By Calvin Palmer
The grandfather of Caylee Anthony, the missing Florida toddler whose body was found in December, was taken into police custody earlier today after being found in a Daytona Beach motel.
George Anthony, 57, was taken to Halifax Medical Center in Daytona Beach. He had been reported missing after failing to show up for a meeting yesterday afternoon with his wife, Cindy, and his lawyer Brad Conway.
He was taken into police custody under the Baker Act, which allows authorities to hold someone at a mental-health facility for up to 72 hours while they are evaluated by physicians.
Daytona Beach Police Chief Mike Chitwood said that Anthony sent text messages to family members indicating he “wanted to end his life.”
At a press conference outside of the Orange County courthouse on Orange Avenue this afternoon, Conway publicly thank Sgt. John Allen and law enforcement for their rapid response.
“If they had waited, there would have been a different outcome,” Conway said. “George had been pushed to the brink of what may have been another tragedy in this case.”
Conway also commented on other subjects regarding the Anthonys. He told reporters that George and Cindy Anthony have not profited off of the case and did not ask for immunity.
Conway said that he is the one who is seeking immunity to protect his clients. “I will protect my clients from A to Z,” he said.
He asked that the public give the Anthony family space and respect their privacy.
“What the Anthony’s are going through has been nothing less than hell,” Conway said. “They’re middle America going through something that nobody can imagine.”
Anthony’s daughter, Casey Anthony, been charged with killing Caylee. The child wasn’t reported missing for nearly a month after she vanished.
Caylee’s body was discovered on December 11 in a wooded area not far from her Orlando home. Her remains were found within a black plastic bag inside a cloth laundry-hamper bag. A piece of silver duct tape had been placed over the mouth area of Caylee’s skull.
[Based on reports by the Orlando Sentinel and Associated Press.]
Such a sad situation. They are in my thoughts and prayers.
“What the Anthony’s are going through has been nothing less than hell!” WTF?????
The question begs to be asked, “Did Caylee go through something LESS than hell????”
My God! A defenseless baby girl has been sadistically murdered, probably at the hands of her mother but the whole family is worried about themselves!!!!?!!!
WTF, indeed. For me it all comes down to personal responsibility and choice:
1) The Anthonys have the choice to live or not live their lives in the way they see fit. Caylee did not.
2) The Anthonys had the choice to let or not let their daughter, known by them to be irresponsible and dishonest, walk out of their house with their two-year-old granddaughter and then not know her whereabouts for 31 days (only bothering to track down their daughter when they became angry over her getting their car towed). Caylee did not.
3) The Anthonys had the choice to ask or not ask to meet and visit the home of the woman they had been told had been responsible for the primary care of their granddaughter for more than two years, including regular overnights, to be certain it was a safe and proper environment for her. Caylee did not.
4) The Anthonys still have the choice to support or not support the true victim in this case instead of their daughter, who has undeniably and unapologetically demonstrated a total lack of concern for their granddaughter, and stop publicly defending her indefensible actions. Caylee does not.
Anything that ANYONE does or has done to take attention away from the unimaginable tragedy of the murder of a defenseless two-year-old child is unforgivable.
I certainly cannot imagine how difficult it would be for each of them to accept their share of the personal responsibility for the repeated failure to ensure the safety of their granddaughter, resulting in her death. I also cannot imagine how difficult it must be to know that the best they can do for her now is ensure that justice is served. I do know, however, that it matters. Failure to take personal responsibility now and do whatever they can to respect her life and honor her memory would be incredibly selfish, and yet another injustice to Caylee.
Everyone who has the choice and is capable of personal responsibility needs to run every single decision they make through the filter of WHAT IS BEST FOR CAYLEE? from now on. It is literally the least they can do. Stop making it about anything else. That is all that matters, and ever should have mattered.
Speaking of which, there is a video out there that I think says it best:
We can certainly all have sympathy for what these people have been through. It really is unimaginable, but doesn’t compare in any way to what that little girl went through. I don’t think that any of us can honestly believe that everything was fine up until an unfortunate fight on June 15. God only knows what that child went through prior to that. I can only hope that another tragedy does not take place, only because it would again diminish the attention and sympathy for the true victim in this case.
I would also like to point out that if a 57-year-old former cop really wanted to kill himself he’d be dead right now. Not many seriously suicidal people text their friends and family ahead of time. He’s also a little recognizable to be checking into local motels. I am glad he did, though. He certainly doesn’t deserve to die and that choice would only serve to allow him to avoid personal responsibility, again. It would do nothing to help Caylee. He clearly needs help dealing with all of this and probably hasn’t been able to ask for a second of it, considering the dynamics of that family. So hopefully now he’ll get it. I just hope he doesn’t forget who matters most.