~Casey Anthony~

I have to say that I am shocked and appalled at the number of people who are behaving so viciously and illogically in response to the verdict of 'not guilty' in the Casey Anthony murder trial. I watched most of the ACTUAL TRIAL and am completely disgusted with the media, particularly people like douche bag, drama queen Nancy Grace, who did nothing more than inflame the public with a lynch mob mentality, stretch the truth and inject their own opinions rather than behaving like the unbiased journalistic professionals they are supposed to be. I'm dismayed that some of my friends and acquaintances who obviously have limited knowledge concerning the law or how the American justice system works have followed the media circus instead of following the actual evidence and have drawn inaccurate conclusions based on speculation rather than solid evidence. For clarification, I hold a certificate as a trained paralegal though it isn't a profession that I choose to practice but I do understand the justice system, the law, the trail of evidence and what is involved in legal research, and again, my opinions are based on observance of the ACTUAL TRIAL and the evidence presented in the trial not on the biased nonsense that was constantly spouted on HLN.

The facts are that the state had no physical evidence to connect Casey Anthony to her daughter's murder, in fact, they could not even prove that Caylee Anthony was, in fact, murdered at all. There was absolutely no evidence of physical trauma to the child's skeletal remains to suggest that there had ever been any child abuse inflicted upon her, nor were there any witnesses that could testify that she had ever suffered from child abuse in any form. There was no evidence to suggest that chloroform had ever been used on the child and there was no evidence that the duct tape was actually on the child before she died, and the tape actually belonged to and was linked only to George Anthony, not Casey. The cause of death, as determined by autopsy, is 'unknown,' therefore, they cannot prove whether she was killed or died accidentally. The only link to premeditation came from computer searches on 'chloroform' and a few other suspicious search terms on the FAMILY computer that everyone in that house had access to, and again, there was no evidence that chloroform was ever used, nor was chloroform or any ingredients contained in chloroform ever found in Casey Anthony's possession. Only one hair was found in the trunk of the car which could have belonged to anyone on the maternal side of the Anthony family and the accuracy of scientific tests on that hair were in question. Also, her parents had access to the car. George and Cindy Anthony's credibility was in serious doubt after the prosecution proved that Cindy was at work when she testified to making the computer searches on chloroform, and George Anthony's mistress testified in open court that she had an affair with him which he denied. Witnesses that testified about the computer searches and witnesses that testified about forensic pathology and anthropology were brought into question as well, and their theories were either disproven or cast with doubt. Knowing all of this, how can anyone possibly believe that there was inadequate reasonable doubt for a not guilty verdict? The state did not prove it's case!

The jury in the Casey Anthony murder trial was sequestered for the entire length of the trial so they were not allowed to talk to anyone or discuss the trial; even with each other, they had no access to social media, computers, television or newspapers so they were protected from the ridiculous media coverage that was more speculation than truth, therefore, they did not suffer from the delusions that the media seems to have inflicted on so many people who didn't watch the ACTUAL TRIAL and attempt to weigh the evidence fairly and without prejudice and then follow the law in determining the verdict which is the job of a jury member. One of the jurors is a man who specializes in IT work so he could easily have deciphered that the computer evidence was sketchy at best. There was a cook and chef that have likely been exposed to the process of rotting food which could have cast doubt on the validity of the smell of decomposition in the car as opposed to the smell of rotting garbage which was actually found in the car. At least two jurors have ties to law enforcement, one works with child welfare and one is a counselor. All of them brought something to the process and all of them were chosen by BOTH sides and they were REQUIRED to follow the law in their determination.

