Casey Anthony Trial
Imagine having a child. How would you treat them? Would you treat them with love and care or be heartless and unconcerned about him or her? How would you react if you found out they went missing or something very unsettling happened to them? In Orange County, Florida on June 9, 2008, Casey Anthony’s daughter, Caylee Anthony, went missing, but Anthony never reported it. On December 11, remains of a human’s skeleton were discovered in the woods near Anthony’s house and eight days later it was announced to be Caylee Anthony’s body (CNN 1). The Casey Anthony trial showed us the power of judgment by her actions being abnormal for society, her constant lying and people being unable to believe that she was found not guilty.
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Anthony was younger, before everything happened, she was just a regular teenager. Her parents said she was a sweet girl. She was kind to everyone and do not do anything bad or out of the ordinary. She started lying and going to parties. A friend of hers’ from high school said Anthony thought about giving her daughter up for adoption, but her mother would not let her. Her lies got worse and worse progressing up to, Caylee Anthony, her daughter’s disappearance. When Caylee Anthony was missing, Anthony went partying instead of looking for her child. She also did not tell her parents when it happened. She dodged answering their questions and made up her answers (Biography 1). Anthony’s actions were abnormal because she did not seem worried about her child whatsoever.
In society, if your child went missing, you would report it and be a frantic mother or father trying everything to find their beloved child. She seemed to not even be worried; like she did not care. On trial, she then said how Caylee Anthony had drowned in a pool at her parents’ house. If Caylee Anthony had drowned why did she not call 911? Anthony then goes on to claim that her father did sexual things with her and that he had hid Caylee’s Anthony body in the woods, afraid people would think Anthony was a horrible mother (CNN …show more content…
Live). When Anthony was in high school, she started acting different. She started lying to her friends and family when she did not normally do that. When her parents and grandparents attended her graduation, they found out she was not going to graduate because she did not have enough credits. She misled them to think she was doing great in school. She constantly lied to everyone around her. Even before Caylee Anthony had gone missing, she was dishonest. She told her parents the babysitter took Anthony, but Casey Anthony never had a babysitter for Caylee Anthony (Biography 1). There were lies one after another. Everyone was shocked when she was found not guilty for murdering her daughter, Caylee Anthony.
People started rioting because of this. People still riot whenever they see her outside in the open. Many people had and still have a large amount hate toward her. “People seem to want some kind of closure,” Yoland Delvalle observed. The people wanted justice for Caylee Anthony’s death. Since it is believed that Anthony killed her daughter, some individuals say it is like a “late abortion” for what seems to be a homicide. Rioters made signs with Caylee Anthony’s face on it and duct tape over her mouth representing a ‘later term abortion.’ “Aborting a fetus and killing a two year old child were two sides of the same devilish mind-set,” Benham, who was part of an anti-abortion group. Benham also remarked, “we are here to remember little Casey Marie, left there like trash” (Lona 1). They are not convinced she just drowned in her grandparent’s pool one day and did not freak out, going frantic trying to save her or bring her to the
hospital. The judgment of the men and women following this trial spikes during this time. No one thought twice about what they had to say about Casey Anthony. The general public called her many names and said she was a terrible mother. She had received death threats, as well (Lona 1). Anthony wanted to publish a book to pay off some of her debt. The woman she met with declined her book. She commented, “no one wants to publish her and be boycotted” (Brian 1). So the question is, if there are many other cases like this one, why is this one so important? TV needed something to talk about and exciting for the watchers. It is entertaining to people to watch and get all the details that happened. Al Tompkins stated, “I’m amazed that it got so much attention that it’s been nonstop.” The viewers did not necessarily like what happened, but it was entertaining to watch and have someone to hate and keep up on. America was so devastated by Caylee Anthony’s death (Lucas 1). Society still is worried about what Anthony is doing because of how bad it affected people. Smelser said, “Charlize Theron played serial killer Aileen Wuornos in that 2003 movie. But the Anthony case is a real life drama, played out in the golden age of talk radio and twenty for hour TV news.” (A Trial Begins 1) As soon as she steps out of her home, she is on the news so the world knows. People still follow her today with everything she does. She can’t go out shopping or eating without getting mobbed. Her life isn’t normal anymore. Crowds of people were extremely furious that she was set free (Lona 1). People are so concerned she might do something else. They are just waiting for Anthony to mess something up. “She has a few benefactors that are enamored with and send her things,” a source close to her, “they pay for everything” (Brian 1). The Casey Anthony trial displayed the empowerment of criticism by her activity being tremendously different for the norms of society, her continuous untruthful words and it still being incredible that was set free.
On July 15th 2008, Caylee Anthony was reported missing by her grandmother, Cindy, who claimed that she had not seen her granddaughter in 31 days. Cindy called the police after picking up her daughter Casey’s impounded vehicle, which smelled strongly of a decomposing body. Cindy found a bag of garbage in the trunk of Casey’s car but no trace of a body. Cindy had attempted to contact and visit Caylee over the past month, but Casey Anthony refused visitation, claiming that Caylee was with a nanny named Zenaida Fernandez Gonzalez, or at the beach or parks. Casey had given Cindy various explanations as to Caylee’s whereabouts before finally telling her mother that she had not seen Caylee for multiple weeks.
