Casey Anthony Essay Example for Free

Casey Anthony Essay Courtroom trials are very interesting to me and I really enjoyed clerking for judges and being able to watch everything from beginning to end. The case I have chosen is a jury trial and that jury ends up being seven women and five men. The criminal laws that were violated were many starting with Child Neglect, making false official statements and obstructing an investigation. Forging checks, fraudulent use of identification and petty theft, first degree murder, aggravated child abuse aggravated manslaughter and four counts of lying to law enforcement. Heading the prosecution was the District Attorney of Orange County Florida with several of the Assistant District Attorney’s. The defense has Jose Baez and what they were calling a ‘team’ of defense counsel, which actually ended up only being 3. Judge Belvin Perry was on the bench and all of the witnesses that were on both the states list of witnesses to call but the defense as well. The outcome of this trial rocked the nation as the verdict was read live which were Not Guilty of Aggravated Murder, Aggravated Child Abuse and Aggravated Manslaughter. The defendant was found guilty on 4 counts of the forgery of checks and was credited for time served, then released from jail. Casey Anthony made national news for several days and remained the top story. She had been charged and arrested with murdering her two year old daughter, Caylee Anthony. Casey denied ever knowing anything to the police of her whereabouts and told law enforcement that her nanny had taken Caylee by force and she had been looking for her in different avenues, to supposedly protect the child. Also stating she should have contacted police sooner than 31 days prior, but she was in fear for her daughter’s life was the story she stuck to. After being jailed and held without bond pictures of the young mother were posted all over My Space portraying Casey Anthony as nothing but a party girl. It wasnt until the actual trial started and the story took a huge flip and George Anthony who is Caseys father and grandfather of little Caylee, was being accused of sexually molesting his daughter since she was 8 years old and covering up the truth about the whereabouts of the two year old. Since Casey had been a child, she had been taught to cover up and lie about certain situations if it was going to cause embarrassment to the family. It was George who had found the lifeless body of Caylee Anthony, lying face down in their pool and the cover-up began. George Anthony did not want it to get out that the family was irresponsible and left the ladder out to get into the pool. Which the story reads, little Caylee climbed up that ladder and got in the pool herself, due to no supervision and drowned. Skeletal remains of a small child were found 3 months later within a mile of the Anthony home. The body had been discarded like a piece of trash, and her remains had been duct taped in a black garbage bag and tossed into the woods. It became media frenzy and, Orlando, Florida became the busiest it had ever been since the child had gone missing. It was in fact the remains of Caylee Anthony and to this day, the young mother sticks to her story and accuses her own father of covering the death of her child up and forced Casey to go along with it. She had been taught to obey her father and did not want to go against his strictness and allowed George Anthony to dispose of the body. The trial that began on May 24, 2011 went to the jury on July 3rd 2011. Deliberations were suspended over the 4th of July holiday and resumed July 5th. During its deliberations, the jurors did not ask to review any of the 400 exhibits, request any clarifications of the law or ask for any of the trial testimony to be read back. After deliberating for 10 hours and 40 minutes, the foreperson informed the court that the jury had reached a unanimous verdict that afternoon. More often than not when a jury returns a verdict that quickly and without asking for any type of assistance from the court, it bodes ill for the defendant. This jury, however, was about to prove the old maxim that juries are unpredictable despite what all the talking heads predicted it would conclude. The jury found her not guilty of murder, aggravated child abuse and manslaughter. She was however, convicted of four counts of lying to police officers. Judge Perry sentenced Casey to one year in jail and $1,000. 00 in fines for each of the providing false information counts. She was released from jail on July 17, 2011due to time already served. While Casey had been acquitted in her daughter’s death, Casey’s problems were not at an end. The defamation suit of Zenaida Gonzalez who Casey accused of kidnapping her daughter (one of the false statements) is seeking both compensatory and punitive damages. Gonzalez states she lost her job as a result of Casey’s allegations which led to the loss of her apartment by eviction and she and her 6 children continue to be harassed and threatened. (Kumar) It has changed how society works today by taking more child missing stories more serious and not to the facts of the case, but the simple fact that the 12 person jury could not convict her due to lack of evidence. The State of Florida had not proved their case and she was walking free except with a few misdemeanor charges of lying to law enforcement. How could this have happened, with all the circumstantial evidence of her guilt was obvious, the jury stood by the law? The evidence did not prove that Casey had been involved at all without finding any DNA or any other minute evidence. At almost the end of the trial, Casey asked to be evaluated by Psychologist and Psychiatrist to see if she was mentally capable to continue with the trial. She was found competent and the trial continued til the end finding her not guilty. All of America disagreed with the verdict except the defendant and the defense counsel and still held her responsible for her daughters death. Society even went to the extreme as to calling the jury idiots I believe Casey Anthony led a not so great life, but was also a spoiled brat who always got her way. So with the news that she was walking free didnt surprise me, as I couldn’t see any physical evidence either. Sad but true, she is out living her life without her daughter and it does not seem to bother her a bit. Casey is in hiding though as of today and knows there are people out there who hate her. She has started to learn and recognize her lies and what they did to people, and has told friends she has a lot of regards. Other sources say she plans to receive psychological counseling. She is young and optimistic and realizes she can’t change the past but she can move forward.

