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Posted from my iPhone so I apologize for the crappy format of this post.

Yesterday morning, the verdict came in, in the Casey Anthony murder trial. For those who REALLY have been under a rock, Casey Anthony is the mother of 2-year-old Caylee Anthony, the little girl who disappeared in 2008. Her mother did not report the little girl missing for an entire month. Apparently, after she reported the girl missing, six months went by before authorities located little Caylee’s body.

At that, as if the media wasn’t all over this story by then, things almost literally blew up with accusations, armchair crime scene investigators’ “expert” analysis of the situation, and so forth. After deliberating for 11 hours, the jury came back with a Not Guilty verdict for murder.

As if I needed to tell you, the interwebz a’sploded with outrage! Things like, “I’m sickened by the verdict this morning!” and many claims that the system failed were all over the place.

The prosecution did land a few smaller jabs, though, because they did get Casey Anthony found guilty of four misdemeanor counts:

“…of lying to investigators who were looking into the June 2008 disappearance of Caylee. She lied about being employed at Universal Studios. She lied about leaving Caylee with a baby-sitter, then again when she recounted to investigators that she had told two imaginary people that Caylee was missing. She also lied about receiving a phone call from Caylee the day before she was reported missing.”

Source: Anthony trial: Lack of evidence or good defense?

I posted on Facebook and Twitter my views on the verdict, by simply saying, “Just because the verdict wasn’t what you wanted, does not mean justice wasn’t served.” That comment, was not well received.

People sent me public and private messages, outraged at what I wrote and claimed they didn’t understand why I said it or how I could “care less about that little girl.” It’s almost like they don’t know me at all!

One commenter, even went so far as to compare this trial and lack of a Guilty verdict to the case of the West Memphis Three, saying, “Our court system is there to protect! What about WM3 ??? Hmmmm. ” To me, drawing similarities between this case, and one where three men have been serving life sentences and/or death penalties for the past 15 years, after they were arrested, charged and convicted of a brutal triple homicide, with not even a creditable shred of physical evidence or solid eye-witness testimony, is pretty insane. And my reply to the commenter was basically, just that:

Yes, she was charged with murder. Yes, she did things that were in very poor judgement and highly questionable. That alone does not make one guilty of murder. Had the Prosecution presented evidence that was more than perceived ordors and inferred meanings of photographs, they might have gotten the outcome everyone wanted.

You mentioned the West Memphis Three; just like them, she was accused of murder yet there was no substantial evidence brought before the jury. Circumstantial evidence alone cannot – and should not – be used to convict someone of murder. The West Memphis Three have been behind bars for over 15 years based on convictions of since-recanted testimonies, zero physical evidence, etc.

Do we want that same result for Casey Anthony?

What it really comes down to is this: The prosecution had nothing more to base their accusations off of, than circumstantial evidence and inferred meanings behind actions and photographs. With an opposition like that, all the defense needed to do was demonstrate how flimsy that type of evidence really could be and that, while Casey was found guilty of lying and some shady behavior, that in and of itself does not prove, beyond the shadow of a doubt, that she murdered her little girl.

The government failed to establish how 2-year-old Caylee Anthony died and they couldn’t find her mother’s DNA on the duct tape they said was used to suffocate her. There was conflicting testimony on whether the putrid smell inside the family’s car was a decomposing body or simply trash, and it was never quite clear why chloroform was so important.

The lack of evidence and the doubt raised by the defense – that Caylee accidentally drowned in the family’s pool – was enough to win an acquittal. After a trial of a month and a half, the jury took less than 11 hours to find Anthony not guilty of first-degree murder, aggravated manslaughter and aggravated child abuse.

Source: Anthony trial: Lack of evidence or good defense?

So, what do you think? Do you agree with the jury’s verdict?

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ARKANSAS SUPREME COURT Opinions delivered October 29, 2009 CR08-1493. Damien Wayne Echols v. State of Arkansas, from Craighead Circuit, Western District. Appellant’s motion for order staying appeal and remanding for further proceedings regarding …

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By George Jared JONESBORO — She had two pieces of candy in her hand, one for her son Stevie, and the other for her daughter Amanda. Leaving work at a West Memphis restaurant at 9 p.m. May 5, 1993, Pam Hobbs walked up to her husband’s car. Insid…

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Last year, curator Jenny Schlenzka had the chance to curate “Through A Glass Darkly,” the opening exhibition of RedLine, a promising not-profit contemporary art space in Denver. While working there, Schlenzka and fellow artist Jen DeNike disco…

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By George Jared JONESBORO — Neighbors of three West Memphis 8-year-olds who were murdered in 1993 have come forward, claiming they saw the juveniles around the time they disappeared. And the new revelations conflict with statements made by one …

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Link to KTHV In light of new developments in the West Memphis Three case, Lorri Davis visits Today's THV to talk about the case. Three 8-year-old boys murdered, three teens convicted. In the last 16 years, the West Memphis Three case has had m…

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Link to story on KTHV Neighbors say they saw Stevie Branch, Christopher Byers and Michael Moore with Branch's stepfather, Terry Hobbs, just before their disappearance. It's a claim Damien Echols believes helps his case for a new trial. Three…

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http://www.todaysthv.com/news/local/story.aspx?storyid=92528&catid=2 One day after defense attorneys announced a new development in 1993's so-called West Memphis Three case, the other side is telling their side. The defense says neighbors say the…

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