Lee Anthony
Casey Anthony, 22, sits behind bars, charged with the murder of her daughter, Caylee Marie. Now, it is reported that Casey's brother, Lee Anthony, may also face charges.
Attorney, and Lee Anthony's advisor, Thomas Luka, said that the State Attorney's Office could seek to charge Lee with obstruction of justice or aiding and abetting, even if was not Lee's intention to do so.
Video: Lee Anthony's attorney on possible charges
Video: Lee Anthony's attorney on donated money
(editor's note: listen for the slip by Luka in the 2nd video, where Luka refers to Caylee as Lee's "daughter". Luka states. "In the beginning, the public did not know who was responsible for his daughter, uh, his niece's disappearance...." slip or mistake?....my spoiled opinion)
"It's an ongoing investigation, so no one really knows where it's going to lead. Mr. Anthony obviously wants his civil rights protected. Everyone involved in the case should have their rights covered when determining what the police can and can not do or should and should not expect from the witnesses involved in this case," Luka said.
Luka adds that neither Lee nor George and Cindy Anthony have been called as witnesses in the case, but they are preparing for just such a scenario.For months Lee Anthony has been conducting his own investigation into the disappearance of Caylee, looking into leads for other suspects. Luka contends that Lee has cooperated with detectives, even handing over a DNA sample. Although, we heard it was by subpoena
Luka describes his role an advisor to Lee, in determining what he should and should not say to investigators."For that reason, he feels at this point, now that the police are focusing completely on Casey, he wants to make sure that his own civil rights are protected," Luka said.
Luka: No improprieties with donated money
Luka wanted to put to rest any "cloud of impropriety and a cloud of rumor" surrounding donated money collected by Lee Anthony connected to the search for Caylee.
Since mid-July, when Caylee was first reported missing, thousands of dollars have been donated by strangers wanting to help locate the toddler. At one point, Lee was accused of using some of those funds inappropriately."There was no impropriety. There is a cloud of impropriety and a cloud of rumor that I think has been fueled by the non-expenditure of the funds, that has been following Mr. Anthony around," Luka said. "He wants to make it clear that no money has been improperly used."Luka said financial statements from the fund were made public, linked to a memorial website in honor of Caylee.
The Anthony family has said those donations have paid for everything from flyers and T-shirts with Caylee's picture to helping Lee in his own investigation. (WTH???)
"Again, when this investigation first began, we the public did not know who was responsible for Casey's disappearance. Mr. Anthony was going under the assumption she was kidnapped. He investigated that angle first and foremost."There is still money left in the Help Find Caylee Anthony fund, but Luka would not say how much.
"As far as I know, the money will be returned to the senders or individuals who have paid it."
Who pays for Casey's defense and who profits?
As the defense team for Caylee has grown, questions have been raised as to if and how a team of high-profile forensic experts are being paid for their contributions. The kind of defense assembled by Casey Anthony's attorney, Jose Baez, typically would not come cheap. While it is unknown whether any of the experts are being paid, what is known is that if Casey is convicted of first-degree murder, it is unlikely her legal team will be raking in the dough. That would put to rest any rumors of a book or movie deal that could be in the works. So far, in addition to Baez, attorneys for the defense include Linda Kenny-Baden, famed attorney for record producer Phil Spector; Jose Luis Garcia; Jonathen Casen; and Mike Walsh. If the prosecution should seek the death penalty, Terance Lenamon could join the defense. There are also several scientific experts working the case for the defense.
"Are you going to do what is best in Ms. Anthony's interest, or what's going to get you on TV the most?" asked criminal defense attorney Richard Hornsby, citing one of the many questions posed to Baez by people who have been closely following the case.
Under Florida law, Baez would not be able to tell or sell his story for profit if his client is convicted, based on attorney-client privileges.
"If Ms. Anthony is convicted of anything, Mr. Baez and anybody who has worked on his defense will never be able to publicly speak about either what she said, what she talked about or how their defense was prepared. If they did, they could be sued," added Hornsby.
If Casey is acquitted of charges and she were to grant permission to Baez, then and only then could he make money from the case. Hornsby said any money-making deal is not due-diligence for Casey.
"Unless their people are truly doing this pro bono, there is probably some questionable things that have gone on regarding compensation," Hornsby said.
It is important to note that at the time of this post, there had been no formal complaints filed against Baez about how he and his defense team are getting paid in their representation of Casey Anthony.
some content and video courtesy Fox Orlando
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