Essay --

This Ocean energy is found around the world. 70% of the oceans surface is covered in water. According to alternative-energy-news website â€Å"Ocean energy is recovered when the wave power farm operates on the wave energy that is created when a float/ buoy flows with the natural movement of the waves.† The equipment needed is a very big buoyant crafted buoy, a long reliable cable wire and a heavy weight so the buoy does not float away and ruin your research. â€Å"The concept is simple†, says John Lienhard, a University of Houston mechanical engineering professor: â€Å"Every day the moon’s gravitational pull lifts countless tons of water up into, say, the East River or the Bay of Fundy. When that water flows back out to sea, its energy dissipates and, if we don’t use it, it’s simply spent.† The stronger the waves the more energy can be taken from it to power our world. We as humans use and waste this energy doing everyday work. Yes, you do need special equipment for processing wave energy from the ocean, main thing you need is a buoyant buoy to throw into the ocean and weigh it down with one solid weight, so you don’t lose almost 3 million dollars. Our energy sources is formed when the tidal energy is produced through the use of generators in the ocean. The generators are large under water turbines that are placed in areas with the highest tidal energy.The turbines’ job is to take in the kinetic motion of the withdraw and flow of the ocean's tides (shallow water) to get electricity. The tidal turbines are best used for shallow waters, because it is stronger than and most stable than casting it into the ocean where you would have to check on it everyday in almost deadly weather. They help because turbines rotates slowly so ships and passing ani... ...ards fuel and on going operation that represent upwards of 80% of the plant’s cost of energy. The greater availability of wave energy in areas means that devices will be able to absorb more energy and convert that to power at a greater rate that devices in areas with low wave energy density. Ocean power technologies will to live initially in areas with wave energy density.† As you read this excerpt from the website what are your opinions. Early-stage prototype government backed funding. We can conserve ocean energy by not polluting the ocean, save energy (use less lights and electricity). We can also conserve other natural energies. Ways to conserve energy would be: walking, biking, carpooling, using the mass transit. You can turn your refrigerator down, wash clothes in warm or cold water, turn down water heater, and the big thing we can do is Reduce, Reuse, Recycle.

