Casey Anthony may be charged death penalty

The Casey Anthony case hasn't surfaced on the front page of the Orlando Sentinel for some time, but I was elated to see the case's revival Thursday. It was a good time to follow up on her situation; she may be facing the death penalty. I was a little disappointed, though, that the article before the jump didn't have much to do with Casey.


This excerpt appeared on the front page before the jump:


Prosecutors say Casey Anthony killed her child, but will they push to send her to death row?

First-degree murder is punishable by death, but the history of female killers executed in Florida during the past 150 years is brief.

The state has executed only two women in the modern era. The third, a slave who killed her master, was hanged in the mid-19th century.

Of the nearly 390 people on Florida's death row, only one is a woman.

Leonard Birdsong, an associate professor at Barry University School of Law in Orlando, said women are rarely sentenced to death. And he does not think Anthony, who was indicted Tuesday in the disappearance of her daughter, Caylee Marie, is a good candidate.

The young single mother has no prior criminal history, is not an obvious predator and has made no known confession, he said. He also suspects Anthony could have psychological issues.

If I were a prosecutor, this probably would not be the case I would seek the death penalty," Birdsong said.

The majority of the information included statistics on women and the death penalty when it should have dealt more with Casey herself. It has been a while since she's had some front-page real eastate.


I still appreciate the article overall. It does recap on the case pretty well so readers do get the necessary background information. The article is also well balanced. It offers views from those who believe she will be sentenced and those who do not. And in this highlighted and controversial case it's important to remain neutral.