Lyons' talk of 'Mitigation'

[HRCODEPINK]

Well you also have to look at the big picture. Maybe the defense is just looking at family issues and how it will look to jurors. And maybe there wouldn't be any problems. But let's look at the big picture here and maybe some history. This is the same group (family and attorneys) where the prisoner showed up with some contraband jewelry on her first trip to court. And where the family has admitted that they were making an end run around jail rules by sending their letters to the prisoner through the attorney. A big no no in the jail. Of course that would never have come out, except the family began to wonder if their letters were actually getting to the prisoner. Then there have been other issues that I can't remember.

Do we really want to trust that these "mitigation" meetings are only for the stated reasons? And that mitigation is the only thing that will be happening at these meetings? Who knows what other discussions there will be or what will be passed at those meetings? Who knows if the attorneys will stick to the rules, when evidently they haven't so far?

For all I know AL may be totally sincere about her reasoning. But I don't know if I trust that that is the only thing that will happen. Wasn't there a request for a "face to face" "contact" visit with the family before? Why is "contact" so important to this family, at this particular time?

BBM

Gave the wrong hair brush on purpose, laughed about how she should have given the dogs tooth brush instead of Caylees, lied during questioning, reversed their stories about the smell in the car...and just about everything, lied about the pizza box, ran off somewhere to meet LE the day she was arrested instead of just going to the jail or waiting for her to be picked up, making up stories about JG and his family sending a PI to the remains site and lying about that, washed the pants and the knife, cleaned out the car, the list goes on and on and on...

 

[mysteriew]

BBM

Gave the wrong hair brush on purpose, laughed about how she should have given the dogs tooth brush instead of Caylees, lied during questioning, reversed their stories about the smell in the car...and just about everything, lied about the pizza box, ran off somewhere to meet LE the day she was arrested instead of just going to the jail or waiting for her to be picked up, making up stories about JG and his family sending a PI to the remains site and lying about that, washed the pants and the knife, cleaned out the car, the list goes on and on and on...

Yeah that was it!

But wasn't there also an issue about an attorney who was taking a laptop into his interviews with his client? Against jail rules. Wasn't that one resolved with the attorney finally going to court and getting the courts permission to take the laptop in with him?

 

[Sherbie]

I think we also should consider that AL may not necessarily expect her "mitigation" requests to be granted, but instead is setting that up as a post-conviction appellate issue (defendant was denied the opportunity to prepare properly for a DP mitigation defense).

 

[mitzi]

I want you to understand that I say this with the utmost respect and I commend you on your ability, of which I am totally lacking, but I think you give them too much credit. I would not risk LE's ability to record these conversations on every prisoner for these people in the least. If they were even remotely close to normal it would be one thing but these sneaky people do not care about Caylee. "Caylee who?" is the phrase that comes to mind in this case. They don't even remember Caylee. If anything, I believe that they blame Caylee for KC's unfortunate current living arrangement. They all make me want to hurl. Al cares not, as I said in my last post, for KC and CA's relationship. She only cares about appearance. And Al has to be able to sit there with all of them to get their stories straight and my guess is to let CA know how she is at fault for this as well for being such an enabler, and the rest of the family for how they contributed to the person she became. This isn't about KC getting right with everyone. It's about how they all need to act and what everyone needs to say.

Bold mine.

Oh man, Cindy ain't gonna let that chit fly...NO WAY! :snooty:

 

[Sdavidson11]

I am not all that opposed to the A's visiting in private with KC. So what? It won't change what we already know happened..this case doesn't hinge on whether little Caylee drowned or was suffocated, or whether she died on the 15th of June or the 16th..

no story the combined efforts of all the A's and all their lawyers can ever come up with, can rewrite the story of a little girl with 3 pieces of duct tape across her face, her body thrown away in a muddy swamp, and left there for the vermin and the insects..nothing they can do can change any part of that reality.

AND on the plus side, perhaps KC is beginning to grasp some small part of the real situation she is in. Perhaps if she talked privately with her family, she would finally decide it was in her own best interests to simply admit what happened..admit guilt and ask for mercy..first from her family, then from the law.. it might shorten the trial considerably, perhaps take fewer witnesses..and that would be a good thing for a lot of innocent people who are going to have walk into that courtroom and testify.

