Download this articleIn October 2008, I became the trial consultant for Casey Anthony. The media coverage was already vast, heated, and overwhelmingly negative. Over the last two and a half years, my primary concern was how the media’s public trial of Casey Anthony, played out through hundreds of shows and headlines, would ultimately affect her real trial. These were the two juries in her case – one at home and one in a courtroom in Orlando, Florida.
When she was unanimously acquitted of the most serious charges, a USA Today/Gallup poll showed that nearly two out of three Americans believed Casey Anthony was guilty of murder[1]. How could these two juries come to such starkly different verdicts? More importantly, what can we learn from this extraordinary trial about the influence that the media has on the trial process? How do we balance freedom of the press with the Constitutional rights of parties in the criminal justice system?
Every mother and father has experienced that moment of panic in a store or a park when you can’t find your child. Those moments can seem like hours. When your child is found, an unbelievable wave of relief washes over you. With this universal experience, it becomes natural that most find Casey Anthony’s behavior inexplicable after Caylee died: it does not match our expectation of a panicked mother looking for her missing child or our image of a grief stricken parent coping with her child’s death. And often when we do not understand the behavior of others, we convert our confusion to fear and anger.
Having done jury research on civil cases involving the death of a child in the past, I have found that jurors almost always believe that a parent is somewhat responsible for that death, no matter how remote that parent was to the accident that took the child’s life. This accountability is part of a natural instinct that makes us want to protect children. We simply do not want to believe that, in a just world[2], a senseless accident can take the life of an innocent child. If we can blame someone, we can make sense of it. Then we don’t have to face the reality that the world can sometimes be random, dangerous, and incomprehensible.
It is with this mindset that many Americans convicted Casey Anthony of murder – before the trial even started – using a civil trial’s standard of proof: more likely than not, she probably had something to do with the death of her child.
News coverage started almost immediately in the case, with hours of airtime spent on the searches for the missing child, the candlelight vigils, and resulting arrest of Casey. This was where the public’s trial began. Florida has one of the most liberal media access laws in the nation. Dubbed “The Sunshine Law”[3], this statute made all evidence exchanged between the prosecution and the defense a public document, accessible on any number of media sites for anyone to read and download into their own evidence collection folder on their computers. This obviously posed an extreme challenge for the defense. In most courts, any juror who has great familiarity with a case, the parties, and the specific facts would be excused for cause because they would not be deemed to be impartial. While many trial courts have said that exposure to news stories does not automatically disqualify a juror, the unique laws of Florida made actual evidence accessible to any prospective juror. Of course, contained in this published discovery were documents, photographs, and witnesses that a Judge would later rule were inadmissible, irrelevant, or prejudicial. Many documents also contained untested or erroneous information. Despite these flaws, these documents were posted on websites for public consumption with scores of commentators and bloggers, usually opining on Casey’s guilt.
In an age where people get instant information from limitless Internet sites and 24/7 news cycles, producers and editors have hundreds of television hours and web pages to fill. Since the facts of a news story can often be limited, the required airtime and webpage acreage is often filled with commentary and debate. Producers and editors are keenly aware of what elements of a news story will pique the interest of a viewer or reader. Hence the old news adage, “If it bleeds, it leads.” Scott Safon, the executive vice-president of HLN, gave an interview in March of this year discussing how important the trial was to the network[4]. Its June ratings put it ahead of both CNN and MSNBC, almost doubling its viewers compared to June of last year. Nancy Grace, who dedicated hundreds of shows to the case, averaged 1.5 million viewers a night[5]. Since ratings equal advertising revenue, this prosecutorial perspective drove much of the coverage.
Many of the hosts and regular guests of the HLN have admitted that they believed Casey Anthony to be guilty either before or during the trial. And it was with this prejudgment that both the press and the public became both police and prosecutors, poring over the evidence and forming theories about how and why Casey murdered her daughter. Not if, but how. The media also put the defense team, any potential witness for the defense, or anyone who spoke in favor of the defense on trial, even investigating aspects of their personal lives. As a result, the defense suffered from unfair hardships – potential witnesses were unwilling to testify on Casey’s behalf for fear of being denounced or humiliated in the press. Obviously, this impedes a high-profile defendant’s ability to put on a full defense, and thus his or her right to a fair trial. In fact, the vitriol on the Internet sites was so venomous and one sided, I purposely ignored the blogger’s posts and responses to news articles.
