What Were The Jurors Thinking?
I have looked at the evidence with an open mind. I have listened to each witness testify. I have read every document released to the public. I didn’t think of the rumors or supposed facts that have not been proven. When the jury received their instructions I thought it would be days before they would announce that they had reached a verdict. When they came back after 11 hours of deliberation, with no questions for the judge, and without requesting to see any of the evidence, I was sure like most of America that the verdict was guilty. After the Not Guilty verdict on the first count I thought surely the other two counts had to be Guilty.
Casey Anthony will walk out of jail with a mere slap on the wrist. She lied to law enforcement. I still cannot believe that this is the best the jury could do. Without allowing anything I have previously read and written about to come into my mind, I still cannot put myself in that deliberation room and even lean toward not guilty.
When one juror began to give interviews I was shaking my head. He wasn’t even in deliberations yet was the first to speak. I found that quite amusing as he was being asked what his vote would have been. They may as well have asked me. Then juror #3 came out and again I am shaking my head. ” We don’t think she is innocent” What does that mean? Now a few more have come forward and each has offered a little more insight into what went on in that room.
- The initial vote was 6-6
- While they do not believe she is innocent they do not think she acted alone.
- Without reviewing weeks and weeks of testimony they were able to come together and collectively decide that the evidence just didn’t show that Casey Anthony killed her daughter
- The jury foreman was sick to his stomach signing the papers for the verdict because he didn’t believe she was innocent and he didn’t want his signature on the paper with hers.
- The notebooks provided to them during the trial to jot down notes to refer to during deliberation were left on their chairs when deliberations began
- The second day of deliberations the entire jury came in dressed in suits and dresses. This tells me eleven hours wasn’t even necessary as they seemed to know that they would be ready to give their verdict that day.
While I know our justice system is the greatest system, I am saddened that these 12 jurors seemed more concerned with getting back to their lives than achieving justice for Caylee. When jury selection was going on each potential juror was aware that they would be sequestered for a time frame of approximately two months. At that time they had the opportunity to let the judge know if it would create a hardship, or if it was something they could not do.
I am sure in the beginning they were intrigued to be called for this case. No matter how many of them stated that they knew nothing of this case, if you use a computer, read a newspaper or engage in conversation at work or in public, I would find it hard to believe that the names Casey Anthony or Caylee Anthony are names they never heard. One juror admitted that his wife followed the case in it’s entirety. With that statement I cannot believe that this man never heard anything about this case. Whether my husband wanted to hear it or not ( Most times not) he heard a lot about Casey, Caylee, George, Cindy, and Lee. Another juror stated that she could never pass judgement on another. When the prosecution tried to have her removed the judge refused. I don’t understand this as this to me screams “I don’t care what she did, I will never find that she is guilty.
In the aftermath of the verdict one juror has left her job stating that she was harassed constantly. Yet last night when being interviewed she stated that ” she is a scrappy girl and has no fear”
What I find amusing I guess is the fact that these jurors do not have to give their names, or talk to the media at all. The judge refused to reveal their names and they were told that they have no obligation to reveal themselves. Yet one by one they are revealing themselves to the media. This to me seems like they are looking for their 15 minutes of fame.
What Lies Ahead for Casey Anthony?
She has been found not guilty. She is free to walk away on Sunday. She can never be tried again for the murder of her daughter. She, according to the letter of the law is an everyday citizen like any of us. BUT:
- WHERE CAN CASEY GO WITHOUT BEING IN DANGER OF THOSE SEEKING VIGILANTE JUSTICE?
- HOW DO YOU RE BUILD A RELATIONSHIP WITH YOUR FAMILY AFTER THE CLAIMS AGAINST THEM THAT SHE MADE?
- EVEN THOUGH IT HAS BEEN SAID THAT SHE WILL BE LEAVING ORLANDO IMMEDIATELY, WHERE CAN SHE TRULY GO THAT SHE WILL NOT BE RECOGNIZED?
- WITH NO FORM OF INCOME HOW LONG WILL IT TAKE FOR HER TO ACCEPT AN OFFER FROM THE MEDIA THAT WILL POTENTIALLY PAY HER THOUSANDS, AN OFFER FROM A PUBLISHER THAT COULD PAY HER MILLIONS, OR A PRODUCER THAT COULD EQUALLY PAY MILLIONS?
Anyone who has followed this case knows that Casey never got tired of being in the media. Whether it was coming to and from the lawyers office with her big sunglasses, looking out the window of her home counting the media trucks or standing next to her lawyer tearing up when he described how hard this has been on her. Although she has been advised by her attorney and his team to not give interviews or consider any deals, I feel that the temptation of the money along with the fame is one Casey will not be able to resist for long.
HOW DO GEORGE AND CINDY ANTHONY HEAL?
The Anthony’s have been many things to the public over the course of the last three years. At times we saw them as grieving grandparents, protective parents, and other times we saw them as two people who were intentionally obstructing the investigation. We saw them blatantly lie, scream to anyone who would listen that their daughter could not and would not do this to their grand daughter. They were combative at times, and yet in the end we saw them broken.