More especially though perhaps it is the only way we will ever know about little Caylee's final moments. In some sense, I feel I owe it to her to hear what happened, to finally understand. It is only through KC that little Caylee will ever be given a final chance to speak to us, and anything that would give that child her one chance to tell her story, is worth all the A's sillyness and KC's kool aid we would no doubt have to listen to along the way.

Your post touched my heart, especially about sweet Caylee being given a final chance to speak to us. Unfortunately, the way we care about her and the way her family cares about her has been obvious from the families dubious money making schemes off of the death of a beautiful little girl that this will not happen. I still ache that no one from her family is willing to seek justice for Caylee. To confess the sins that they may have committed, not to us but to God, and tell the truth to honor the precious life that was lost will probably not happen. Any mother that was thinking about how she would answer questions on the Howard Stern show about if JB was hitting it or if her breast are real while her daughter was considered missing, will never disclose the final horror that her daughter suffered. In my opinion the only thing gained by a private meeting is how they can created more drama for a more compelling story, for which they will sell. There will be very little talk about Caylee during this meeting, that I am sure. It will be about everyone else but Caylee, who is the highest bidder for what story or photo, what can be said for a mistrial, strategy from AL when to have tears at the appropriate time, Caylee's name will never be mentioned. Pray for all of the children that have lost there lives, especially those that have lost there lives at a parents hand. Justice for Caylee.:angel:

 

[mysteriew]

Are they planning to take television cameras into the interview? Could probably get a nice chunk of change for that.

 

[Spangle]

Yes! Kisses and sweetness is good! No defense attorney wants their client to be anything but loved by all that are anywhere near her, especially her own family! Remember how we all felt when we heard that Misty C's dad and then mom too came out and said they doubted her story? Didn't that look way worse than just friends and family? They are there to coach them on how to act, (as should JB, but clearly he is not at all equipped) they are to coach the family on how to act, image plays a large part. But that is only half of their job, if that. Probably even closer to 25%.

When I worked with Marie I learned a lot from her. Part of what we did whenever we worked a case was to go get the trial transcripts and the discovery. We investigated every bit of it. We also got permission from the client to obtain all of their legal, health and school records. We found where they didn't do as well in school and if there were behavioral problems in school. We spoke with counselors, we spoke with mental health workers, pediatricians, teachers, physicians for every type of illness or diagnosis and how it could effect the person mental health. We talked with friends, neighbors and co-workers. We get old addresses going back to their birth and hire private investigators if we didn't have time to do it ourselves to track down friends they had in kindergarten.

We never lead the person we were interviewing, but would ask the same basic list of questions on what type of childhood they had and what type of parents the person's parents were, their financial situation, what type of person they were before, it goes on and on. She will investigate every bit of KC's background, as far back as she can go and then she will base her reasoning on why she is too pitiful to get death. How her parents had failed her. The check fraud will work in her favor here, as will all the stories of all the money that she stole from SP and CA. That will be important because it will demonstrate how no matter how much trouble she got into, CA covered for her and "fixed it" leaving her to believe that there are no consequences for your actions. If I were AL I would broadcast that she is a sociopath and I would make sure that everyone knew how bad she has it without the ability to feel like everyone else. She will use anything and everything she can to make sure that she paints the picture of a poor abused child who just never grew up and wasn't allowed to by her parents. George WILL get thrown under the bus here for some sort of abuse, beit physical or emotional. If KC was already telling people LA sexually abused her, believe we will hear all the details during this phase. It will truly be all about KC, since there is no one to speak for Caylee.

Another words, AL will have to throw CA and GA under the bus that KC is driving.

I said earlier that I could see CA taking a major hit publicly, to save KC. Considering that it would just be a SODDI theory and not always mean that she would be arrested for it. It would not be 'real'.

But for what your saying, CA would have to, sorta agree to take this hit in stride and agree to itl. That would make it 'real." I don't see CA taking that sort of 'real' hit.

This is going to be interesting to watch AL as she does her job with this family. Thanks for explaining how her job works.

 

[TotallyObsessed]

Are they planning to take television cameras into the interview? Could probably get a nice chunk of change for that.