These obstacles create an advantage for prosecutors, who already have an edge in trying a case. In most urban jurisdictions in this country, prosecutors enjoy an 80% – 90% conviction rate[6]. They have more resources and a bigger budget than the average criminal defendant. (Most of the Casey Anthony defense team, including myself, contributed their time pro bono to the case.) In a high profile case, most of the information that is disseminated to the public tells the prosecution’s story, including pictures of the “perp walk”, specifically staged to give the news media pictures of the defendant in handcuffs. In the Anthony case, Florida State Attorney General Pam Bondi publicly proclaimed on a national news show before the trial that the “evidence was overwhelming” of Casey’s guilt[7].
Because the defense is not obligated by law to present an alternative theory in the case, they usually wait until trial to disclose their theories and to question the validity of the prosecution’s case. This is unsatisfying for a media audience desiring an instant response to the prosecution’s allegations. So, in a high profile case, the public usually gets only one side of the story: the prosecution version. In the court of public opinion, the defense cannot merely say, “Wait for the trial.”
In looking at the negative media deluge in our case, I determined that there was simply no discernable gain from trying to turn the tide of public opinion in the press. Given the zeitgeist, any attempt to explain or persuade would have been met with skepticism or outright scorn. So, I felt it would be best to be patient and wait. If anything, I hoped the negative publicity would reach a tipping point. I believed that the saturation was so great and the hyperbole so charged, that the actual jury might experience a backlash effect. We saw this same phenomenon in OJ Simpson’s murder trial. In conducting a community attitude survey before that case, we saw a counterintuitive result: the more exposure a juror had to news stories in that case, the more suspicious jurors were of the actual evidence in the trial. We saw this same skepticism in a focus group we conducted prior to the Casey Anthony trial[8]. In that group, jurors criticized the media for inflaming the case, making it difficult to distinguish the real evidence from the media hype. Since press coverage often needs to create stories to satisfy the public’s hunger for a news item, I was also counting on the fact that the saturation would create an expectation that the prosecution would produce a “smoking gun” or new evidence in trial.
Two Juries, Two Verdicts
Casey Anthony’s trial was set to start in front of a jury of millions. The jurors at home felt it was their case. They had watched dozens of hours of coverage. They saw the videos of the beautiful Caylee. They saw the pictures of Casey dancing at the nightclub. They were ready to convict her. They just needed the formality of a trial and the decision of a jury to validate what they already knew: that she was guilty of murdering her daughter.
The problem is that those millions were not qualified as jurors in this case. They had already prejudged the defendant and had demonstrated a bias that would not allow them to sit on a case. They also had a familiarity with the evidence that would disqualify them as jurors. You see, the Sixth Amendment of the Constitution guarantees every defendant a right to an impartial jury, jurors who have not already viewed and judged the evidence.
And this is where the First Amendment creates a problem for the courts in the Digital Age. How could a potential juror – someone who had seen more than two years of news stories, discussed the case with friends and family, and come to conclusions about the actual evidence – be a fair and impartial juror? The courts typically respond by asking potential jurors the impossible question, “Can you set those opinions aside and judge this case based on the evidence from the witness stand?” Realistically, people who have invested that much time and emotion into a case cannot simply erase those impressions and disallow them to influence how they view the evidence. Psychologists call this confirmation bias – people actively seek out information that confirms what he or she already believe, while ignoring and dismissing information that does not conform to their belief.
Because of the community’s interest in the case and the overwhelmingly negative coverage, I had submitted an affidavit supporting a motion for a change of venue out of Orlando. The focus group we conducted in Orlando reaffirmed this by unequivocally stating that they believed Casey to be guilty because of the pre-trial publicity and that she could not get a fair trial in the county. Fortunately, the Judge agreed to move the case. However, rather than physically move the location of the trial, he decided to “import” a jury to Orlando. This meant picking a jury in another venue, moving them back to Orlando, and sequestering them in a hotel for the entire trial.
Since the coverage of the case was statewide, the Judge had difficulty finding a venue to import jurors from that did not have pervasive publicity. We were faced with a due process issue: if you are a defendant who is tried in a state where every venue is tainted by the publicity, where can you reasonably get a fair trial? WFTV, an Orlando television station, released polling on the eve of trial showing that in five venues all over the state, 70% – 90% of the Orlando, Jacksonville, Tampa, Palm Beach, and Pensacola communities were familiar with the case and already believed Casey to be guilty of murder[9]. Even more troubling (but unfortunately standard for defense lawyers who try death penalty cases) more than half of those polled supported the death penalty for all first-degree murder cases. This meant that, regardless of the circumstances of the alleged murder in a case, most jurors were preconditioned to believe that once a defendant was guilty of murder, he or she should automatically get the death penalty, obviating the need for a penalty phase of the trial.
