people have to educate themselves better about our legal system and what constitutes guilt. Had the jurors on the Casey Anthony trial asked more questions perhaps the outcome would have been different. Maybe Caylee would have had justice.

Bankruptcy and the Kindness of Strangers

During the Casey Anthony trial there were a handful of people who stood outside the courtroom and held signs that offered support to Casey. Perhaps they believed her story that Caylee had drowned and they were able to explain away why Casey lied about it. The trial is long over, Casey Anthony is "free" but her life is far from easy or normal. Recently Casey declared bankruptcy, in part to clear her debt to Jose Baez the man who defended her. I guess he doesn't mind so much if she never pays his bill; he did get plenty of exposure and a book deal out of it. What puzzles me is how Casey manages to live. I mean, who is paying her way through life? Reports say that Casey relies on donations and the kindness of strangers. I get it. There are some people out there who possibly feel that they can "relate" to Casey Anthony. Their own history of abuse may make them vulnerable to a manipulator like Casey who claims that the abuse suffered at the hand of her father is part of the reason why she is such a troubled young woman. Casey isn't talking and even years after the trial there is no tell-all book. The bankruptcy trustee wants the rights to any book deals that Casey might have in the future in order to pay her debts. Does anyone really think that in time Caylee will be forgotten? This poor innocent child was the victim of a household that is incapable of telling the truth. Years later I am still sure that maybe Cindy Anthony did not know the truth when she found out Caylee was missing but she knows the truth now. This dirty family secret will go with them to their graves and maybe someday someone will claim to know the truth but like the mystery surrounding famous deaths, we will never know for sure. A court of her peers found Casey Anthony not guilty but only because the state rushed to charge her. Had they any real evidence Casey might be in jail. The media attention surrounding the disappearance and subsequent discovery of Caylee's remains demanded the State of Florida to take action. Unfortunately they dropped the ball. Does Casey deserve to have a life free of suspicion, hate and finger-pointing? The jury is out on that one. Will she ever be able to have a job or anything that resembles a "normal" life? Probably not. The image of the sweet little toddler whose life was taken too soon is one that many will not forget. She was our child, grandchild, neighbor. The dysfunction of who the Anthony's are was reality television that shocked us but we couldn't stop tuning in to the latest details in the sorry saga. Have the Anthony's gone on with their lives? Not much is said about them these days. Maybe we are beginning to heal and the anger is diminishing. Meanwhile Casey continues to live in the shadows relying on the kindness of strangers. Her life pretty much ended once she was set free. I guess there is judgment after all.

Casey Anthony Bankruptcy

Casey Anthony, who has been all but in seclusion since being found not guilty in her daughter's death, has now declared bankruptcy. This doesn't come as a huge surprise to any Casey watcher. Over the past year Casey has been hiding out somewhere in Florida as her probation wouldn't allow for her to leave the state. So what has Casey been doing since she was found not guilty of killing her daughter Caylee? According to some reports, Casey took classes online and received counselling for her multiple "issues". Now I know that a jury of her "peers" found her not guilty of wrongdoing in the death of her precious daughter but you'd be hard-pressed to find very many people who feel that Casey Anthony is innocent. What becomes of Casey Anthony now? It is hard to say. Declaring bankruptcy absolves her of debts she incurred but after bankruptcy she is going to have to earn a living somehow or find someone who is willing to support her. I doubt that her father George Anthony wants the job after she accused him of molesting her and taking part in hiding Caylee's death. Children (sadly) go missing every day in the United States but the story of Caylee Anthony was so much more than a missing child who was later found dead. The family dynamics of the Anthony family and Casey Anthony herself fed the cable news stations need to exploit. It caused many in the state of Florida to become outraged and demand the truth from the Anthony family. It was like a bad reality tv show but it was real and that is where the tragedy lies. Little Caylee Anthony died under mysterious circumstances and we will never know what really happened. Casey Anthony will live the rest of her life with the notoriety of this hanging over her head - some might say she deserves that - and her parents will forever be known as being torn between advocates for their granddaughter and trying to stand by their daughter whose lies make it hard to know when she tells the truth. In the aftermath of Caylee's death, new laws were signed that would make it a crime to not report a missing child within 24 hours. Part of what outraged so many is how Caylee was missing for a month before the authorities were contacted. In her defense, Jose Baez claimed that there was no need to report Caylee missing as she died the last day she was seen. Again, believing this version of what really happened to Caylee would mean you would have to believe Casey Anthony. In the years since this tragedy occurred, all anyone could hope for is that Casey gets the obvious mental health counselling that she needs because no one can stop her from becoming a mother again someday. It is too late to save Caylee but maybe the justice will be that the Anthony family's lives will never be free.