The nineteenth century in the US

The nineteenth century in the US had an unmistakable theme, immigration. Over 20 million immigrants, mostly European, came to the United States between 1820 and 1900. They came for a variety of reasons. Most came because the economies of many European countries were in crisis and workers had a very hard time finding work. As well, some fled religious and cultural persecution. Most of them decided to come to the US because of the opportunities they had heard abounded in the US. One immigrant put it well when he said, â€Å"We are in such bad shape and in need of so much that there is nothing left for us here, we must go. † Once they arrived in the US, the immigrants were seen as second class citizens by the vast majority of US citizens. As one American put it, â€Å"I can't understand those scum, those immigrants, for they talk differently and do things differently than I do. † The flood tide of Europeans also overwhelmed the limited charitable services available at the time. One historian referred to the settlement house movement as, â€Å"effective as bailing out the ocean with a teaspoon. Immigrants emigrated to America for the opportunity to improve themselves and found horrible working and living conditions that were a large price, although it was one they were willing to pay. Immigrants came to the US because of political persecution and economic hardships at home. Some European countries persecuted certain ethnic groups for no apparent reason. For example, both Yugoslavia and France blamed Jews for their economic problems. As the French Secretary of the Treasury put it, â€Å"Those Evil Jews who befoul our towns shall not work here, for they are second. Christians shall get the right. † Jews would get beaten by the police and as a result sought political asylum in the â€Å"land of the free†, the United States. It was also extremely difficult for many to get jobs in Europe where 50% of the workers were unemployed in some countries. The main exception was England which thrived on industry as the US did. Workers were encouraged to go to the US because of pamphlets that gave such promises as â€Å"Good work, a free life, a good life for all. † The demand of factory workers was constantly growing, and immigrants decided to take their chance. As one immigrant said, â€Å"We have nothing to lose, for we have nothing. The US is our greatest and only chance. † Immigrants came to the US expecting a higher standard of living but were forced into poor living and working conditions. The vast majority of immigrants, who lived in cities, lived in tenements. These were apartment buildings that were shabbily constructed and contained extremely small apartments. Twenty four to thirty two families were packed inside these six to eight storey structures, often referred to as dumbbell buildings due to the air shaft between the buildings that made them look like dumbbells from above. The residents were highly susceptible to disease, and life expectancy was significantly lower, by about 10 years, in these areas. Up to 4,000 people lived on some city blocks. Families had one, maybe two, small rooms. They had no privacy as the walls were thin as well. As one immigrant put it, â€Å"I can't even talk without my entire building knowing what I said, the walls are so thin. † Bathrooms were also usually outside, although around the turn of the century, some began to appear inside. Tenements were also susceptible to fires. Due to the required air shaft between buildings, the air got trapped which caused more fires. As the material that tenements were made of was very susceptible to fire, widespread fires were common. As one immigrant described it, â€Å"I watched it and as the flames struck it, the entire block seemed to go up in a flash. It was horrible. † Working conditions for the immigrants were also horrific. The immigrants generally did two kinds of work. The first were the jobs Americans wouldn†t do and the second were the unskilled jobs that almost any person, American or immigrant, could do. Immigrants were also willing to be paid less money for the same work. Immigrants were often used as strike breakers because many of them didn†t understand the concept of strikes since it wasn†t part of their culture. The immigrants saw these jobs as ones that had been abandoned and so they took them, provoking anger in Americans for â€Å"job stealing†. As Guillaume Fouchon said,†We do not strike because it challenges our honor. As well, in the old country, there were so few jobs and so many workers. † Also, immigrants misunderstood the process of striking because it was hard to organize people who spoke different languages. Immigrants also had very little in the way of political power. This was not much of a problem, however, for as one immigrant said, â€Å"I just want to succeed, and then I'll worry about how much political power I have. † With the exception of some groups like the Irish, the immigrants had no political power at first. However, near the turn of the century, immigrant votes became a factor as they represented 15% of the voting public in New York alone. This caused the immigrants to gain increased political power through the vote. The Chinese were often called the devils of the immigrants. They were different than all the other immigrant groups because they had a different complexion. As a result, they were subject to more prejudice. The Chinese, who mainly lived and worked in California, took many railroad jobs away from the preexisting Americans. This resulted in their being stoned