Beware Casey Scamthony

by Levi Page

For the last three years, the country has been transfixed watching the weird antics and dysfunction of the family of murdered Orlando toddler Caylee Anthony. Now each family member seems to be in a battle over who deserves the most sympathy from the court of public opinion, and the jury deciding whether or not Casey Anthony, Caylee's mother, is responsible for her death.

This has caused the Anthony family to split apart, as Casey Anthony throws them under the bus to save her own skin. Formerly her biggest, most vocal, and only supporters, now have targets on their heads, and the defense is aiming right at them, characterizing her family as liars, sexually abusive, intimidating, and the poster family for dysfunction.

The nation watched in amazement as Casey Anthony's lead defense attorney Jose Baez gave his mesmerizing opening statement laying out how Caylee's death wasn't an act of foul play, but rather a tragic accidental drowning in a swimming pool. Baez wanted the jury to believe that Casey Anthony was intimidated by her sexually abusive, ex cop father, to not report the drowning, but to allow him to cover up the death, and dispose of Caylee's dead body. Baez even went so far as to allege that George Anthony was trying to frame Casey Anthony for murders. Jose Baez told the jury that Cindy Anthony was holding around guilt for leaving the ladder to the pool up, where Caylee could get into the pool by herself. Additionally, Baez painted a picture of a young Casey Anthony being forced to go to school as if nothing was wrong, after her father forced her to perform oral sex on him as a child.

It seems as if nobody is safe from being targeted by Casey and her defense team. Even the meter reader who discovered the body of Caylee has been accused by Casey's defense team as being a "morally bankrupt" individual with a thirst for money. The defense team claims Roy Kronk found Caylee's remains where George Anthony dumped them, and then put the remains in the wooded area 15 houses from the Anthony family home.

While the defense team wants us to believe Casey is a victim of her family, it is the other way around. Casey has victimized her family and friends. For example Casey Anthony stole $45,000 from her parents, causing them to almost loose their home. Casey even stole checks from her elderly grandmother, Shirley Plesea. Casey even took advantage of her so called best friend Amy Huizenga, stealing her check book, and then in January of last year pleading guilty to check fraud charges.

I wouldn't want to be connected in any way to Casey Anthony, as it is obvious that she is a self centered narcissistic brat that will scam people, use people, and throw anyone to the wolves in order to save herself, whether her allegations are true or not. Even to people she should love.

I'm not the biggest fan of the Anthony family, but I don't see a shred of evidence that George Anthony disposed of the body, or that he put the duct tape and heart shaped sticker over Caylee's mouth and nose. To the contrary, all the evidence points to Casey Anthony. Is it really reasonable that a male ex cop like George Anthony would put a pink heart shaped sticker over duct tape? That screams Casey Anthony and really fits into her immature personality.

Casey Anthony is a scam artist, constantly lying, constantly using other people, throwing them under the bus, and this current defense strategy is nothing unusual for her. Anyone want to bet that when this trial is over, Casey Anthony will throw her attorney Jose Baez under the bus and accuse him of some sort of misconduct? Anyone that is associated with her in anyway ends up getting stung.

It really shows that nobody is safe when it comes to Casey Anthony... or shall we call her Casey "Scamthony?"

Tweet

Levi Page Guest Posts for WCI Tomorrow

by Levi Page

He’s been a longtime friend of the WCI contributors, and tomorrow, BlogTalk Radio show host and blogger, Levi Page, will guest post here, at Women in Crime Ink. 

Levi started his career as the relatively obscure BlogTalk Radio show host of War on Crime before he catapulted to host of the highly popular Levi Page Show on BlogTalkRadio.com, where Levi and a panel of experts from diverse perspectives give their take on the crime stories that hit home.

Levi has been covering some of the most high profile crime stories since starting his BlogTalk Radio show in 2008, including the Casey Anthony murder case, the Haleigh Cummings investigation, the Kyron Horman investigation, Drew Peterson, Natalee Holloway, and most recently the Holly Bobo case.

Levi's scored exclusive interviews with the people at the center of the most talked about crime stories, including a rare interview with Misty Croslin, the last person to see missing Florida child Haleigh Cummings alive. Levi's passion for justice has earned him a loyal following. In addition to hosting his own show, he has made numerous appearances on HLN’s Issues with Jane Velez-Mitchell, Prime News with Vinnie Politan, and Nancy Grace to discuss high profile investigations and court cases.