Let me just clarify that in my personal opinion and based on the evidence presented at trial, I do believe that Casey Anthony is responsible for her daughter's death because she failed to protect her and keep her safe which resulted in her death, but I do not believe that she actually took Caylee Anthony's life out of some warped desire to be free of her so that she could party. That's a bizarre theory because it was well proven that Caylee's grandmother worshipped her and would have taken responsibility for her without question if Casey had wanted to walk away and do as she pleased for the rest of her life as any loving grandmother would. Murder would not have been necessary in order for Casey to free herself from her daughter and every witness that knew them said that Casey had a very good relationship with Caylee and was a good mother. There is absolutely no motive! Let me also say that as a grandmother, there is absolutely no way that I would have allowed my daughter to keep my grandchild from me for 31 days without seeing her, especially considering that the child lived in the home of the grandparents so the fact that they did not contact police before an entire month had passed leads me to believe that they are involved in some sinister way in covering up what really happened to Caylee but I do believe it was an accident that spiraled out of control. The point is, the grandparents are just as responsible for waiting so long and going on with their lives as Casey is. They may not have been out partying like Casey was, but that's what Casey did normally in her life and her parents went on doing what they normally do.

You also have to consider that in the defense team's opening statements, they made the accusation that George Anthony had been sexually abusing Casey since she was a small child and that Caylee had drowned in the family pool and George found her and started screaming at Casey that it was her fault and that her mother would never forgive her and that she would go to prison for the rest of her life. It was suggested that George said that he would take care of it and told Casey not to say anything to anyone because there was a danger that either George or Casey's brother, Lee, could have been the father of the child and that was not something they wanted to come out. George Anthony was a detective, a trained law enforcement officer who knew how to hide evidence, who understood the devastating effect that decomposition has on evidence and who could have made sure that there wasn't much left of Caylee to examine by the time she was found. He also understood that if DNA proved that he was the father of his granddaughter, he could be facing prison himself. The defense didn't prove any of these things definitively, and both George and Lee were excluded as Caylee's biological father, but the defense planted the seed in the mind of the jurors that Casey Anthony was an abused child who became a pathological liar as a result of the abuse and it created reasonable doubt. No one knows if this is true or not, but it is a possibility and the jury had to consider it because it was put out there and no one knows what that would do to a person. Being a liar does not make a person a murderer.

For anyone who has had any actual experience with the American justice system, or even for those of you who watch courtroom drama on prime time television, you know that the prosecution will do or say anything just for a conviction. They often lose sight of the real issue of who killed the victim and their only interest becomes in convicting the person they 'think' did it. They have no real interest in justice, but rather in a conviction rate that boosts their careers and if it happens to be a high profile case, all the better. The defense is not obligated to prove anything as everyone in the United States is presumed to be innocent until proven guilty in a court of law and it is the burden of the prosecution to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.

A jury's responsibility is to weigh the evidence and follow the law in order to reach a verdict and in my opinion, that's what the jury did in the Casey Anthony trial. I'm truly appalled at how many people I've seen make comments about wanting this young woman dead for a crime that could not be proven based on solid evidence. I'm disgusted with the media attacks and speculative evidence they have used to launch those attacks and I'm disgusted with all the people who are basing their opinions on television shows such as 'Nancy Grace' rather than on the actual evidence as presented at trial. If they didn't care enough about this trial to watch the ACTUAL TRIAL, then they are sadly misinformed and I'm ashamed to even know people like this. As American citizens, we all have an inalienable right to a trial by jury but when the general public doesn't trust the judgment of the jury system and allows the media to bias their opinions to the point of wishing death on someone who has been judged to be innocent of the crime for which they are accused, then there is no justice and those people are every bit as bad as they claim the defendant in this case is. Casey Anthony has been convicted in the media and most people only hear the garbage spouted on the evening news which interjects the opinions of reporters into their minds, causing them to misconstrue hearsay and speculation as actual evidence. She will NEVER have a normal life again because she will always be thought of as a child killer no matter where she goes or what she does. She won't be able to go out partying ever again, she won't be able to get a job, she won't be able to walk down the street or go shopping or do anything that normal people do, no one will ever trust her again or believe in her again. She will live her life out in fear and in her own private hellish prison with the majority of the world hating her and wanting her to die because they don't have a clue what she has lived through or what the truth really is and the saddest thing is that most of the people that I've seen that so adamantly want her to die, claim to be 'Christians' and I find that very disturbing!

