Wondering how Casey Anthony could be found "not guilty?" Asking questions like, "well, who murdered Caylee then?" Thinking the jurors must be idiots? Making statements like "Casey has been cleared" or "the jury says Casey is innocent?" Feeling angry that nobody will "pay" for the death of Caylee Anthony? Maybe you should know these things about our criminal justice system.
First, it helps to understand that the criminal justice system has nothing to do with the truth. What truly happened in the Casey Anthony case? Few people know what actually happened. There is no video of Caylee dying or being left in the woods. How did she die? Was it accident or murder? Who murdered her? Who put her into the woods? There have been and will be innocent people convicted of crimes. There have been and will be people who "get away" with committing crimes. The legal system is not in sync with what actually happens in the world. But it is better that our system errs on the side of letting guilty people go free instead of erring on the side of convicting innocent people. Isn't it?
Second, speculation is not evidence. Prosecutors are great at coming up with their own speculations of what took place in a case. Many prosecutors should be fiction authors instead of prosecutors. Just because you can speculate about what happened does not mean you know what actually happened. And sometimes prosecutors can speculate themselves right into believing their own imaginations. The prosecutors in the Casey Anthony case used their imaginations to come up with a fantasy about what actually happened to Caylee. Too bad for them they did not have evidence to support their theory.
Third, be careful with your terminology. The jury did not "clear" Casey Anthony and they did not find her "innocent." By their verdicts, the jury found that the State failed to prove that Casey was guilty of killing Caylee beyond a reasonable doubt. The prosecutors got so wrapped up in their fantasy that they believed it and believed that they could convince a jury of Casey's guilt even though they did not have the evidence. The fact that Casey Anthony was not convicted does not mean that someone else did it. The defense did not prove beyond a reasonable doubt that she was innocent. The State just failed to prove to the jury that she was guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. Guilty people are sometimes found "not guilty" - not proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
Fourth, neither the Constitution of the United States nor any of the Constitutions of the United States say that someone must "pay" every time a person dies or is killed. Instead, the Supreme Court of the United States has said that the Due Process Clause protects those accused of crimes from conviction unless their guilt is proven "beyond a reasonable doubt." There are plenty of commentators today complaining that nobody has paid or will pay for Caylee's death. If it was up to them, they would have Casey convicted because it is important to them to have someone "pay" for the death of a child. Never mind that Casey's guilt was not proven "beyond a reasonable doubt." Our law demands justice for the accused.
Fifth and finally, are you angry at the jurors or thinking they must be idiots? They took the hard road. They went against what they must have known would be popular opinion. They did their jobs. They held the State to their burden. They did not speculate with the prosecutors. And they determined that the State failed to prove Casey's guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. Any of us would be fortunate to have a jury like this if we are ever accused of a crime.
The mob may be angry, but justice reigned today.