In order to prepare for what we assumed to be a difficult jury selection, we requested two things of the Judge – a supplemental juror questionnaire and the location in which we would be picking a jury. The Judge refused both. He stated that the attorneys should be able to pick a jury in five days without a questionnaire. He also stated he did not want to tell us the venue where we would be picking a jury because he did not want the media to inundate that community and infect the pool. This was problematic for us as we wanted to be able to study his chosen venue to see whether there was sufficient bias to make another change of venue motion. In fact, Judge Perry would not reveal the location of the venue to the lawyers until the Friday before the Monday jury selection and, by his order, other members of their staff (including consultants) were not allowed to know the location until the Sunday before the selection would start. He stated repeatedly that he would be picking a jury in five days and that the opening statements would begin the following Monday. At one point, Judge Perry even stated that, if we could NOT pick a jury in five days, he would rescind his change-of-venue order and assemble a jury from people in the Orlando jury pool. He further decided that the jury selection would be broadcast, although the jurors would not be shown, and be identified only by numbers. We faced three major challenges in getting full disclosure and candid responses from potential jurors: the lack of a jury questionnaire that would increase juror candor, the time limitation imposed by the Judge, and the potential juror’s knowledge that their vocal responses in voir dire would be broadcast for the entire world.
Because of these challenges, I felt it was important to get a Florida trial consultant involved who knew the various venues in the state. I contacted Amy Singer of Trial Consultants, Inc. and she put together a team of consultants who, although not present in the courtroom during most of the jury selection, would monitor the broadcast voir dire. This innovation allowed all of us to listen and send follow-up questions and recommendations on cause and peremptory challenges to the team in court and at the end of the day.[10]
Needless to say, both the prosecution and defense faced significant challenges in seating a jury. We first had to find people who would be willing and able to leave their family and jobs for six to eight weeks, work six days a week, and stay holed up in a hotel room with limited television and internet access. Second, we had to eliminate all of those jurors who had already made up their mind about the case. Third, we had to eliminate those people who would automatically vote for or against the death penalty without hearing additional evidence in the “penalty phase”. It is this last area that can be the most problematic issue for a defense team as research shows that the process of qualifying jurors for a death penalty case tends to seat a pro-prosecution jury[11]. These three areas did not even include the voir dire we would ordinarily do in a criminal case, including the common expectation of jurors that the defendant should have to prove their own innocence and testify on their own behalf. All of these problems created the concern that the public consensus had shifted the burden to the defense to prove Casey’s innocence, and the jury would feel enormous public pressure to convict her[12].
All of these challenges made jury selection truly jury de-selection. Our primary goal was eliminate all or most of those jurors who had pre-judged Casey as guilty and who would automatically give her the death penalty if they found her guilty of the first-degree murder charge. In our profile of a desirable jury, we were not looking for men or women, young or old, black or white jurors. We wanted smart, skeptical, independent, and self-aware jurors. Jurors who could separate their emotional responses from rational evaluations, who could follow the rule of law, and turn a keen probing eye to what we felt were the prosecution’s “fantasy forensics” and facile motive. Most importantly, we wanted jurors who were strong enough to ask hard questions and resist the public’s demand for a conviction unless they felt the prosecution had really proved their case.
After two weeks, the two juries were seated. Twelve jurors and five alternates in the courtroom, and millions of “jurors” at home in front of their computers or televisions. Each jury had a different set of rules. The jurors at home could talk about the case with each other, speculate, use evidence not allowed in court, freely use their emotions, and proclaim the defendant’s guilt as often as they wanted. The jurors in court were instructed they could do none of those things. And there was one other enormous difference between these two juries: the one in the courtroom saw all of the evidence and witnesses. The one at home saw only an editorial selection of it.
In the end, the twelve jurors in the courtroom found Casey Anthony not guilty in the death of her daughter.
The Important Independence of Juries
Both the prosecution and the defense chose the jury in the courtroom. While others have not shown such restraint, prosecutor Jeff Ashton has graciously said he would not criticize this jury. He thought the jury would see it his way and accepts that they did not. All attorneys who try cases know the inescapable truths of absolutely every trial: you win some and you lose some. Often, you are surprised, winning cases you thought you would lose and losing cases you were sure you would win.
