Caylee Marie Anthony

I titled my blog with this sweet baby's name so that it will be forever memorialized in this blog. And I will never write her mother's name here. We all witnessed today what appears to be a miscarriage of justice, to the scale of another person who was found "not guilty" of two killings several years ago. I did not agree with today's verdict and I did not agree with that one of years past.

But our American system of justice is probably the best one in the world, at least in the original trial process. I think the English system could teach us a thing or two about appeals, but that is for another day. I am sure that there is a sense of outrage around the nation as many people say to one another "she got away with murder." The beauty, and the frustration, of the American system of justice is that a person is "presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law." The key words are "presumed innocent" and "proven guilty."

The United States Constitution guarantees that you and I, no matter what people think of us, whether we are liked or reviled, are PRESUMED INNOCENT, not by the news, not by the police, not even by the "people" but by THE COURT and THE JURY. Then, when the State (or the government) presents its case, the State MUST PROVE the defendant GUILTY by providing facts that prove the defendant guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. Not beyond ANY doubt or A SHADOW OF A DOUBT as per Perry Mason, but a reasonable doubt. When a jury is not convinced beyond a reasonable doubt, the jury MUST render a NOT GUILTY verdict.

There will be many times that we do not agree with a jury's verdict, for the American system of justice is weighed heavily in the favor of the defendant, and with good reason. All one need do is review a few criminal cases in old England history to find all the "whys" that the State must prove its case, and must do so legally, that is by following a Code of Criminal Procedure. From reasonable suspicion to guilty beyond a reasonable doubt, if the State cannot prove its case, then the jury must find a person "not guilty." We saw that today and now that must be the end. This horrible woman was not convicted and our system worked the way it was meant to work.

My concern is not this woman and what fortune she might reap from movie offers and such. My concern is for the family that lost a little grand daughter and a sweet angel. This little girl lived a short and horribly sad life with a pathetic person for a mother. How I wish that sweet baby had not been killed. I know her grandparents would gladly have taken her if the mother had but asked. Now Caylee's loved one must take comfort in simply knowing that Caylee is with our Lord and will never be abused, will never suffer in any way again.

Heaven received a new little angel three years ago. Tonight the mother of this child was found "not guilty" of killing her. Instead of allowing one horrible pathetic excuse for a human to darken the nation's mood, I hope we can all think of Caylee being cared for perfectly in the hands of the Good Shepherd who said "Let the little children come to me." And we can also take some comfort in knowing that the mother still must account for her child to God at some point. God said in Genesis Chapter 4:10

Listen! Your brother's blood cries to me from the ground.

I hope that we do not lose faith in the great American system of justice, for if we do, and if we give in to the emotional and natural desire to "get justice" we will all lose something precious and valuable. We will lose a system of justice that, while it occasionally miscues, usually metes out justice to the guilty, and redeems the innocent. I for one cannot think of another nation in the world in whose justice system I would rather be tried than right here in our own American system. God Bless America