George and I spoke through email very briefly in the beginning and he was very likeable. He was a grandpa in every sense of the word. He was a cop who wanted to know what happened to his grand daughter. He was a father who didn’t want to believe his daughter could be responsible for something so horrifying and evil. I saw him as the only one in the family who was not making excuses, who wanted to find out the truth, and who wasn’t so sure of his daughters innocence. Then one day there he was standing next to Cindy who wasn’t so well liked by the public because it seemed she was doing anything possible to protect Casey. He was echoing all the things Cindy said and I sat in awe thinking what happened to him? Cindy was not well received by the public as she had no problem making excuses for Casey. It at times seemed like she knew what happened possibly and was covering for Casey. She contradicted herself many times and became very combative with the media, the public, law enforcement and anyone else who didn’t believe in Casey’s innocence. Lee in the beginning seemed to be the one who wanted answers. He didn’t coddle Casey as the rest of the family did, didn’t care if her feelings were hurt and for a moment I thought he would be the one who wouldn’t stop until he found Caylee. Then he disappeared. He no longer gave sound bytes to the media, and no longer was anywhere to be seen. The behavior of the entire family seemed so odd. It was hard to figure out who the players were at times. Then the trial began…
Anyone with a heart felt for Cindy Anthony on that stand. She was truly broken. She at times could not hold it together when being questioned by the prosecution. When she was questioned by the defense and changed her story, I didn’t get angry. I saw a mother doing anything she can to save her daughters life.
When George Anthony was called to the stand initially and had to answer if he had molested his daughter, it was plain to see the pain and sadness he was going through. Here he was a man who lost his grand daughter and now the daughter he raised and was seemingly the one who wouldn’t put up with her bs, was accusing him of the worst thing a father could do to his child. At first I was shocked that the Anthony’s could sit expressionless in the court room listening to Jose Baez accuse George of not only molesting his daughter but of being a part of the murder of his grand daughter. Then I realized that they were aware of the accusations for six weeks. What he must be going through I have no idea but how do you heal from that? How do you in the back of your mind know your daughter was willing to let you take the blame for the death of your grand daughter and excuse that behavior?
I cannot imagine the Anthony’s will open their door to their daughter the day she leaves jail. I cannot imagine that the attorney’s would allow it anyway. There is no perfect place for Casey Anthony to go but that house on Hopespring Drive is not a place that I think she should go near for a long time. Both for her safety and the safety of her parents.
I have tried to put myself in their position as far as having a child accuse you of terrible things not caring if you wound up convicted. I cannot imagine my child doing that and cannot imagine that if it was done we would heal in one day. I would think in order to repair the relationship there will be much therapy in order.
While I blame Casey solely for the death of Caylee, I do not blame her solely for her ability to lie or her ability to believe she does not need to be held accountable for it. She is a perfect example of not being taught cause and effect. Every action has a consequence and sadly Casey was allowed to be excused by Cindy time and again. A child who is pregnant and makes the decision that she wants to abort or put the baby up for adoption is telling you she is not ready for this responsibility nor is she wanting it. To be forced to have the child and raise it by an overbearing mother is just a recipe for hostility, resentment and friction. Nothing was ever going to be right unless her mother did it, she was never going to be the mother Cindy could to Caylee and despite it being said that she was a great mother, she did not want to be tied down day after day. While I do not excuse any of Casey’s behavior it is easy to see where it began when in connection to Caylee. Grandparents are amazing people but they are amazing because they don’t have to deal with all the things they did when they were parents. They get to be the fun people. But they work and have things to do, so they are not responsible for the day to day care and get to simply enjoy being with that child. I can see Casey resenting Cindy for refusing to allow her to have the freedom to come and go as she pleased and still stand by my opinion that Caylee was a pawn and was killed to destroy Cindy.
CAYLEE IS AT PEACE DESPITE THE VERDICT
We live in a world that we want those who hurt children to be punished and the verdict of not guilty makes us question our justice system. However, we do not get the luxury of agreeing with our justice system when it works for us. Those of us who are saddened by the verdict do not have the right to take the law into our own hands and cause harm to Casey Anthony. If someone attacks her they are no better than she . They still committed a crime even though they feel they were seeking justice for Caylee. There are many ways to turn that into a positive thing and get justice for Caylee. There are many organizations that seek support in many ways for the good of children who are and have been victimized in this world. If an entire country put that negative energy into positive energy, that would gain some justice for this little girl.
Hello,
My name is Marie and I am a writer for criminaljusticedegree.net. I have been reading your blog the past few weeks and I was wondering if you accept guest writers? I have a topic that would strike your interest. I hope to hear back from you soon and thanks for your time
Hello,
I apologize I have been away from this blog for a bit but I am interested in what you have to say. So although I haven’t had a guest writer i the past, I am open to hearing what you propose.
Hello,
I contacted you last week, but I havent heard a response yet so I thought that I would send another comment just to make sure you received my request. My name is Marie and Im a writer for criminaljusticedegree.net. I have been reading your blog for the past few weeks and I was wondering if you accept guest writers? I have a topic that would strike your interest. Thanks for your time and I hope to hear from you soon.