Independent juries are the cornerstones of the justice system. We trust that a group of 12 citizens, brave and true, working together to interpret the evidence and the law will use their independent judgment to arrive at a just verdict. There is no formula, no predictable result. Each jury has its own way of piecing together the evidence in the case and applying the law. We rely on that individuality and independence as the hallmark of citizen juries. We, as consultants, study the idiosyncratic process of how juries use their experiences and beliefs to interpret the evidence and the law. The American Society of Trial Consultants and the research that consultants and academics conduct can help the courts, attorneys, and the parties to better understand this dynamic process.
It is important to listen to those jurors in the Casey Anthony case who have been willing to speak. Their first vote was 10-2 for acquittal. After 11 hours, it was unanimous. The one alternate juror who has spoken, Russell Huekler, also saw the case in the same way as the jury[13]. They describe numerous questions they had about the prosecution’s case and gaps they feel were not filled. This jury, nine of whom had university degrees and five who had Masters, also describe very specific reasoning on the legal instructions on "premeditation" and "abiding conviction of guilt". This tells us that the jury in the courtroom saw a very different case than those at home. And ultimately, they were the only true jury in the case. They were there, every minute, every day. American justice is not American Idol. It cannot and must not be subject to a popular vote.
Consider the sheer courage of these twelve citizens. They all knew the verdict that the public overwhelmingly wanted and even expected. Can anyone honestly say that this jury was eager to go back home and justify acquitting Casey Anthony to their family, friends, and co-workers? Of course not. They all knew that they would face scorn, derision, and possibly ostracism, but they stood up to that extraordinary pressure. They were conscientious of their instructions and duty. While many may not agree with their verdict, I hope we can appreciate and respect the difficult and sometimes brave job the jury does in these cases.
Real trials, like real life, are complicated, messy, sad, confusing, and sometimes inexplicable. They do not fit into an hour-long news show or detective drama. We must learn to balance the First Amendment demands of the press and the Sixth Amendment rights of a criminal defendant. While the Supreme Court has said that a jury does not have to be totally ignorant of the facts of a case[14], press coverage now goes well beyond reading stories in a newspaper. The public, armed with iPhones, computers, and television setsparticipate in a trial, forever changing how we must think about the concept of impartiality. Without proper management, these new media trials put us closer to the “carnival atmosphere” the Supreme Court envisioned in their ruling overturning the Sam Shepard case[15].
We can learn to understand the unique nature of these trials and manage them so that the public, the press, and, most importantly, the parties can better understand their individual roles. The media can better present a balanced picture of the developing case and the trial. The public can become educated about the dynamic nature of a trial, distinguishing between the legal criteria that judges and juries use to decide cases and what they see at home. The prosecution and the defense can better manage case-related information and understand how publicity will affect the jury pool and their relative expectations in trial. The courts can better administer these trials, protecting the rights of all the parties, the press, and the jurors.
These trials push our criminal justice system to the breaking point. The jurors in this case have received hate mail and one has fled Florida, fearing for her safety. The Anthony family has received death threats. Casey will probably fear for her life for a long time. This is not to say that everyone will or should agree with the verdicts in these cases. There will always be cries of outrage and heated disagreement in these cases. We can, however, conduct these trials in a way that reduces the misperceptions, biases, and sometimes even violence that can accompany such cases. When we reduce these, we can better appreciate that our jury system is a remarkable foundation for democracy.
Richard Gabriel is President of Decision Analysis, a national trial consulting company in Los Angeles. He an author of Jury Selection: Science and Strategy, columnist for Lawyers USA, and President of the American Society of Trial Consultants Foundation. He has worked on the OJ Simpson, Enron, Whitewater, and other high profile trials.
[1] Bello, Marisol. (2011, July 8). Casey Anthony verdict doesn’t sit well with most Americans. USA Today. http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2011-07-07-casey-anthony-trial_n.htm
[2] For more information on the Just World Hypothesis, see Lerner, M. (1980) The Belief in a Just World: A Fundamental Delusion. New York: Plenum Press.