You can listen to The Levi Page Show weeknights at 9pm EST/6pm PST at www.blogtalkradio.com/levipage

Tweet

Long Road to Justice for Caylee Anthony

Casey parties after Caylee is gone

by Diane Fanning

This morning, Tuesday at 9 a.m., in an Orange County Courthouse in Orlando, the state of Florida will step to the podium to present the opening arguments in favor of the conviction of Casey Marie Anthony for the murder of her toddler daughter, Caylee Marie Anthony. 

Following that, the defense will present its arguments for a not guilty verdict. Attorney Jose Baez has promised that he will explain why Casey didn't report her daughter missing and answer a lot of other questions in the first three minutes.  Odds are he will claim the death of Caylee was an accident, or he will point the finger of guilt at a member of Casey's immediate family, or perhaps at one of Casey's friends.

The body discovery site

This day of reckoning has been delayed for quite some time. From the moment of Caylee's death in mid-June 2008, her road to justice has been long and full of obstacles. She spent days unnoticed in the trunk of a car driven by her mother, Casey Anthony. She was then dumped in the undergrowth--her location unknown to anyone but her killer.

No one else even knew for nearly five weeks that she was gone.  It was then that her grandmother, Cindy Marie Anthony, reported her missing.  Nearly six months after Caylee was last seen alive, the poor child's decomposed body, with duct tape wrapped around her skull, was found less than half a mile from the Anthony home.

Still, her mother would not admit to what her daughter had done.  She lied again and again and again. Each prevarication more outrageous than the last. And, somehow, Casey seemed to think she would be believed if only she kept lying. 

That string of lies will surely be part of the deliberations of the jury at trial's end.  They'll also consider some controversiaal evidence--the cans of air taken from Casey's car. The defense argued that allowing the jury to smell the contents turns jurors into witnesses. I did not find that argument compelling because it is only a matter of which sense is being invoked. Juries are taken to crime scenes all the time. There they use their eyes to observe. Here the state wants them to use their noses. I can't say that I've seen all that much distance between the two. But as Stacey Dittrich said on the Levi Page Show, the odor from those cans will permeate the area where they are opened. Let's hope for everyone's comfort that they are taken outside to sniff and not expected to smell the odor of decomposition inside a closed space.

Judge Belvin Perry has estimated that the trial will last six to eight weeks.  That length of time seems as optimistic an approximation as his prediction that the jury would be seated in one week; it took twice as long.  Six hundred and forty seven subpoenas have been issued to witnesses--an enormous, time-consuming number. Even if only half of them are called to the stand, it's hard to believe it could be all over before the end of July.  At this point, there is really no way of knowing how long this trial will last.

From June of 2008 until May of 2011 is a long time--nearly three years after Caylee Anthony died. By the time the trial is over, we will be near the date that would have been Caylee's sixth birthday. She's waited a long time for justice. Let's hope Caylee Anthony finds it in the courtroom of Judge Perry.

Diane Fanning is the author of the best-selling Mommy's Little Girl, the only book about the death of Caylee Anthony. Watch for updates about the Anthony case on Diane Fanning's blog, Writing is a Crime,

Tweet

Acting Irrationally and Being Radical Doesn't Help Crime and Its Victims

by Stacy Dittrich

Last year, I received an email from an inmate in an Illinois maximum security prison who had been convicted of child murder. Of course, he was wrongly accused and told me, “you need to write my story.” In my own deranged way I was somewhat flattered that a complete stranger chose me. My first novel had just been released and I could’ve patted myself on the back and said, “Voila! I’ve finally arrived as a successful writer, now people are coming to me to write their stories!” Now, after having my eyes opened to the plethora of the strange and unusual thrown my way, I think back to that day and shudder. In fact, receiving an email from a convicted murderer is one of the simpler requests I receive. I’ve learned, undeniably, there is a large cult-like following out there in cyberspace—on the blogs, in the forums, and in the instant messages—they are the radical crime followers and victim’s advocates.

For those of us that live on the surface of reality, and whose professional lives are involved in the criminal justice system, to those who impatiently wait for the next Women in Crime Ink contributor’s novel or true crime to hit the stands, it’s merely a job or a healthy interest. But there is growing factions of bloggers, advocates, and activists that put the word “healthy” aside, and embark on a mission of hell fire to aid victims or solve a case before the cops. And, there is nothing that will stop them in completing this “mission” either.

This was a new world to me. I understood the criminals that we define by their lengthy police record. The armed robbers, burglars, rapists, vandals, thieves, and stalkers were within the realm of comprehension as a police officer. As a writer with a law enforcement background, the playing field changed drastically. I’ve spoken to several of the WCI contributors—and many others lately about this topic. After hearing their own stories, and a slight chuckle, I felt like a naïve buffoon.

