Pathological: The Casey Anthony Story — Every Door Was Open — Ep. 5 | MK Confidential

The Megyn Kelly Show

This episode of MK Confidential examines the controversial acquittal of Casey Anthony in the 2011 trial for the death of her two-year-old daughter, Caylee Marie Anthony. The podcast details

Key takeaways

• The jury acquitted Casey Anthony despite strong circumstantial evidence, citing reasonable doubt rather than innocence.
• Judge Perry acknowledged the state's case was compelling but noted the defense successfully created reasonable doubt.

Main topics

• The Casey Anthony trial verdict
• Reasonable doubt in criminal cases

Notable quotes

Not guilty doesn't mean innocent.

I just wanted to be sure I was reading what I was reading.

Conclusion

The Casey Anthony trial remains one of the most polarizing cases in American legal history. While the

Transcript preview

Speaker 1 (0:00) For many of us, going further isn't a choice. It's a feeling we can't ignore. Because ambition has a way of outgrowing where it began. Turning dreams into direction. Every journey brings us closer to the life we imagine. So, where will your journey take you? Etihad. Speaker 3 (0:27) Beyond Borders. Speaker 3 (0:30) Tuesday, July 5th, 2011, Orlando, Florida. The line outside the Orange County Courthouse begins forming in the middle of the night. For six weeks, people have been showing up at 3, 4, sometimes 1 in the morning. Hundreds of people a day from around the world fighting for a seat in one room they have seen on TV for weeks. All of them are here to watch, in person, the trial of a mother accused of killing. her two-year-old daughter. Speaker 1 (1:00) I've been watching. I taped every episode. Our family's at Disney World, but this was more exciting for me. Speaker 3 (1:07) 25 floors up is the courtroom of Judge Belvin Perry Jr. He grew up in Orlando, where his father had been one of the city's first black police officers. The jury in the Casey Anthony case has been out deliberating since yesterday afternoon, in all between 10 and 11 hours of deliberation so far. Judge Perry steps through a door into the courtroom, takes his seat, and reads a note the bailiff hands him. And he calls the courtroom to order. Speaker 8 (1:37) Let the record reflect that the defendant is present along with counsel for the defendant. It has been brought to my attention that the jury has reached a verdict. To those in the gallery, please do not express any signs of approval or disapproval upon the reading of the verdict. Let's return the jury. Speaker 3 (1:54) The jury files in. Speaker 8 (1:56) Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen of the jury. Have you reached a verdict? Would you hand the verdict form to the court deputy, please? Speaker 3 (2:04) The foreperson hands the verdict form to a deputy, and the deputy carries it up to the bench. Judge Perry opens it and reads it. Then he reads it again. He explains why later to NBC. Speaker 8 (2:17) I just wanted to be sure I was reading what I was reading. Speaker 7 (2:20) Would Speaker 3 (2:21) a Speaker 7 (2:21) defendant rise along with counsel? Speaker 8 (2:25) Madam Clerk, you may publish the verdicts. Speaker 3 (2:27) Casey Anthony stands up. Defense Attorney Jose Baez is holding her hand. At the state's table, Prosecutor Jeff Ashton has a habit when a verdict comes in. He watches the clerk's eyes. Guilty sits at the top of the page. Not guilty sits at the bottom. He watches her eyes go all the way down the page. The clerk starts to read. She stumbles. Speaker 5 (2:55) And Speaker 3 (2:55) then she gets her voice back. Speaker 5 (2:57) State of Florida versus Casey Marie Anthony. As to the charge of first-degree murder, verdict as to count one, we the jury find the defendant not guilty, so say we all. Speaker 3 (3:08) Baez squeezes Casey's hand for the rest of the verdict. Aggravated child abuse, not guilty. He squeezes harder. Aggravated manslaughter of a child, not guilty. Jose Baez squeezes her hand so hard that he thinks he may have broken it. By the second not guilty, Jeff Ashton can see where this is headed. If they would not convict Casey of child abuse, they were not going to convict her of anything serious. He mouths a word without saying it out loud. Wow. He wants to shake his head, but he doesn't. By his own rule, you don't show a jury what you think of its verdict. He had put off his retirement to try this case. After the third not guilty, Jeff starts thinking about retirement again. 