Casey Anthony: How important is her presence at next trial? - Hal

by mom_in_il Thu Mar 08, 2012 9:28 pm

Casey Anthony: How important is her presence at next trial?
posted by halboedeker on March, 6 2012 1:15 PM

Just how important is Casey Anthony’s attendance at her next trial?

Crucial from a media perspective, I’d say. Her presence will immediately heighten interest.

Zenaida Gonzalez is suing Anthony for defamation for linking her to Caylee Anthony’s disappearance. In July, Anthony was acquitted of murder in the 2008 death of her daughter.

The civil trial could start April 10 if motions for summary judgment fail. Judge Lisa Munyon today denied a defense motion to delay the trial.

Munyon will decide at a March 23 hearing whether to enforce a subpoena from Gonzalez’s attorneys requiring Anthony to attend the trial, WESH-Channel 2’s Bob Kealing reported.

“What I hope is she’s going to sit there the whole trial and listen to this whole thing so my client can face her accuser,” Gonzalez attorney Keith Mitnick told WESH.

But WKMG-Channel 6’s Tony Pipitone said Anthony doesn’t have to show up because it’s a civil case. “It’s really clear or unclear whether she will or won’t. It’s a defense decision,” Pipitone said.

Anthony attorney Charles Greene argues “that Mitnik’s case is so weak Casey Anthony may not even show up for the trial,” Pipitone reported.

Greene told reporters: “Miss Anthony never said a thing about this plaintiff [Gonzalez] and she has nothing to add. She doesn’t know her. Her appearance is not critical to the defense.”

Pipitone highlighted the crux of Anthony’s defense: Anthony identified Zenaida Fernandez Gonzalez, not Gonzalez, as Zanny the Nanny. Zanny was later revealed to be fiction.

What if Anthony loses at trial?

“The worst thing that could happen would be a money judgment, and, of course, Casey Anthony will argue that that’s money she doesn’t have,” Kealing said. “But some people will see it as a victory if she is forced to court and is required to answer.”

That theme was echoed by Gonzalez’s attorney. Mitnik told reporters: “It’s time for justice. It’s time for a reckoning. It’s upon us. You can smell it, you can feel it, and it smells good, it feels warm.”

What do you say?

http://blogs.orlandosentinel.com/entertainment_tv_tvblog/2012/03/casey-anthony-how-important-is-her-presence-at-next-trial.html