I've never been a person to take the path of least resistance and I've never cared how many people disagree with my opinions and I've never been shy about expressing my opinions. I am proud to say that I never base my opinions on popular belief or just to 'fit in' and I only express my opinion in terms as strong as this after much research and factual evidence has been presented to convince me as an intelligent, reasonable adult, of the truth. NO ONE would put themselves through the hate-filled media circus that this case created from the time Caylee was reported missing if they were truly guilty of killing their own child and callously disposing of her body in a swamp after raising and loving her for almost three years. Casey would have cracked long ago and confessed if she had truly done that just to avoid the hell that she and her family were put through but she stood firm about not killing Caylee even though she knew that the entire world hated her and wanted her dead and that it would be necessary to tear her family apart and expose them to allegations that they will never live down. I don't think there is any doubt that she was responsible for the child's death and was a party in covering it up or that she lied to authorities but the state was so focused on a first degree murder charge and getting the death penalty that they over-charged her and lost almost completely. This case could not be judged based on personal experiences or in comparison with other high profile cases and it certainly could not be judged based on media hype! Shame on those of you who judged her based on anything but the actual evidence as presented in the trial and shame on the prosecution for being so greedy for power and attention that they charged her incorrectly and blew the case. I hope that none of you ever face a situation in your own lives where justice becomes impossible to obtain due to circumstantial evidence, hearsay and speculation, whether it be in a court of law or in your own personal life.

~Independence Day~

Independence Day

Independence Day is the national holiday of the United States of America commemorating the signing of the Declaration of Independence by the Continental Congress on July 4, 1776, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

At the time of the signing the US consisted of 13 colonies under the rule of England's King George III. There was growing unrest in the colonies concerning the taxes that had to be paid to England. This was commonly referred to as "Taxation without Representation" as the colonists did not have any representation in the English Parliament and had no say in what went on. As the unrest grew in the colonies, King George sent extra troops to help control any rebellion. In 1774 the 13 colonies sent delegates to Philadelphia Pennsylvania to form the First Continental Congress. The delegates were unhappy with England, but were not yet ready to declare war.

In April 1775 as the King's troops advanced on Concord Massachusetts Paul Revere would sound the alarm that "The British are coming, the British are coming" as he rode his horse through the late night streets.

The battle of Concord and its "shot heard round the world" would mark the unofficial beginning of the colonies war for Independence.

The following May the colonies again sent delegates to the Second Continental Congress. For almost a year the congress tried to work out its differences with England, again without formally declaring war.

By June 1776 their efforts had become hopeless and a committee was formed to compose a formal declaration of independence. Headed by Thomas Jefferson, the committee included John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, Robert R. Livingston and Roger Sherman. Thomas Jefferson was chosen to write the first draft which was presented to the congress on June 28. After various changes a vote was taken late in the afternoon of July 4th. Of the 13 colonies, 9 voted in favor of the Declaration, 2 - Pennsylvania and South Carolina voted No, Delaware undecided and New York abstained.

To make it official John Hancock, President of the Continental Congress, signed the Declaration of Independence. It is said that John Hancock signed his name "with a great flourish" so "King George can read that without spectacles!."

The following day copies of the Declaration were distributed. The first newspaper to print the Declaration was the Pennsylvania Evening Post on July 6, 1776. On July 8th the Declaration had its first public reading in Philadelphia's Independence Square. Twice that day the Declaration was read to cheering crowds and pealing church bells. Even the bell in Independence Hall was rung. The "Province Bell" would later be renamed "Liberty Bell" after its inscription -

Proclaim Liberty Throughout All the Land Unto All the Inhabitants Thereof

And although the signing of the Declaration was not completed until August, the 4th of July has been accepted as the official anniversary of United States independence. The first Independence Day celebration took place the following year - July 4 1777. By the early 1800s the traditions of parades, picnics, and fireworks were established as the way to celebrate America's birthday. And although fireworks have been banned in most places because of their danger, most towns and cities usually have big firework displays for all to see and enjoy.

~I hope all of my family and friends have a safe and happy 4th of July weekend~