[3] http://www.myfloridahouse.gov/FileStores/Web/Statutes/FS09/CH0286/Section_0286.011.HTM
[4] (2011, March 9). Casey Anthony: Trial is ‘gigantic deal’ for HLN, boss says. Orlando Sentinal. http:// http://blogs.orlandosentinel.com/entertainment_tv_tvblog/2011/03/casey-anthony-trial-is-gigantic-deal-for-hln-boss-says.html
[5] Hibbard, J. (2011, July 6). Casey Anthony verdict gives Nancy Grace her best ratings ever. Entertainment Weekly. http://insidetv.ew.com/2011/07/06/casey-anthony-nancy-grace-ratings/
[6] Goudie, C. (2011, July 10). Blame prosecutors, not juries, for verdicts. Daily Herald. http://www.dailyherald.com/article/20110710/news/707109865/
[7] Sutow, I., Leach, J., and Zimmerman, G. (2011, April 16). Can Casey Anthony get a fair trial? CBS News.http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2011/04/16/48hours/main20054402.shtml
[8] The focus group was conducted as part of a 48 Hours episode which can be viewed at http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=7362976n&tag=contentMain;contentBody
[9] The full results of the poll can be found at http://www.wftv.com/download/2011/0506/27800480.pdf
[10] The live feed also allowed us to watch the trial and send observations and recommendations during the case.
[11] Cowen, C. et al. (1984). The Effects of Death Qualification on Jurors’ Predisposition to Convict and on the Quality of Deliberation.Law and Human Behavior, 8(53).
[12] Some of the very prominent on-air personalities who had proclaimed Casey’s guilt would periodically show up in the courtroom to watch the trial.
Wonderful and extremely well written article, Richard. It's so nice to see your reasoned and analytical approach. If only the talking head "expert" jury consultants the networks continue to interview were half as knowledgeable, perhaps the folks watching on TV wouldn't have rushed to castigate the jury in such harsh terms. Thanks for your contirbution!
A very well written article on the Anthony case that makes many important points that should be seriously considered going forward in the age of media and high exposure cases. The jury seems to have done their job well, under great pressure. It seems likely that their verdict represents what most juries would have concluded if the identical case were presented and defended the same way. The prosecution was unable to meet their burden of proof that this defendant was guilty of murder. Therefore, the jury was obligated to reach the verdict that they reached. For that we should be glad and support them in doing their duty.
That said, many millions of people who followed this case for years believe that Casey Anthony murdered her child and covered up her death among other crimes. For them this case represents an example of a child killer mother going free and the system failing to bring justice. They think we are crazy by complementing the jury and the system for this "failure." They believe we have no credibility in admiring and supporting this verdict. They believe the system is broken because it "failed."
Unless we want these many millions, a majority of those who followed the case, to harshly judge the very system that "worked" so well, we need to help them understand that these are two separate issues and that we are not crazy. IF Anthony actually murdered her daughter and committed other crimes it is very, very frustrating, disappointing, sad, irritating, scary, threatening, depressing, etc., etc., that the prosecution did not achieve a conviction. We need to acknowledge that we agree it is bad news when a guilty party goes free because the prosecution was unable to meet their burden of proof.
Frankly, before we can go into all the good things the jury did, and the defense did, and how the system actually "worked" as its intended, we would do well to FIRST acknowledge our AGREEMENT that it is unfortunate, etc..etc., if a guilty person was set free…… And then follow with why we still have to support what happened and how the system actually worked.
If we are seen as not caring or not being particularly bothered by a guilty person going free, I can assure you that those millions and millions will not be able to hear what we are saying about the system working. Furthermore, they will be motivated to change or destroy the admirable system we are praising because we have no credibility nor does a system that allows this. We have to teach them why they can have it both ways, feel what they feel about a guilty person going free and yet also feel good about how this system worked as its designed to work. And furthermore, why ALL of us need to make peace with the idea that once in a while a guilty person will go free but that is an acceptable price to pay in order to prevent INNOCENT people from going to jail or being executed.
We feel good because our system did what its supposed to do to protect the innocent, even though once in a while in doing that, a guilty person goes free. Its a tough nut to swallow, but a necessary side effect we can get behind. We should teach that if Anthony was guilty, and the prosecution couldn't meet the burden, then we all insist that she go free, no matter the difficulty. We should teach that if Anthony was guilty, and the prosecution couldn't meet the burden, IT WOULD BE WRONG TO CONVICT HER EVEN IF SHE'S GUILTY.
We need to educate these millions quickly so they don't turn against our justice system. We can't do that by acting "crazy" in their minds or by calling them "crazy" for their beliefs about her guilt or innocence.
Dr. David Illig Litigation Psychology, Portland, Oregon
Dr. Illig, I agree with most all that you have to say on this matter except this one little part, "ALL of us need to make peace with the idea that once in a while a guilty person will go free".
