Casey Anthony biography

Synopsis

Early Years

Born on March 19, 1986, in Warren, Ohio, Casey Anthony was one of two children of Cindy Anthony and George Anthony, who worked in law enforcement. Casey was a bright, personable young girl, with friends and what many thought was an ordinary American family. However, friends say that a pattern of lying began when Casey was in high school. Cindy and George attended Casey's graduation, along with Casey's grandparents—only to discover that she was several credits short of graduating. Casey had stopped attending classes toward the end of the school year, but led her family to believe she would walk with the graduating class.

When she was 19, Casey gave her family yet another shock. She had put on weight, and her parents suspected she was pregnant. Casey denied it, claiming she was a virgin. Seven months into her pregnancy, she told her parents the truth. The identity of the baby's father, however, remained a mystery. Casey pointed to different men, including her fiancé, Jesse Grund, as well as a young man she had dated previously, who had died in a car crash. On August 9, 2005, Caylee Anthony was born.

A friend of Casey's said that she had discussed giving the baby up for adoption, but was discouraged by her mother. For the next few years, Casey and Caylee lived with her parents, and Grund acted as the baby's father. Grund even believed Caylee might be his baby, despite knowing that the timing of her conception made it improbable. A DNA test would later find that Grund was not Caylee's father. The identity of Caylee's father remained unknown.

While living with her parents in Orlando, Casey and Cindy had a fight on June 15, 2008. After seeing a photo online of Casey at a "no clothes party," Cindy accused Casey of being an unfit mother, and threatened to try and get custody of Caylee. The day after the argument, Casey left her parents' home, taking Caylee with her. She told Cindy and George that she planned to travel to Tampa to work at Universal Studios.

Caylee's Disappearance

Over the next 31 days, Cindy called her daughter to check on Caylee. Each time, Casey told her the little girl was out with a babysitter, Zenaida "Zanny" Fernandez-Gonzalez.

On July 13, 2008, Cindy and George Anthony received a letter saying that Casey's car was in a tow yard. When George went to pick the car up, he found Casey's purse, along with Caylee's car seat and toys. George noticed a strong smell, like that of organic matter decomposing, coming from the trunk. Alarmed, Cindy found Casey at the home of her boyfriend, Tony Lazaro, and brought her home. Casey broke down, telling her mother and brother Lee that she had left Caylee with nanny Zenaida Fernandez-Gonzalez in Orlando on June 16, and that Gonzalez had kidnapped the toddler.