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Thursday, June 23, 2011

I’ve been following the case against Casey Anthony since it broke on Nancy Grace all the way back in July of 2008.  I started watching for two reasons:  1.  I love Nancy Grace.    and 2.  The incident was unfolding in Orlando, FL and my daughter was scheduled to leave with her father for Disney World the same week we first heard about Casey and Caylee Anthony. If you have been following the case and can remember back that far you will remember that when the case first broke it did indeed look like a kidnapping and far be it for me as a mom to let my daughter travel from Ohio to Florida with a kidnapper on the loose right in the vicinity of my daughter’s vacation destination.  I continued following the case for one reason…the second the TV flashed an image of 2 year old Caylee Anthony (the victim in the case for those of you who do not know) my heart broke knowing that this child was either missing and in danger or no longer with us.

 

Caylee Anthony

 

As a mother it hits close to home when you hear of another child missing or being murdered and it definitely tugged at my heart strings.  Of course when it was announced in December of 2008 that the body of Caylee Anthony had been found I , like many people, immediately concluded that Casey Anthony was guilty.  Without getting into all of the details of the case (and for those of you who have not been following the case you can easily Google the case and find out everything you ever wanted to know about this girl, her family, and the craziness that seems to consume every aspect of her life) I will say that as a viewer the evidence against Casey is damaging…very damaging…come on who doesn’t report their child missing for 31 days? 

 

When the trial started we were immediately shocked by the defense’s opening statement alleging that Caylee hadn’t been taken at all that instead she had drown in the family pool and that George Anthony (Casey’s dad and Caylee’s grandfather) had helped cover the death up and of course the allegations that both Casey’s father George and Casey’s brother Lee had sexually abused Casey when she was younger, but for the most part the rest of the evidence and testimony was what we (as followers of the case) had expected to see and hear.  But today when the defense called Cindy Anthony, Casey Anthony’s mother I never expected to hear what I heard. 

 

For years we’ve heard evidence that there were computer searches on the Anthony family home computer for “chloroform”, “neckbreaking”, “how to make chloroform” and so on the year that Caylee died and for years we had heard that Caylee was the only person at home when those searches were conducted, but today Cindy Anthony took the stand and basically told the prosecution that she was the one who had conducted the computer searches for chloroform…my mouth dropped…literally.  Cindy then goes on to tell the jury that the infamous stain in the trunk of Casey’s car (which is thought to be the result of Caylee’s body being kept in the trunk for a period of time) was there when they bought the car.  The problem with this testimony you ask?  Well, Cindy Anthony has never said these things before, in fact she admitted in a deposition in 2009 that she searched for “chlorophyll” on the computer, but not chloroform.  Am I the only one who thinks something’s fishy?  In my opinion Cindy has already lost her granddaughter and now she risks losing her daughter (to execution) as well and the last thing that she wants is to lose them both.  I think that Cindy is trying everything that she can as a mother to save her daughter’s life.

 

As both a mother and an avid follower of this trial I’m torn.  On one hand I would like to believe that I would never find myself in this kind of situation because to be honest I’m not sure what I would do if I were.  I would like to think that I would do whatever was humanly possible to save my child, but I don’t know what I would do if my child were the accused and my grandchild was the victim, it would be a heart wrenching decision to say the least.

 

So that brings me to the real reason for my post.  Would you lie to save your child’s life?  Even if all of the evidence points to your child being guilty of murdering their own child?

9 comments :

  1. Tough question, but right is right and wrong is wrong. I would tell the truth. However, at sentencing I would plead to the court to spare my child's life. Based on the way the mother has behaved, I can see why Casey is so screwed up. I think she was never taught the life lessons at home that one must be responsible for their actions. I have a nephew like that. I love him dearly but he breaks the laws so he has done some prison time. I still love him but being in prison was where he needed to be because he made a consious decision to disobey the law. Had he killed someone, I would not lie for him, but I sure would beg to have his life spared.

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  2. Growing up we lived next door to a boy who once he left home was arrested for killing a girl who lived in his complex. I was young and did not keep up with all the details, but we spent lots of time in their home, and he took me and my sister places. It was hard to believe he could have killed another human being. I guess we just cannot rely on our own judgement, and really know what someone is really capable, so my point is...I am not surprised at what is going on. We do have to realize, most harm is done by family members...at least its what authorities have told us. Are we capable of killing...yes...should we lie for a loved one...no...but we are only human.

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  3. I have to agree with you both!

    While I love my children and know that I would do anything and everything in my power to protect them at all times and in every situation as Debra put it right is right and wrong is wrong! I think that it's my job as a mother to teach them the difference between the two and hope and pray that they take those teachings to heart in everything that they do. If they choose as adults to do the wrong things then the consequences are something that they would have to deal with and while I would never lie for them in this kind of situation I would do whatever I had to to ensure that their life was spared.

    That said I can't begin to imagine the pain and anguish that the whole Anthony family has been and will continue to go through. And while I don't agree with what Cindy Anthony did on the stand today (if, in fact, she did lie) I do understand why she did it. She's a mother watching as the whole world prosecutes her daughter...it's a mother's natural instinct to protect her child and that's what's she's doing, though I do think if she did do those searches she should have most definitely came out and admitted to it before now that's what makes the whole thing look fishy!

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  4. I agree with both you girls as well! This case is tragic in so many ways.

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  5. I love Nancy Grace too and have been watching the trial everyday! I couldn't believe it when I hearrd that today! If one of my children killed anyone let alone their own child I would never lie to save them EVER>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

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  6. Such a controversial question, one I've not contemplated until your prompt. Bottom line, for me, is this: I would not lie so that my child would avoid legitimate societal punishment as consequences for his actions, BUT, I would lie in order to keep my child from being killed by the state. My caveat here though, is that (especially after watching this trial) I would not want the life of my child placed in the hands of twelve of his 'peers' (much less this joke of a defense attorney and that includes the prosecutors too. Watching this trial is like watching people with room-temp IQ's; it's horrifying to watch the amateurs in charge. These are professionals? Even the judge ...never in a million years would I leave the fate of my child up to him or this group of "professionals".)

    That being said, I am a strident advocate of right vs wrong, but this then begs the question, "How wrong is it, as a mother, to want to save the life of your child, at whatever cost?" Is this a lie/transgression that can be forgiven?

    Beyond that, I want to add that I'm on the same page as Debra in comment one re Cindy Anthony ...the pathology evident in the psyche of the mother is very troubling and that, in and of itself, will be evident to any rational thinking member of that jury and will serve as a mitigating factor in the mind of such a person when determining punishment.

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  7. Sharon I agree completely! I think as parents, or more specifically as mothers, it is just in our DNA to do whatever we have to do to protect our children, if that means lying to save their lives then for me, I'm not above doing it...without a doubt.

    That said I don't think I would come up with a story 3 years after the fact in order to try to save my child's life. I would however, have done whatever was humanly possible, including placing the blame on myself, from day 1 if that meant that my child would not be in a situation where he/she was fighting for his/her life.

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  8. No, I don't think I would. It would be very hard to have to testify in a trial like that, but still, no, I would not lie.

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  9. No way! I have been following this case at times. This entire family is messed. First of all, if she did indeed drown...it was an accident so there would be nothing to cover. Why would her dad help cover it, lie and then be accused of sexually molesting Casey.
    Nope..an innocent child has died. Her mom is clearly a psychopath or a sociopath ...she didn't report her missing, she didn't grieve and she was partying it up.
    And..she is under oath and still lying.. Nope..no wonder Casey turned out so messed up

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