Though I know it was not intended to be, perspective might not be as broad and vast in others and it could present as quite a broad-sweeping generalization that I fear some will run with; intrinsically paternalistic. O.k. within context, but lets divert for a moment to Philip Garrido. This monster should have never been allowed to be a member our society after the rape he committed in the 70s. Just a few short days after his release he abducted Jaycee Dugard and kept her captive in his backyard for 18 years in spite of somewhere around 60-80 visits by parole officers to the home and a variety of other errors. So, rather than just throwing up our hands and accepting that "ALL of us need to make peace with the idea that once in a while a guilty person will go free" I would like to emphasis to the people of this great country what their rights are as citizens and how to go about implementing REAL change that moves toward eliminating such errors in our system. (Errors exist everywhere, not just in our legal system and it is the responsibility of a community NOT just one group of people to move toward rectification.)
The Casey Anthony Case is exceptional and I, too, commend the jurors for being able to do the right thing amidst all the hype and media. It was the right thing to do because they could not make a direct link between the presumed murder and Casey. So be it in this case. Therefore, "ALL of us need to make peace with the idea that once in a while a guilty person will go free" applies. Simply put, it was prosecution's job to make this link and they did not.
In summary, it is important to take pause with some thoughtfulness and reflect prior to arriving to a conclusion as each and every case presents with it's own set /s of complexities. There were several great lessons that came from this case some of which include: 1) An opportunity to learn from the errors of the prosecution, 2) The awareness that we did not have a law addressing a more dutiful obligation for caregivers to report a child missing in a more expeditious fashion, 3) A movement by the people to change the law to make our society a better place for children (see change.org about the petition created by one US citizen), and 4) The strengths of the opposing counsel used to win this case for his client which might make for an entirely different article. Kudos to that team.
Fantastic article I love it! I used to love to watch Nancy Grace but after this trial I no longer have any faith in what she says. I am so disappointed in the way she covered this case. Thanks for the Article.
This article by Mr. Gabriel, jury consultant for the Casey Anthony defense, goes a long way in illustrating why so many of us can not respect this jury's verdict, why there are such volatile feelings toward Casey Anthony in general and her defense team as a whole. First Mr. Gabriel goes on about how the media and the public's perception of what happened to Caylee Anthony, was simply related to the fact that "we" just could not accept the idea that what happened to this little girl was a tragic accident. Mr. Gabriel, you, along w/ Jose Baez, Cheney Mason, Dorothy Sims and the rest continue to ignore the staggering facts that it was Casey, who was insisting when this first started, (and Jose Baez), that this was NO accident, but that it was the Nanny who took her. Mr. Baez along w/ Casey BOTH encouraged Texas Equusearch, Dominic Casey, her parents, brother, law enforcement EVERYONE that they needed to, to continue to SEARCH for Caylee because at the time, it was in her best interest. (I mean really, if Caylee was never missing as JBaez stated in Opening, then why did he himself complain to the media that Law Enforcement was not taking tips on Caylee sightings seriously enough?)
The other thing I have to say is that just because you say it is so, does not make it true. Many people watched the trial from beginning to end, (not EXCERPTS or recaps on news shows but the whole thing) including the portions in which the jury was sent out of the room because lawyers, primarily Jose Baez, needed to be reprimanded by the judge and this judge in wanting to be fair did not want Casey Anthony to suffer becs of the unethical or unprofessional behaviour of her defense. So please stop saying this. We watched all of it. The entire trial and saw all of the evidence presented. What happened, as I am sure you are so very well aware, is that this jury that was picked, could not follow the trajectory of this case. The evidence was clear. The prosecution did their job. The jury fell for Baez' lies about George Anthony. They were tricked. Thats the truth and thats why people don't respect the verdict.
I may have left out some things but would like to hear some of the legal communities' feedback in response to my reply. I am sincerely open to hearing answers to my reply that can shed some light and maybe show me why I may still be wrong, because reading these comments obviously some very smart people see things very differently than I do.