THAT'S IT!!! It is probably part of the script for the 48 Hours show.:banghead:

 

[lin]

Hmm... not sure the ethical ramifications, but why doesn't JB/AL hire GA/CA/LA as part of the defense, and then they'll be covered by privilege during meetings? GA as security, CA as secretary?

...is that legal? or a fraud on the court?

The problem I see with that is when drafting the employment contract, JB will insert language making it clear they are not part of the defense team and will not be paid.

 

[ThinkTank]

A bit OT BUT
Does anyone else see the irony in the term "Sunshine Law" and the fact that Caylee sang "Please don't take my sunshine away."??? It just hit me.

Back OT
I recognize that AL's job is to get the DP off the table and IMO she feels no obligation, nor has she been contracted to do more than is necessary to facilitate the removal of the DP. So, in light of her contracted services we can and should assume she will leave no stone unturned. It's her job. She is not trying to prove KC's innocence, she is trying to keep her from the DP.

However, given the Defense's previous opposition to a gag order, does anyone else see the GIANT, HUGE, GARGANTUAN, ENORMOUS, et al failure of JB to work in her best interests? Thank GOD, Judge Strickland has required her to be present for all hearings, AND thank GOD that there are so many high profile attorney's on her "team". I don't see that she could ever argue ineffective counsel, but can absense of logic or common sense in JB's representation ever get him disbarred? I can not fathom how someone like JB can be allowed to practice law, and his repeated submission of motions full of errors and ommisssions should at the very least get someone's attention.

WOW! that really struck me hard when you pointed that out!!! Gave me goose bumps and made me tear up to visualize baby Caylee singing the Sunshine song and begging not to take her "Sunshine" away .... then we have the Florida "Sunshine" laws that are allowing a voice for Caylee to be heard! I wish I was artistic enough to make a graphic/video to represent this beautiful analogy. Anyone capable of doing that????

 

[The World According]

If I recall correctly, the judge said (I am paraphrasing) the test is pretty steep, the anguish the Anthonys feel while it is very important to me,personally, legally I have to allow the disclosure of the information, it is the laws of our state. Do you all remember that? If he couldn't do it then, surely he wont make any special treatment arrangements regarding jail visits. I know they have to go through the motions, but some of their pleadings to the court are frivolous, especially when they already argued the same thing just fill in the blank with different item.

 

[The World According]

Are they planning to take television cameras into the interview? Could probably get a nice chunk of change for that.

The fact that they have an upcoming, paid appearance on a prime time television show that is already advertising "The Anthonys are fighting for their daughter's life!" negates any argument about their need for for any privacy. I had for a time thought that Andrea had put the kabosh on their media blitz, but now , here we ago again, and they are making MONEY OFF OF IT! You cannot have it both ways. There is zero chance that the judge is going to make any exceptions to the laws for them. They insult the potential jurors with their hypocracy!

 

[Brini]

Well you also have to look at the big picture. Maybe the defense is just looking at family issues and how it will look to jurors. And maybe there wouldn't be any problems. But let's look at the big picture here and maybe some history. This is the same group (family and attorneys) where the prisoner showed up with some contraband jewelry on her first trip to court. And where the family has admitted that they were making an end run around jail rules by sending their letters to the prisoner through the attorney. A big no no in the jail. Of course that would never have come out, except the family began to wonder if their letters were actually getting to the prisoner. Then there have been other issues that I can't remember.

Do we really want to trust that these "mitigation" meetings are only for the stated reasons? And that mitigation is the only thing that will be happening at these meetings? Who knows what other discussions there will be or what will be passed at those meetings? Who knows if the attorneys will stick to the rules, when evidently they haven't so far?

For all I know AL may be totally sincere about her reasoning. But I don't know if I trust that that is the only thing that will happen. Wasn't there a request for a "face to face" "contact" visit with the family before? Why is "contact" so important to this family, at this particular time?

The family can have f2f meetings whenever they want-- at the prison, like everybody else.

If there was a REAL "mitigating" circumstance, it would be there whether the family discussed it, or not and the lawyers would likely already know about it.

The only reason for these "meetings," IMHO, is to get everybody's stories together.

All this is is an excuse to get KC out and unobserved.


And, at the root of the issue-- do ALL perps get the same privilege? If not-- NO.