All of their stories were the same as my own.

I receive many requests to “look into cases.” Some are clearly written by those that mirror L. Ron Hubbard’s affliction for aliens, but once in awhile, I come across one or two that actually read legitimate. Say for instance, I receive a well written email from a professional business person claiming to have stumbled across compelling evidence in a high profile case. Okay, I keep reading. In fact, I even decide after a lengthy criminal background check (clean as a whistle)and references that their “evidence” is solid and meet them in person. Ignoring all of the red flags I learned as a law enforcement officer—the ones that scream “Get out now! Save yourself!” I keep going. When I get to something that doesn’t make sense, this person becomes angry, irrational.

To make a long story short, this lonely person followed a high profile case, minute by minute for years. After becoming a self-proclaimed “expert” they literally formed relationships—close ones, with the family members of the victims, the suspect, and law enforcement. Now, they wanted to cash in. Throughout the entire ordeal, I kept asking myself, “Who does this? Who spends every waking minute and thousands of dollars of their own money following a case and becoming a part of it?” (Calling Pat Brown, insert profile please). The ultimate outcome was that this person had banded together with several people close to the suspect. It’s my opinion they wanted their “evidence” published into the public to throw the media attention towards someone else. It was completely foreign to me. And, the elaborate and meticulous planning of it was a little frightening.

When you look at the growing debacle of the Caylee Anthony case and those who are trying to cash in and insert themselves for fame, reassurance, or unknown reasons (Leonard Padilla) I can only imagine the wealth of at-home-super-sleuths that feverishly write law enforcement and true crime writers claiming to have the “golden ticket.” They believe their intelligence is unsurpassed. They have graduated Magna Cum Laude from the University of NYPD Blue and CSI: Miami. Ladies and Gentlemen, I give you the cyberspace conspiracy theorists.

Granted, in my days of street patrol I would get slightly irked when someone would demand that I perform a DNA test on a broken porch light because they know for a fact it can be done—they saw it on television. When I ask them if they are willing to foot the $10,000 bill for such a test on a minor misdemeanor they quietly go inside. In cyberspace it is a far greater scale.

Then come the irrational and self-proclaimed victim’s advocates. These are the people who have known a crime victim and feel the need to speak on their behalf. This is a wonderful thing, actually. However, it’s when groups of them band together and target well known victim’s advocates who are frequently in the media, things get a little harried. If the advocate isn’t working fast enough or to their standards, they begin to blast district attorneys, blogs, news media, and forums with hate mail—sometimes violent. In their own minds they believe they are getting their voices heard. I have seen this on Facebook; some “questionable” pages are bombarded with death threats, harassment, and violent intimations—usually from the same people or groups. These people, like the "radical" crime conspiracy theorists, can’t be rationalized with—it’s their way or the highway. Try to explain a documented and legitimate fact of a case to them and all hell breaks loose.

What these radical theorists and advocates don’t realize, and clearly don’t want to hear, is that they are doing far more damage to current crime cases and victims voices than helping them.
There is a right way to do things, and a wrong way, whether or not your intentions are the same.

It’s rather unfortunate that in my own pile of emails I have received some genuine pleas for voices to be heard, but it’s the others that take up my time and cloud my vision. The family of Davina Buff Jones was one of those “genuine” pleas, and I was more than happy to spread their heart wrenching—and legitimate, story. And, a few similar ones still remain.

The Internet has allowed us to bring the world of crime to those “healthy” followers via blogs, forums, and Internet radio. Women in Crime Ink showcases a bevy of women who are “in the know,” and makes them accessible to our readers. Blogtalk Radio shows like The Dana Pretzer Show, The Levi Page Show, and my own Justice Interrupted provide a wealth of knowledge and insight to those who want to kick back, grab a glass of wine, and listen. We all have our faithful listeners who chime in from time to time and whom we look forward to seeing in our chat rooms each week. But every once in awhile . . .

To readers and listeners of blogs, most of us love controversy and heated debates, but we don’t warm too well to comments where one hopes something bad happens to one of our kids because we didn’t jump on your cause.

The cold-hearted truth is that if you have no law enforcement or criminal justice experience, chances are you didn’t figure something out that the cops weren’t aware of and they probably won't take your phone calls or emails. But, have fun blogging about your theories, that's what they're for! We all theorize on crimes, the majority of us just happen to do it rationally. Lastly, if you know a crime victim and feel that by using bully tactics you will get their voice heard louder—chances are you are hurting the one you love even more.

Try sleeping on that for awhile.

Tweet