Why the Casey Anthony Verdict Is Unsurprising

COMMENTARY | The Casey Anthony verdict brought a legal end to the case against the infamous Florida mother. But since the jury brought in a verdict of not guilty, ruling that Anthony didn't murder her daughter Caylee after all, it hardly seemed like closure. After a two-month trial and years of speculation and demonization over the accused, there is nothing to show for it but more questions, doubts and outrage.

The death of 2-year-old Caylee Anthony became the latest crime of the century, at least when the media and public turned it into a spectacle. That was due in no small part to her mother, who seemed to have a large collection of lies and tall tales about what happened, turning her into the prime suspect.

Given how easy it was to frame her as a spoiled, lying, rotten mother -- especially since she was partying during Caylee's disappearance -- many were rooting for Casey to get convicted Tuesday. But the verdict didn't turn out that way, as the jury ruled that the prosecution didn't have much of a case against her.

Despite all of the attention, coverage and hysteria about Anthony, the state of Florida did not have much to actually prove she was a killer. There was no DNA on the duct tape that covered Caylee's mouth, and prosecutors could not conclusively prove that she had been chloroformed beforehand. As TIME pointed out, the state only had Anthony's "nearly imperceptible moral character" to make its case, with "so little physical evidence" to go on.

Those who follow mega-hyped trials should know by now that moral character, or a lack of it, can't get anyone convicted by itself. It didn't work against O.J. Simpson or Michael Jackson in California, and it didn't work to convict Anthony in Florida.

The media and pundits are working hard to compare this to the Simpson and Jackson verdicts; most everyone believed they were guilty except for the juries. As such, even though Simpson and Jackson got off, the charges never escaped them in the public eye.

It will be even worse for Anthony, since, unlike Simpson and Jackson, she wasn't a celebrity before she got into trouble. She is only known for this ordeal and the questionable character she showed before she was charged with murder. In truth, she is more on par with John and Patsy Ramsey, who were widely suspected of killing their daughter JonBenet even after they were acquitted.

For all the outrage over the Ramseys, Simpson, Jackson and Anthony, the verdict in each case was not swayed by the nation at large. That says a lot of positive things about the jury system, but that is no comfort to those who think these infamous figures got off scott-free, no matter what a court of law says to the contrary.

Sources

TIME- "The Casey Anthony Verdict: The Jury Did The Right Thing"