and having their houses burned to the ground. Such actions were supported by both major parties. As a Democratic National Committee spokesman said, â€Å"We must fight to rid the earth of the evil Chinese. † This was significant because even the â€Å"party of the immigrants†, the Democrats, were against the Chinese. Also, most Chinese, unlike most Europeans, wanted to go to the US, earn money and then go back to China. The American public resented the Chinese and labeled them as a second-class race. As a result of all this prejudice, the Chinese were largely banned from immigrating. As Robert Ingersoll said, the Chinese were not allowed to follow the national progression that benefitted earlier immigrants. Immigrants hoped that by coming to America, they could still retain their culture which they were unable to do in large part due to the education system. Immigrants hoped that they could both move up socially to the same level as the Americans as well as keep their identity intact. When they first arrived, immigrants kept their cultural identity intact by creating ethnic neighborhoods such as Little Frances or Little Italies. These were places for people of one ethnic group, or even one town or one province, to retain their cultural values. These were very prominent, with 17 little Italies in Chicago alone. It was essential for these immigrants to have these places to attempt to avoid assimilation. As Italian immigrant Verduccio Marsongeri put it, â€Å"I need my little Italy because the old country is still so important to me. † In this way, the free education given in the US to most children, American or immigrant, was a mixed blessing. While it certainly prepared immigrant children for better jobs due to better education than their parents had had, education also resulted in a loss of cultural identity. Those children who were educated in the US were instilled with American and not old country values as well as English as the primary language. This was in fact an intended consequence of the education expansion, that the immigrant children be assimilated into American culture so as to eliminate the foreign influence on the US. While immigrants certainly didn†t want their children to be assimilated into American culture, they were willing to pay the price if it meant better education. This accounted largely for the 3 fold increase in students from 7 million in 1870 to 22 million in 1920, as well as a rise in participation from 57 to 78 percent. While the doors of primary education were open, the doors of higher education remained largely closed to the immigrant. Immigrants could go to some lower tier private colleges and state universities, but not in general to the big names such as Yale, Harvard or Stanford. Yet, still it was a major improvement for now the immigrants could be educated the same as Americans. In conclusion, the immigrants came to the US in search of opportunity but found harsh conditions. The opportunity and advances the immigrants made in the US came at a large price. Factory workers were not able to move up and were forced to work in horrid conditions for low pay. Many despaired and wanted to move back, but they couldn†t due to lack of money. Many more, however, willingly stayed. The real benefits of American opportunity and culture would be passed down to the succeeding generations. Overall, the immigration from the Europe and Asia to the US was the largest in world history. As Christa Jackstone, historian, said about the affect immigrants had on the US, â€Å"Immigration in the late 19th and early 20th century really made this country because they literally built this country. As the blacks had done in the years before the Civil War, the immigrants were doing the hard work behind the scenes while other people took credit for it. † Although the immigrants themselves paid a large price, they willingly took the first steps that would benefit future generations.

Women s Gender And Gender Roles - 955 Words

In terms of the heterosexual majority, respectability applied deeply to women and their gender roles as wives, because it was the way to distinguish between good and oversexed women (Kushner 9/25/15). The characteristics of women consisted of being pious, pure and religious, as they were the moral superiors to men (Kushner, 9/25/15). This moral superiority linked to the idea that Cott presents of female passionlessness, which was the result of subsequent lack of sexual aggressiveness (Cott 1987: 220). Passionlessness however was not simply a gendered characteristic it played a vital sexual as the controlling factor over hyper sexual husbands (Cott 1978: 235). The very structure of Victorian marriages relied on women s passionlessness because it supported women s demure and respectable nature in society, while also keeping men under control and containing sexuality to the home (Kushner, 9/25/15). The concept of respectability not only shaped how women and men acted in both sexual a nd non sexual ways but outlined the ways proper marriages ought to function. In order to understand the re-rise to conservatism in the mid- twentieth century post-war America, one must consider the influence of Sexology on society. Sexology which is the study of sexuality, behavior, functions, and identity gained importance between the late ninetieth century and the early twentieth in the West. During this time Sexologists like Krafft-Ebbing, Kinsey, and Ulricks, studied sexualShow MoreRelatedGender Roles Of Women s Roles971 Words   |  4 Pagesacceptance. Transforming Gender. Women’s Roles in Society. Why are men always in power? Or is that we just assume that they have power? In recent years, the roles of women have changed greatly in American society.   