By BARBARA LISTON ORLANDO (Reuters) - The $537 balance Casey Anthony received from her jail canteen fund is hardly enough to live on, but the Florida woman seems to be managing fine since her release from custody on Sunday. Her lawyers won't reveal where she went or who is funding her new life on the outside, but say the 25-year-old Anthony is safe and has received hundreds of job and housing offers. Florida taxpayers will receive the bill for Anthony's high-profile prosecution, which ended on July 5 with a jury acquitting her of killing her 2-year-old daughter Caylee in 2008. Taxpayers began picking up Anthony's legal expenses in March 2010 after she ran out of money and was declared indigent by the courts. So far, the state has reimbursed her defense lawyers for $119,000 in expenses, according to the Justice Administrative Commission. Another $5,800 bill from the defense … [Read more...]
Courtroom drama: Actors bring depositions to life
By MANUEL RUEDA MIAMI (Reuters) - Florida attorney Marc Brumer's client broke his heel after falling from a pedestrian ramp. But by the time he took the construction company that built the ramp to trial, the only witness had moved out of the state. Brumer had a solution: he hired a professional actor to read the absent witness's deposition to the court. Reading the deposition word for word and replicating the witness's Hispanic accent, the actor described how the ramp was badly lit and had no warning signs for pedestrians. "We were all floored," Brumer said of the performance. "It was like the witness was there." The building company settled. http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/07/20/us-court-actors-idUSTRE76J36520110720 … [Read more...]
Casey Anthony Free, but New Freedom Is Relative
By R. Leigh Coleman, Christian Post Reporter An angry crowd jeered comments as Casey Anthony walked out of the front door of the Orange County Jail a free woman just after midnight on Sunday, about three years and one day after she was arrested for the disappearance and eventual death of Caylee, her two-year-old daughter. She was wearing a pink shirt, jeans, and sneakers with her hair up in a tight bun as Jose Baez, Anthony’s lawyer, was by her side along with a well-orchestrated Special Response team in green vests. It has been confirmed that the Orange County Sheriff's deputies had two contingency plans laid out, but in the end opted to go with a public release. "We have made every effort to not provide any special treatment for her," said Allen Moore, the spokesman for the Orange County Corrections Department in a statement. Read more: … [Read more...]
State Senate President Mike Haridopolos drops out of race for U.S. Senate
By Marc Caputo and Alex Leary, Times/Herald Staff Writers Florida Senate President Mike Haridopolos' star-crossed campaign for U.S. Senate ended unexpectedly Monday morning, following months of missteps and the recent departure of his two top staffers. Haridopolos said he underestimated the difficulties of running for the U.S. Senate and running the state Senate with the first legislative committee weeks scheduled for September. "It became increasingly clear to me, and those around me, that the responsibilities I was managing on both fronts are in conflict. I truly believed I could handle both jobs, but I was wrong. Now I am determined to make it right," said Haridopolos, a Republican. Read more: http://www.tampabay.com/news/politics/national/state-senate-president-mike-haridopolos-drops-out-of-race-for-us-senate/1181091 … [Read more...]
Watson opens Environmental Firm
Stacy Watson May has opened Stacy Watson May, P.A., in Jacksonville. The environmental law firm is located at 6320 St. Augustine Rd, Ste. 2, Jacksonville 32217. The firm focuses on environmental law and mediation of environmental and commercial cases. Her practice includes handling CERCLA and similar state matters including cost recovery litigation and remediation projects as well as litigation involving environmental justice claims, indoor air quality issues, Legionnaires' disease, and toxic torts. For more information call (904) 866-4648. … [Read more...]