To clarify my opinion, Jose Baez himself was involved with perpetuating Casey Anthony's now admitted lies in the beginning of this ordeal (before trial) when HE complained TO THE MEDIA about Law Enforcement not following up on tips re: Caylee sightings. (OK I realize here the jury probably did not know this becs they claim to have not followed the case). This has NEVER been addressed by the defense and never ever will be. So JB himself was either lied to by casey (and he believed his client) or he was himself involved in creating lies to buy time to come up w/ a defense. Why did he not say then it was all a tragic accident, that no murder occured. YOU SAY, the defense is not obligated to explain anything until trial. Well then why continue the missing nanny, stolen child story if it were never true? The defense strategy became win at any cost. Needless to say most of us who really did follow the ENTIRE trial have come to believe that had Caylee's body not been recovered, the defense would have stuck to this idea that some nanny took her. Jose Baez PROMISED at the beginning of the trial that he would PROVE and show evidence that not only was Casey molested by her father, but that George Anthony was the one to dispose of Caylee's body. As you know, and Jose has never ever really satisfactorally responded to this, he never did such a thing. Most people who followed this case from the very beginning paid very close attention to what was going on and could not help but see, that yes the family was very disfunctional, that George was a perfect patsy target for JB's ambitions. But George was simply a desperate and grieving grandfather. To then lay waste to this man, by calling him a child molester and accusing him of throwing his gdaughter in the swamp was really a very very low blow and almost beyond comprehension that someone would do this. But Jose Baez was clearly willing to do whatever it took to save Casey Anthony. And it mattered not at all to him what happened to Caylee. Whether this "strategy" was stemming from Casey herself or this was created in the minds of her defense, either way, it has created a monster.
The part though that is the subject of this article is how this jury's verdict was not respected. For whatever reason, this jury was very sadly charmed by Jose Baez and/or the defense team as a whole. And Jose Baez clearly knew (or gambled based on the jury selection) that if he said this idea in opening, knowing he would never prove it, once the idea is out there, the jury may be able to reach to reasonable doubt. They obviously were malliable people. I was shocked they fell for it because I did not and clearly many feel as I do. If this were true, there would have been proof of some sort. And JB would not have been so clumsy, sloppy and underhanded in his defense of her. This was also clearly seen and the judge clearly on many occasions had had it w/ Baez' tricks. In fact, there were many times I along w/ many others felt this would end in a mistrial due to incompetence of the defense or she would easily win an appeal if convicted.
You also say that this was a very "brave" jury because they KNEW how the public would treat a Not Guilty verdict. ON WHAT DO YOU BASE THAT on? Because what I heard from the jurors interviewed was that they were SHOCKED at the effect their verdict had on the public. They said they had NO IDEA people had felt so strongly in her guilt.
All 3 jurors that I heard stated that they "felt" George Anthony was either guilty of something or clearly took part in some sort of cover-up. I ask you, what EVIDENCE was shown that proves this fact? They talked about "evidence" as if it were the holy grail here and yet NOTHING was shown to PROVE that George Anthony was anything but a very distraught, loving, screwed up kind-of-guy, grandfather, that OF COURSE was difficult w/ the prosecution (he did not want to see Casey convicted in the beginning and certainly did not want her to get the death penalty-he did NOT WANT to believe his daughter capable of this-UNTIL much later of course when he was forced to face the horrible truth after the desperation and evil nature of the lie about molestation); and YES he was difficult w/ the defense as well who was accusing this poor man of the most heinous things a father could be accused of. Jennifer Ford says that his bickering with the prosecution and defense led her to believe he was a part of something dastardly. REALLY? It was amazing that she clearly NEVER put herself in George's shoes for a minute to think. This is what you think the public needs to respect? She (along w/ the rest) could not follow what was happening. But so many in this country DID. It enraged people because she should not have been given this awesome, awesome responsibility. The Jury Foreman, when you listen to him, more of the same nonsense. Again, their 'feelings" about George Anthony, based on what EVIDENCE? It was based on lies being perpetrated, not now out of Casey's mouth but out of her defenses. THIS is why so many are angry. Either the jury DID NOT DO THEIR JOB, or during the process of Jury Selection, you all carefully selected people who, like you said were skeptical, (maybe a touch too skeptical, on the level of zany, conspiracy theorists, anti-authority people) who you got lucky to be able to say some had college degrees, some even Masters degrees. But we know that even smart people can be very very naive. (And why BTW, was someone without a college degree selected to be jury foreman among this bunch????-FYI-read Marcia Clark's article on jury sequestration and group dynamics) Like Linda Drane Burdick stated, Casey Anthony is a proven liar, no one has been proven a more documented liar than Casey Anthony. But now the defense wants us to believe that no, Casey is telling the truth NOW, everyone else, is the liar. This nonsense about people grieving differently. There is ONLY 1 reason why someone would have lied the way Casey did starting on June 16, 2008. She had something to hide that she knew would not bode well for her if the truth was discovered. Either there was an accidental killing, in which she knew that if anyone found out about the danger she had put her daughter in it would equate to murder OR she did premeditate the murder of her child for the reasons the prosecution stated.