For example, women have earned more power in education, the workplace and especially the military (Cordes). Yet, when it comes to women being fully integrated in the military, many males still question female competenc y. This situation needs to be addressed because women are physically, emotionallyRead MoreGender Roles And Women s Careers1532 Words   |  7 PagesGlobal statistics document an increase in women’s careers in the professions and portray successful female roles in the industrial, political and financial areas, with some variation in different regions of the world. Nonetheless, women hold only a small percentage of board seats and other influential positions in these areas worldwide. It is also known that presently, women see themselves as progressive and career-oriented. Yet in the treatment rooms of the mental health professionals they shareRead MoreThe Role Of Gender And Women s Roles845 Words   |  4 PagesThe Role of Gender (women and men) in two societies The role of men and women are really different to each other. In the past, gender roles had always been a major controversy, which made the biggest impact on our world today. In our society, the interpretation between men’s and women’s role is really diverse, so people also have a conflict between the gender roles. We often have the (notion or idea that) image of how men should be strong, powerful, and a pillar of the family (instead of applyingRead MoreWomen s Influence On Gender Roles1427 Words   |  6 Pagespositive attributes such as strength, intelligence, and control. Femininity however, has been regarded as weak, superficial, and vacuous. Such an outlook on gender roles has resulted in an unequal power dynamic and an increasing deprecating view of the woman and her capabilities. Under represented in not only the media but also many governing bodies, women have continually been oppressed and subject to constant misogynstic transgreesions, the results of whcih h ave not only affected their lives and possibleRead MoreChanges Of Women s Gender Roles1373 Words   |  6 PagesChange in Women’s Gender Roles Due to advances in technology, the discovery of new lands, and changing public opinion; people desire new things and the equality of man is constantly changing. For thousands of years males were considered superior to females in most cultures. In a civilized society it was often considered the duty of the man to work and provide for his family. Alternately, it was perceived that women should stay home and take care of the children and that they were not able to performRead MoreGender And Work : Women s Roles1618 Words   |  7 PagesBridget Steele Dr. Katie Worman Ross SOC 4043 7 October 2017 Gender and Work Midterm Gender and work exist sociologically as a way to maintain both authority and inequality. Women’s roles throughout history shed a light on the expectations and stereotypes that exist today; however, navigating a gendered economy and overcoming sex segregation continues to be a challenging task for most women. Wages continue to be uneven, and wives continue to bear most of the child rearing and domestic responsibilitiesRead MoreGender Roles Of Women s Literature1661 Words   |  7 Pageswhich gender roles are portrayed in children’s literature significantly contributes to the development of our youth’s understanding of their own gender’s role and how they are perceived by society. It is important for children to understand gender roles because gender roles are an essential cog in the perpetual machine that develops our society, but these cogs have been replaced with newer, more up-to-date cogs over recent years, so to speak. As society has changed, so has the typical role that eachRead MoreWomen s Roles And Gender Stereotypes Essay1154 Words   |  5 PagesWomen’s Roles The Simpsons is a TV show that airs on the Fox network. During the fifth season, in an episode called Lisa vs. Malibu Stacy, Lisa challenges the makers of the Malibu Stacy doll to create a less sexist doll. The original creator of Malibu Stacy teams up with Lisa to create Lisa Lionheart to create a positive influence for young girls. This episode raised a lot of questions regarding gender roles and stereotypes. Gender stereotypes are prominent in today’s life style. Per gender stereotypesRead MoreHow Gender Affects Women s Role1644 Words   |  7 PagesResearch Paper: How Gender Affects Women s role in Newsrooms? While the increasing of female journalists ratio in newsrooms regarded as an accomplishment for women, statistics and other variables indicate the contrary. The fact that women s representation in newsrooms became larger than the past takes a lot of attention. However, most people do not know that this slightly enhance in women s representation remained stagnant for decades. A quick glance on the editorial positions of media’s organizationsRead MoreGender Roles And Women s Rights948 Words   |  4 Pagesâ€Å"By balancing the scales of equality, women and men will have an equal chance to contribute both at home and the workplace, thereby enhancing their individual well-being, and that of society† (About Workplace Gender Equality). Throughout history, women continuously progressed to reach this equality. This is evident with the Women’s Right Movement which pushed to break social and economic barriers. Women went from focusing on domestic responsibilities to wor king in places normally reserved for men