'Most hated mom' Casey Anthony returns to national spotlight after acquittal in daughter's murder
"America's most hated mom," Casey Anthony, is now promoting a new video series on TikTok in which she intends to speak about legal issues and "advocate" for her daughter, Caylee, whom she was accused of killing in 2008.
Anthony, now 38, was accused of killing her 2-year-old daughter in 2008 but has alleged that her father is the real perpetrator.
"This is my first of probably many recordings on a series I am starting," Anthony said in a March 1 video posted to TikTok. "I am a legal advocate. I am a researcher. I have been in the legal field since 2011, and in this capacity, I feel that it's necessary if I'm going to continue to operate appropriately as a legal advocate that I start to advocate for myself and also advocate for my daughter."
She continued: "For those of you who don't know, my name is Casey Anthony. My daughter is Caylee Anthony. My parents are George and Cindy Anthony. This is not about them. This is not in response to anything that they have said or done. … The whole point of this is for me to begin to reintroduce myself."
Casey Anthony has become a household name over the last 17 years, inspiring multiple TV series and documentaries, including Peacock's "Casey Anthony: Where The Truth Lies," which premiered in 2022. A jury found Anthony guilty of lying to law enforcement but not guilty of first-degree murder, aggravated manslaughter and aggravated child abuse after a trial in 2011. Caylee's death remains unsolved.
Here is the timeline of events leading up to and after Caylee Anthony's disappearance:
9 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Casey Anthony said she dropped her daughter off at her nanny's apartment — a claim that was later revealed to be false, according to court documents.
Casey said she then left for her job at Universal Studios Orlando — another claim later determined to be false.
5 p.m. to 7 p.m.
Casey said she left her job around 5 p.m. and drove back to her nanny's apartment complex to pick up Caylee. She apparently tried to contact her nanny, but her phone had been disconnected. Casey later alleged that no one was home, so she drove to Jay Blanchard Park.
Casey said she went to her then-boyfriend Anthony Lazzaro's apartment and stayed with him from then on as she searched for her daughter.
Casey alleged she received a "quick call" from her daughter's nanny on June 12, but she still did not know the whereabouts of the 2-year-old. She also said in a statement ahead of her trial that she had not called police at this point out of fear of her family.
Casey later revealed that the last time she saw her daughter was on June 16, 2008.
She said she and Caylee had been resting together in her bed that day because she "wasn't feeling that great." She said she thought she had locked the door of the room they were in but was awoken by her father, George, asking her where Caylee was.
"She would never even leave my room without telling me," Casey told filmmakers in an interview featured in the 2022 Peacock documentary.
She continued: "I immediately started looking around the house. … I go outside, and I'm looking to see where she could be. She's not in her playhouse. Where is she?"
When filmmakers asked if she looked inside the pool, Casey said she "didn't have to."
12 p.m.
Casey alleged that over a month after her daughter's disappearance, on July 15, 2008, she received a phone call from Caylee.
"Today was the first day I have heard her voice in over four weeks," Casey wrote in a 2008 statement. "I'm afraid of what Caylee is going through. After 31 days, I know that the only thing that matters is getting my daughter back."
Evening
Casey's parents, George and Cindy Anthony, called law enforcement multiple times to report their granddaughter missing and other nefarious activity.
"In the first two calls, Cindy Anthony requested police assistance in recovering a vehicle and money allegedly stolen by [Casey]," court records state. "In the third 9-1-1 call, Cindy Anthony reported that her granddaughter, Caylee, had been missing for approximately thirty days. Cindy Anthony testified that she made these phone calls because [Casey] would not tell her where Caylee was."
In the 911 calls, Cindy apparently told police that Casey's car smelled like a "dead body," according to Click Orlando.
"I called a little bit ago to the deputy sheriff's and I've found out that my granddaughter has been taken — she has been missing for a month," Cindy told emergency services. "Her mother had finally admitted that she had been missing."
"We are talking about a 3-year-old little girl," Cindy continued. "My daughter finally admitted that the baby sitter stole her. I need to find her."
"There is something wrong. I found my daughter's car today and it smells like there's been a dead body in the damn car."
The 911 operator then asked for clarity on the missing girl's location.
"She said she took her a month ago and my daughter has been looking for her," Cindy said. "I told you, my daughter has been missing for a month and I just found her today. But I can't find my granddaughter. She just admitted to me that she's been trying to find her by herself. There is something wrong. I found my daughter's car today and it smells like there's been a dead body in the damn car."
Law enforcement arrived at the Anthony family home that evening, separated the family members and got statements from each of them. Casey Anthony willingly gave a statement to police at the time, telling them she last saw her daughter with the nanny.
3:30 a.m. to 7 a.m.
A detective arrived at the Anthony residence around 3:30 a.m.
Around 4:10 a.m., the detective spoke with Casey in a spare bedroom with the door open. The interview, which reaffirmed her written statement, was recorded with Casey's consent.
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The detective then drove with Casey to the nanny's apartment complex and two other locations where she believed the nanny may have lived later that morning, according to court documents.
Casey was arrested later that day for child neglect, obstruction and making fraudulent statements after authorities determined that her claims about dropping Caylee off with her nanny and working at Universal Studios were determined to be false.
Police name Casey as a person of interest in her daughter's disappearance.
A grand jury indicts Casey Anthony on a murder charge in connection with her daughter's presumed death. She is detained in jail until her trial in 2011.
A utility worker located Caylee's skeletal remains in a wooded area about a half-mile from the Anthony family's home on Dec. 11, 2008. Casey Anthony's attorneys would later file a court motion implicating the utility worker in connection with the crime. He would file a defamation suit years later in 2013.
Casey's murder trial began on May 24, 2011, and lasted more than six weeks. Her parents and her brother were among those called as witnesses.
Jose Baez, who represented Athony during her trial, argued that Caylee accidentally drowned in the family's above-ground swimming pool in June 2008 and Casey's parents then attempted to cover up her death and dispose of her remains, which George and Cindy have vehemently denied.
Prosecutors argued that Casey Anthony suffocated her daughter with chloroform and taped the 2-year-old's mouth shut.
After deliberating for 11 hours, a Florida jury found Anthony not guilty of first-degree murder, aggravated manslaughter and aggravated child abuse. She was convicted of lying to law enforcement.
Anthony admitted to The Associated Press in 2017 that she did lie about Caylee being with a babysitter, about speaking with Caylee over the phone one day before the girl disappeared, about working for Universal Studios and about telling people that her daughter was missing.
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