 

[Brini]

I think we also should consider that AL may not necessarily expect her "mitigation" requests to be granted, but instead is setting that up as a post-conviction appellate issue (defendant was denied the opportunity to prepare properly for a DP mitigation defense).

She isn't denied anything.

She can do the same "meetings" in jail and observed as she can out of jail and unobserved. The whole fam and JB can meet with her... through plexiglas.

And, if it's not common and allowable procedure for ALLL the perps, why would it be appeal worthy?

 

[ThinkTank]

The fact that they have an upcoming, paid appearance on a prime time television show that is already advertising "The Anthonys are fighting for their daughter's life!" negates any argument about their need for for any privacy. I had for a time thought that Andrea had put the kabosh on their media blitz, but now , here we ago again, and they are making MONEY OFF OF IT! You cannot have it both ways. There is zero chance that the judge is going to make any exceptions to the laws for them. They insult the potential jurors with their hypocracy!

I sure hope the State prosecutors have copies for the Judge of the CBS 48 Hours promo involving Cindy Anthony, and the headline of how they are trying to save their daughter's life, when they have the Hearing on the Defense Motion about the Anthonys needing privacy when they visit their daughter in jail. They have not needed privacy when they were on the Today Show, and Larry King Live, and Dateline, and Greta ..... ad nauseum .......

I would also think these same arguments would apply to the change of venue Motion.
The Defense and the Anthonys have made this world wide ..... and totally outside the borders of Orlando.

 

[RR0004]

THAT'S IT!!! It is probably part of the script for the 48 Hours show.:banghead:

Can you imagine if that were the case and the judge found out about it?
Maybe Casey wants a piece of the money pie...and needs to be involved? I doubt the As are contributing a dime to her defense...that would hurt the "foundation", no?

I'm sure AL would also like to get paid in $...not just publicity.

 

[Brini]

So, IMHO, the As don't have any laundry that's any dirtier than any other dysfunctional family. Like, maybe they smacked eachother around, a bit. Orm had a lot of yelling fights.

However, it's unbearable to such families that that be known.


For the MOST part, KC was pretty spoiled, as NG keeps pointing out.

SO... KC's team is KNOWS that KC is thoroughly repellant, appearance notwithstanding, to a jury. They also KNOW they have no evidence for their side.

So, they all have to get together and meet to fake up a REALLY nasty and damaging home situation that "might" engender a little sympathy. And, everybody has to tell the same story, and swear to it.

I say "might," because it usually doesn't work that well, anyway. Half the jury is going to have been raised in dysfunctional homes. Almost everybody in the prisons has been abused in some way.

But, they can't have KC saying, "I was angry because Mom was insisting I get a job and take care of my child. Also, she ordered me to quit stealing."

 

[Cayleefan]

Hi everyone. Not to veer off topic but, even if she DID receive the DP, it seems to me, so many DP cases, especially in Florida, are eventually converted into life sentences after a while. I don't understand why? Maybe it's money? I don't know. Why bother having a Capital punishment trial when the chances of it being overturned in to a life sentence anyway? JMO:waitasec:

 

[NocturnalLady]

The fact that they have an upcoming, paid appearance on a prime time television show that is already advertising "The Anthonys are fighting for their daughter's life!" negates any argument about their need for for any privacy. I had for a time thought that Andrea had put the kabosh on their media blitz, but now , here we ago again, and they are making MONEY OFF OF IT! You cannot have it both ways. There is zero chance that the judge is going to make any exceptions to the laws for them. They insult the potential jurors with their hypocracy!

BBM - totally agree.

And CA has already admitted that the family has been exchanging letters with Casey. If this is true then why do they need a forum for "talking about issues that bring shame" to the family. They already have a private forum for doing so - by letter. Those won't be released under the Sunshine laws.

 

[Spangle]

BBM - totally agree.

And CA has already admitted that the family has been exchanging letters with Casey. If this is true then why do they need a forum for "talking about issues that bring shame" to the family. They already have a private forum for doing so - by letter. Those won't be released under the Sunshine laws.

It shows that JB was breaking the jail rules. which might be seen if anyone views the tapes of their meetings. Kinda hard not to notice papers being passed to the client that looks like letters...