The 36-day trial of Casey Anthony, accused of murdering her two-year-old daughter Caylee in 2008, brought minute-to-minute updates to people's smartphones and computers. For many people following Twitter and the massive media coverage, Casey should have been given the death penalty. The seven-woman, five-man jury in Orange County, Florida, after deliberating for just a day, gave her a "not guilty" verdict, sparking outrage from across the globe.

Comedian Jay Leno, in his Tonight Show, quipped "In a stunning decision, Casey Anthony found not guilty... This [verdict] means President Obama's economic team is only the second most clueless group of people in America."

The verdict certainly shocked America, as Casey was not difficult to hate. The media has depicted her as a liar and a party-girl. Casey lied to authorities about her daughter's disappearance, never called 911 after her child's alleged drowning, and instead hides the body in the trunk then dumps it in the woods, the goes out bar-hopping and joining a "hot body" contest at a night club.

Adding to people's anger was that it was revealed during the case that Casey frequently lied to authorities and exhibited bizzare behavior: among many things, she falsely claimed to police that she works in Universal Studios; she said Caley was kidnapped by babysitter Zenaida Fernandez-Gonzalez then later said that her daughter drowned in a pool; and she spent a month denying Caylee's disappearance to everyone, including her parents.

Prosecutors had evidence of internet search of chloroform and neck-breaking made in the Anthonys' home -- Casey's mother took responsibility for Google searches, although records show that Cindy was at work during the time the searches were made.Despite the circumstantial evidence against her, Casey's defense team put her father on trial. Her lawyers claimed that Casey's father, Anthony had had abused her and bullied her into disposing the body. Casey's lawyers claimed that her father was the one who put the duct tape over the toddler's mouth after she drowned.

Since Caylee was reported missing three years ago, the case has caused a frenzy on national television and the Internet, depicting Casey as an irresponsible mom and a "baby killer". However, following only 10 hours of deliberation, the jury convicted Casey of lying, but absolved her of the murder charges. As she was only found guilty of four counts of lying to investigators -- which carry a maximum of one year per count -- she is likely to walk free almost immediately, having already served more than three years in jail.

From CBS show The Talk host Julie Chen, to singer Mandy Moore, and thousands of others on Twitter have expressed disappointment over the shocking verdict. Some have questioned the jury system in the United States.

People have compared the trial's outcome to the infamous verdict in the OJ Simpson case. More than half the U.S. population watched the U.S. actor and athlete being acquitted of murdering his wife.

"I don't get it," Jay Leno quipped. "I mean most people thought she was guilty. Even the prosecution thought it was a slam dunk. You know what I think happened here? Apparently, what happened was the O.J. jury retired and moved to Florida. This is their first time back."

Former Michigan Prosecutor Carl Marlinga said the verdict was a clear failure of the jury system.

Some legal experts have pointed out that despite the pressure from outside, the jury did not convict Casey as the prosecution failed to provide strong evidence.

An alternate juror, Russell Huekler, however, told the Today show said that the verdict was due to the fact that prosecutors had not proven her guilt without reasonable doubt. He pointed out that the evidence wasn't enough to sustain a conviction, no motive was presented, and there was no proven cause of death. He said, "They didn't show us a motive. I'm sorry people feel that way...these were 17 total jurors. They really listened to this case and kept an open mind."

Lawson Lamar, state attorney in the Ninth Judicial Circuit of Florida, acknowledged that the six months it took to find Caylee's remains, by which time they had decomposed, ultimately cost them the case.

The prosecution had a formula for failure instead of first-degree murder, Dr. Werner Spitz, the former Wayne County medical examiner who anchored Casey Anthony's defense, told The Detroit Free Press.He noted that the prosecution mainly relied on speculation and did not prove its case.

Defense lawyer Cheney Mason has blasted the 'trial by media', saying pundits and media legal commentators "didn't know a damn thing" about the case. Mason said that her client has been a victim of character assassination for three years.

"Well, I hope that this is a lesson to those of you having indulged in media assassination for three years, bias, prejudice and incompetent talking heads saying what would be and how to be," Mason said.

The same arena -- the media -- that gave Casey a guilty verdict is rewarding her, possibly to the tune of more than $1 million. According to reports, the single mother is receiving lucrative offers for rights for a book or movie about her, or an exclusive interview with her. Vivid Entertainment has offered Casey Anthony a job in one of its upcoming porn films.

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