25 floors below, the crowd on the street hears the verdict. Speaker 8 (4:02) And gasps. Casey Speaker 3 (4:08) Anthony does too. Then she starts to cry. Casey's parents, George and Cindy, are sitting in the gallery in the back row. Neither of them makes a sound. Then the clerk reaches the remaining charges. After three acquittals, she says a different word. Four counts of providing false information to law enforcement. Guilty on each one. Casey Anthony's mouth shows the faintest hint of a smile. And then it is gone. Across the room, the clerk turns to the jury and starts with juror number one. Speaker 5 (4:46) Juror number one, were these your true and correct verdicts? Yes. Speaker 3 (4:50) Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Speaker 7 (4:52) Yes. Speaker 5 (4:53) Yes. Speaker 7 (4:54) Yes. Yes. Yes. Speaker 5 (4:55) Twelve Speaker 3 (4:56) times, yes. Baez puts his hand on the side of Casey's head. We did it, kiddo, he says. Thank you, she says in response, and she hugs him. Judge Perry then calls Casey and her lawyers to the bench. Casey walks up, and Judge Perry reads the verdicts back to her. Speaker 8 (5:19) Casey Marie Anthony, the jury of your peers, having found you not guilty as to the charge contained in count one of the indictment, murder in the first degree, at this time, I will adjudge you to be not guilty. Speaker 3 (5:34) Almost three years after two-year-old Kaylee Marie Anthony was reported missing and after the little girl was found dead in the woods near her home, her mother stands convicted of four misdemeanors. based on lying. Then Speaker 8 (5:50) we'll set the sentence in Thursday at 9 a.m. in this courtroom. Speaker 3 (5:54) Judge Perry thanks the jury and sends them home. He maintains a cool exterior. As he later tells NBC, the decision rattled him. Speaker 1 (6:04) What did you think when you opened the envelope and read that verdict? Surprise. Speaker 8 (6:10) Shock. Speaker 8 (6:13) For Speaker 3 (6:14) 15 years, people have argued about how that jury could have voted not guilty. A few of the jurors told us immediately, but nobody wanted to listen. I'm Megyn Kelly, and this is MK Confidential. Speaker 3 (6:34) Founded by four PhD longevity scientists, One Skin is different. They focus on the actual cause of aging and not just the surface signs of it. After years of research, they developed OS01, their proprietary peptide, which is the foundation of every product they make. The OS01 face moisturizer has become a favorite of so many people who say their skin feels firmer and looks healthier. The fact that it is backed by real peer review clinical science rather than just marketing trends is a huge selling point. These peptides are all the rage. Born from over 10 years of longevity research, One Skin is helping you unlock your healthiest skin now and as you age. For a limited time, try One Skin with 15 % off using code Megan at oneskin.co slash Megan. That's 15 % off oneskin.co. with code Megan. After you purchase, they're going to ask you where you heard about them, support our show, and tell them that we sent you, and using our name will also ensure you get your 15 % off. In April 2011, before the trial of Casey Anthony begins, a pseudo trial kicks off. CBS News hires Richard Gabriel, a trial consultant working for Anthony's defense team, to see how the evidence might play in the courtroom. Gabriel assembles a mock jury of 12 Orlando adults and presents the evidence from both sides for four and a half hours. Then he asks them to vote, guilty or not guilty. On first degree murder, Nine mock jurors stand up. They would acquit. They all say they believe Kaylee died accidentally, but cannot agree on how. Gabriel offers a different charge. Who would convict her on involuntary manslaughter? Nearly the entire mock jury stands. Judge Perry has observed Casey Anthony from the bench for six weeks. He later tells NBC that whenever the jury left the courtroom, he noticed a shift in Casey's demeanor. Speaker 8 (8:42) There were two sides to Casey. There was the side that was before the jury where she betrayed the role of a mother who had lost a child, someone who was wrongfully accused, and then you could notice the change and transformation in her. When the jury went out, she was very commanding. She took charge of different things, and you could see sometime her scolding her attorneys. Did Speaker 1 (9:06) you think she was manipulative? Very Speaker 8 (9:10) manipulative. Speaker 3 (9:12) The judge also tells NBC his own opinion of the state's case and why he believes they did not convince the jury. Speaker 8 (9:20) Yes, there was sufficient evidence Speaker 7 (9:22) to sustain a verdict of murder in the first degree in this case. Speaker 8 (9:25) I thought they had proved a great case, but you got to realize this was a circumstantial evidence case. And all the defense had to do was create that reasonable doubt, and that's what they did. Speaker 3 (9:37) On