This article was mostly self-congratulatory and hype. Almost as much hype as the media put out in the build up to the trial. I'm a thirty year police veteran and a homicide detective and while I agree with the article concerning media hype the conduct of the defense in this case reached despicable levels. Part of the problem with the case emerged from the prosecutor overcharging and then seeking the death penalty. This likely created and feeling of dread among the jurors who did not want to see Casey Anthony sentenced to death. I personally don't think the overwhelming evidence of depravity was there that I think needs to be present for a death penalty. I also think that there is argument regarding whether or not there was the deliberation needed for a first degree murder conviction. On the other hand the defense's groundless accusations of molestation of Casey Anthony as a child by her father and the child possibly drowning while under the care of Casey Anthony's father were despicable in every manner. There was not one shred of credible evidence for either of these accusations and Baez knew it. Baez took on this case and disregarded any form of ethics to build pay days for himself in the future. Casey Anthony is absolutely guilty of causing the death of her daughter and depositing her body where it was found. Any person with common sense and reason can see that if they weigh the actual evidence. Casey Anthony was found not guilty by a jury lacking any reason or sensibility but she is certainly not innocent.
Interesting article with some thoughtful commentary. As one who has worked as a criminal prosecutor, as well as a jury consultant, I was especially disappointed with the State of Florida's presentation of its case. Terribly planned and executed, the defense was provided with the opportunity to drive a mack truck through the holes left in the state attorney's case. It did exactly that. As a general rule, few things are more silly than blaming the opposing party or a jury, in vain, for an adverse verdict.
The best lawyers accept responsibility for poor results, realize that they could have done something differently – either with respect to jury selection or trial presentation, and apply the lessons learned. This case does not fall under any exceptions to that maxim, and the government's lawyers should learn to simply accept the verdict gracefully and move on. Prosecutors, of all people, should understand that sometimes very evil people go free on occasion, and that this is simply a byproduct of a society where liberty and trial by jury are still valued. (It is ironic how casually people forget this principle when it is politically or socially inconvenient.) Otherwise, they should find a different area of practice.
Well, I certainly vigorously disagree with the last 2 comments. It is mind blowing to me how people have blamed this prosecution team. Casey Anthony's ACTIONS and LIES during the 31 days spelled out everything you needed to know about this case to understand why she showed consciousness of guilt and was absolutely responsible for the murder. In addition to the jailhouse tapes.I do not understand how people can defend this jury, unless they are saying that the prosecution should have ANTICIPATED their inability to follow the trajectory. I believe there is no way they could have anticipated how inept they were. And people want to blame Jeff Ashton for calling this jury lazy? How would you describe a jury that does not ask for one bit of evidence during deliberations?And ten hours only? In such an important case? Maybe the death penalty was over reaching as I have heard many legal experts say that this was about the pretty white girl syndrome and historically that is a hard pill for jurys to swallow in convicting. But I would have thought the horrific and callous nature of this crime (how did the jury reconcile her phonecall to her family in which all she wanted was her boyfriend Tony's phone #? "OMG, calling you guys? Huge waste!" and…" The only priority with my mom and dad is finding Caylee….long pause….AND so is mine. (This only AFTER she realized what she said)…AND Cindy Anthony's comment "the new story is that caylee drowned in the pool" Casey: "Surprise, Surprise") would have leveled the playing field here. Caylee Marie Anthony was thrown into trash bags people and left to deteriorate in a swamp. Really, and this jury thought that this is logical after an accident takes place? No evidence, AT ALL, was provided that gave this jury any reasonable doubt. Just lies spewed from this defense team. No facts at all, but this is what stayed w/ the jury….Demand IQ TESTS!!! Cold blooded does not even begin to articulate. The Prosecution did their job, the jury DID NOT!
I invite readers to view my Harvard Nieman Foundation for Journalism article on media coverage of the Casey Anthony trial and to listen to my interviews on my website at writerkeith dot com.
Gradually, the evidence and information is being developed that the acquitted defendant is in fact not guilty. The legal system and jury consultants like Richard Gabriel worked incredibly well in an environment of villification against the accused.
Well Done!
The verdict in the Casey Anthony case, analyzed by her trial consultant. How the jury system works in the US. http://t.co/ScAtjI6W