The smell of death and decay, emanated inside the trunk of a Pontiac Sunfire. A missing child; only to be reported 31 days after she went missing, found dead in a forest close to her home. And a mother who was accused of murder, who got off with no charges, even with evidence stacking against her. This all started with one 9-1-1 phone call from a concerned grandmother who has not seen her grandchild in a month. Casey Anthony was the main headline in all the newspapers, cable television, and social media. Over more than 140 million people sat and watched as the trial played on, and a verdict was reached. This case was the largest and most polarizing case that America has ever seen.
Not guilty was the decision made by the jury during the George Zimmerman vs. Trayvon Martin trial. That verdict may have been the most controversial one of recent time. Many people were upset by the decision and felt that justice was not achieved for the young victim, Martin who was seventeen years old when he was killed. This incident seems to be a tragic example of stereotyping and racial profiling. It is also an example of how a verdict, based on the strict interpretation of the law can be the wrong verdict.
The Casey Anthony trial has been arguably the most controversial case since the trial of O.J. Simpson and has been speculated over ever since the verdict had been given in July of 2011. It was decided by a jury of her peers that Anthony was not guilty of murder, for the death of her daughter Caylee. Many believe that Anthony should have been found guilty however, very little Americans actually comprehend the justice system.
June 5th, 1893 was the beginning of the State of Massachusetts v. Borden trail, also known as the Lizzie Borden trial, that famously examined if a woman could murder. The Borden household was comprised of Andrew Borden, the father, Abbey Borden, the stepmother, and the two sisters, Lizzie and Emma Borden. According to Douglas Linder, professor of law at the University of Missouri at Kansas City, Lizzie Borden “belonged to numerous clubs” and “was [an] active member in her church” (Linder “Biographies”). Lizzie was a leader in her community whom many respected and acknowledged so the thought of her committing such gruesome murders seemed unlikely. It was also known however that Andrew Borden, Lizzie’s father, was somewhat of a withholder of
On July 15th, 2008, Caylee Anthony was reported missing by her grandmother Cindy Anthony. Cindy Anthony in the report stated that she hadn’t seen her grand-daughter Caylee for a month and that she and her husband were suspicious because their daughter Casey’s car reeked of decay, as if a dead body had been stored inside the vehicle for days. Caylee and her mother resided with Casey Anthony’s parents. However, Cindy Anthony claimed that Casey had given different explanations about Caylee's whereabouts before telling Cindy that she hadn’t seen her own daughter for several weeks. When questioned by authorities, Casey told the detectives several lies: stating the child had been kidnapped by her nanny on June 9, and that Casey had been trying to contact the nanny to find her daughter. Preceding this information, Casey Anthony was convicted and charged with first degree murder in 2008, but pleaded not guilty ...
Billy Joel once sang, “Only the good die young”. In life, it is true, the young and innocent seem to touch more lives around us than anyone else. In the Casey Anthony trial, Anthony was a suspect in the murder of her daughter Caylee. Caylee’s life shouldn’t be counted in years, it should be counted by how many lives she affected, the love she has gained, and the support the country has given her to find out what really happened. In the play, Twelve Angry Men, a boy killed his father; however, both cases were challenged by the obvious and the abstruse evidence. Large cities towards the east coast, in 1982, Twelve Angry Men, and 2008, Casey Anthony Trial, affiliated with two major trials able to modify the lives of the living and the dead. For that reason, during the Casey Anthony case, jurors were conflicted throughout the trial.
In chapter 3 of the Crime and Justice in America textbook, Joycelyn Pollock provides information about the three theories of crime. These theories help us to explain the motivation behind different criminal acts. The reasons why one would commit a crime may be due to biological, psychological, or sociological influences. This paper will explore the high profile cases of The State vs. Casey Anthony and The United States vs. Enron, and link them to one the theories of crime causation detailed by Pollock in chapter 3. We will explore the evidence of what motivated these people to commit the crimes they were charged with.
The Casey Anthony case was one that captured the heart of thousands and made it to the headline of national TV talk shows, newspapers, radio stations and social media networks for months. The root of the case was due to a clash between the parental responsibilities, the expectations that went with being a parent, and the life that Casey Anthony wanted to have. The case was in respect to the discovering the cause of Casey’s two-year-old daughter, Caylee Marie Anthony’s, death; however the emphasis was placed on Casey and her futile lies, which resulted in a public outcry. The purpose of this essay is to delve into the public atmosphere and inquire about why the media and social media collectively attacked the case by uncovering the content of the case, the charges that were laid, and later dismissed, the “performers” of the trial and the publics reaction. It will further discuss how it defies universal ideologies and how the media represents this. The discussion of the complexities of the case and its connotations will incorporate Stuart Hall’s Representation and the Media, Robert Hariman’s Performing the Laws, What is Ideology by Terry Eagleton, The Body of the Condemned by Michael Foucault, and a number of news articles, which will reveal disparate ideas of representation in the media, and the role of the performers of the law and their effect on the understanding of the case.
