Fair Trial?

Of course Casey's Jose Baez wants to move for a different area to get a different jury. Anybody would want to do this, of course. However, I think that at this point it would be rather difficult to find anywhere on the continent that doesn't have a biased, skewed view on this case. The cause of this problem: the media. This case has been covered and covered over and over again. Everybody everywhere knows all about this case. Except they don't know the real facts. Nobody does. Casey hasn't been speaking. The only possible person that knows the truth is Jose Baez.

There is much speculation and assumption as to what happened. The truth is that nobody really knows what happened exactly in detail. If Casey is responsible for her daughter's death, then she should be punished with much prison time. However, if it was an accident, and she didn't know what to do afterwards, so she tried to hide it, then does she deserve the death penalty? Less people would be likely to jump and say yes. Take it one step further, and say she is legitimately mentally ill, then maybe she doesn't deserve such a harsh punishment. Perhaps she shouldn't have been allowed to have a child and keep it in her custody because she is mentally ill.

What I'm saying here is that the media is not allowing the case play out the way the system was designed to let it. Media is creating a smoke and mirrors kind of effect, manipulating what details they want to release to the public to evoke a certain kind of persona for Casey. In reality, there is alot going on behind the scenes that we don't even see, or know. For this reason, a fair trial with an unbiased jury would be extremely difficult to ascertain.

Law And Order: SVU Exploits

Though the Law & Order series is notorious for taking real life cases and twisting them into their own story, I think this is a bit much. I don't regularly watch the show, but of course it was talked about in the media an aweful lot. It's one thing for the news to exploit a story, but a television show to exploit it before it's even over? I think it's too soon.

One thing, at least, that I find interesting is that (be prepared for a spoiler) in the episode the Casey Anthony like character was not even the culprit. Which in my opinion provides a commentary on what the media truly thinks of the current situation. Though they are quick to exploit this breaking story, at the heart of it, they ultimately think that she is not guilty. Despite the news painting this picture of an evil mom, who is still maintaining that she is not guilty.

It seems that even Nancy Grace thinks that Law & Order is taking advantage of the issue. Maybe it's just taking away from her proverbial cake.

State Flip Flops on Death Sentence

It appears that the state of Florida can't seem to make up it's mind on the death sentence for Casey Anthony. On the 13th of April the state attorney signed a notice of intent stating that they will now be seeking the death penalty for Casey. The letter is available for all to see here. Looks like the reason they're changing their minds is to get notorious lawyer, Jose Baez, off the case as he is not certified to defend a capital punishment case.

Taking these steps to dismiss her current lawyer effectively nullifies her ability to choose her defense attorney, does it not? To put that another way, would O.J. Simpson have gotten away with it if they had taken Johnnie Cochrane off the case? Most likely not. This could essentially determine the outcome of her case.

So far that seems to be all this is about. A three ringed media circus convincing viewers that Casey is already guilty before the trial begins. What ever happened to rights? The right to a fair trial? The right to her attorney?

Justice Demands Integrity

The death sentence is not a punishment, but an irreversible penalty that should never be used, regardless of circumstance. I began to wonder whether this is just an American phenomenon, or if it is particularly localized in certain states. Upon doing a little bit of research, I realized that Florida has the second highest death row in all of the United States. This cannot be a coincidence. As well, over 80% of executions in the U.S. take place in the southern states. [http://www.deathpenaltyinfo.org/FactSheet.pdf].

What is the difference between multiple life sentences and death row? Simply that one is more immediate than the other. The problem with that instant gratification is that there is always the possibility that the convict was found to be wrongfully guilty. With the media frenzy that has follows such high profile cases as these, the reality of the case often gets blurred and blown out of proportion, and subsequently impairs the judgment of everyone from onlookers, lawyers, prosecutors, jurors and even judges.

The death penalty may offer a seemingly instantaneous solution to the problem, but at what cost? Integrity.

Casey Anthony Avoids Death Sentence

So, today it has been brought to my attention that Casey has 'escaped' the death sentence. In light of the Nancy Grace show, they appear to be treating this as a negative approach. Despite the fact that Nancy Grace evokes this Christian persona, she still sees this news as a negative thing.

Firstly, I think this is great news. The death penalty is antiquated and barbaric, with an eye for an eye sort of outlook. This is not justice. This is childish and serves absolutely no purpose. Secondly, many murderers have gotten off with less than the death sentence. Why should Casey receive any worse of a punishment? She is still holding her stance that she held in the beginning. If she is legitimately psychologically unstable, then is killing her the right path to pursue? I think that everybody should agree that it is not. If we do, should we start executing every person who is mentally unstable? No. That is absolutely absurd, and so is this.

As much as we would like for there to be justice, I don't think that we, as a society are ready to make a judgment on this case. It's a commentary on our society to see exactly how people react to the death sentence of somebody who may or may not have even committed a such a crime.

Nancy Grace appears to relish in the suffering of the Anthony family. To me, this is the face of evil, and not the Anthony family as so many other people seem to think. I think we need to step outside of this bubble and look at it in the grand scheme of things. Two wrongs don't make a right, ever. Lock up Casey if you will, but don't take her life away. One life is just as precious as the next, regardless of age, or circumstance. At a time like this, we should not be looking to find a punishment we see fit, but wait for that punishment to come in time. We are not even sure how to deal with this situation. No judge could possibly make a reasonable decision when it comes to this, but at least we should spare her life.

Just a thought

I realize that alot of people tend to have hate for the mother, Casey Anthony. Although she has been indicted, I would just like for people not to wish anybody else any more harm. While the tragedy is tremendously horrific, I think that we should reflect, and not assert judgment. Unfortunately the blog hasn't been generating as much feedback as I had hoped. I implore everyone who visits to make a vote on the poll and to make a comment about the ways we can prevent media from further exploiting the tragedy.

Hypocrisy of Media

I just finished reading about the recent controversy with the Caylee Sunshine doll when I saw an article about the Orlando, Florida ban Biteboy!. Who are accused of exploiting the death of Caylee Anthony. The article, found at this link that contains excerpts from interviews with the band. Upon hearing the song, I don't think the band is wrongfully exploiting the death any more than Nancy Grace has been, other than the fact that she is making millions off of the tragedy, and that everybody seems to be okay with that.
The song in question, "Caseys Song (Wine Sick Mind)", doesn't even seem to exploit the Anthony family except for in its title. In fact, it even seems to reflect the very ideology that Nancy Grace is forcing upon her millions of viewers : Casey Anthony's assumed guilt. If anything, the lyrics "I can't make it go away, You can have all your money, soaked in blood" could be interpreted as exposing the mass media for the crooks that they are. The media can't simply be told to go away. It's a multi-million dollar business, even if it comes at the cost of a child's death.
Just another example of the hypocrisy of the media.