According to A Novel Approach to Politics “Questions about the very nature of reality seem to be common in fiction of all sorts.” Especially, The Boondocks, a fictional cartoon, uses satire to describe real events that happen in society. The episode I tuned into was “The Trial of R. Kelly”, which explained how R. Kelly won his trial and the views of the people about his case. In the episode, the people outside the court house showed different cognitive frameworks of how they view R. Kelly situation. In other words, the media made sense of the reality of R. Kelly situation in different ways because of the media wanted to select certain information. In this paper, I will explain how the media exemplified mediated reality and agreement reality in the “The Trial of R. Kelly” episode of The Boondocks.
Patty Hearst was a normal 19 year old girl, living in an apartment with her fiance and attending university in Berkeley, California, until one day her life, and the lives of everyone around her changed forever. On the evening of February 4, 1974, some members of the left-wing radical group called the Symbionese Liberation Army barged into Hearst’s home armed with guns, and beat up her fiance before kidnapping Hearst and bringing her to their house where she was kept blindfolded in a closet for 59 days. While locked in the closet, Patty Hearst was verbally and sexually abused and she was denied the use of even a toilet or toothbrush if she didn’t tell them that she agreed with the group’s ideas and beliefs. It is believed that while being locked in the closet like this, Patty was being brainwashed by the SLA and that she may have even developed Stockholm Syndrome, a condition in which a person who was kidnapped starts to empathise with their captor, and even starts defending them. This is how the Symbionese Liberation Army convinced Patty Hearst to join their group. They released an audio tape to the public in which Patty Hearst said she was changing her name to Tania and that she had decided to join the SLA. She then helped the SLA rob a bank and steal an ammunition belt from a sports store. After this, she started travelling around the country with two members of the SLA named John and Emily Harris, to try avoid being captured by the police. During this time, the police found a house where some members of the SLA were hiding out. Attempts to make the SLA members surrender ended up in a massive gunfight, ultimately ending up in the deaths of 6 SLA members. The FBI eventually found and arrested Patty Hearst on September 18, 1975. T...
In the case, Planned Parenthood of Southeastern Pennsylvania v. Casey, the Pennsylvania law required an informed consent and a twenty-four-hour waiting period before an abortion could be performed, parental or judicial consent for minors, spousal notification, and comprehensive record keeping and reporting. Many clinics challenged the Pennsylvania law after it went in affect. However, in a controversial decision, the clinics appealed to the Supreme Court. The Supreme court in a 5-4 decision reaffirmed Roe, but it upheld most of the Pennsylvania provisions, except for the husband notification. For the first time, the justices imposed a new standard to determine the validity of laws restricting abortions. The new standard asks whether a state abortion regulation has the purpose or effect of imposing an "undue burden," which is defined as a "substantial obstacle in the path of a woman seeking an abortion before the fetus attains viability." Under this standard, the only provision to fail the undue-burden test was the husband notification requirement.
For example users from the popular websites tumblr and twitter took to the media to express their feelings and suspicions on what information has been released to the public, a tumblr user argues “Why there was a trashcan and a trashbag in her jail cell in the first place, when protocol is against having anything in the room that’s not fastened down”. Which in fact is correct and also raises suspicion on why the trash bag was replaced after Blands death, being known as tampering with evidence. Why is it that there was a video of a guard going into Blands cell and coming out with a trash bag that he discreetly threw in the trash while he directed others to Blands cell. A twitter user decides to bring attention to the case by speaking out about who was investigating the case by sending out a message to all followers “Texas police to investigate whether Texas police tampered with evidence during their own investigation of themselves” going back to the theory that the Texas police are all trying to cover up the truth of what really happened to this woman. A close friend of Bland stated “she was a tough girl and a strong girl” which is why they have such a high suspicion that Bland actually committed suicide. She was a strong civil rights activist with many followers and a promising future, it doesn't make sense as to why such a strong minded
The summary of this case is that Nancy Grace, a television (TV) journalist, former prosecutor, and TV host had caused outrage after one of her interviewees, Melinda Duckett, committed suicide the day after the interview. That interview, and several other reasons, were believed to be the factor that drove Melinda to take her own life. In that interview, Nancy asked Melinda, the mother of missing child Trent Duckett, many insensitive questions in a very aggressive and interrogative manner, seemingly in hopes of getting a public confession (Broughton,
The beliefs and views of modern society are hypocritical and unjust. By the time an individual matures from a young child to an adult, they have been taught an uncountable number of life lessons. One of the outstanding lessons that each and every person has learned is that killing another human being is wrong. This is perhaps the first recognizable lesson on the value of human life. Most children know that killing is against the law and learn religiously that it goes against all religious morals and beliefs, yet society is bombarded by violence everyday in the media and in real life. Today, the value of human life can be questioned, especially that of the young. Through numerous examples of child murder and abortion it is rather obvious that the lives of the unborn or newly born are not valued to the degree that they should be. In most cases, the young are not recognized as "people" and are robbed of their human rights and freedoms. Young lives, both born and unborn, are seen as more of a commodity these days, than as precious, magical miracles.