Following the controversial “not guilty” verdict in the Casey Anthony case where a jury on Tuesday acquitted the 25-year-old mother of the murder of her two-year-old daughter, two Republican lawmakers, have filed a bill making it a felony to not timely report a missing child.
Representatives Scott Plakon, (R-Longwood) and Jose Feliz Diaz (R-Miami) filed HB 37 which make it a felony for a parent or other caregiver to not report a child under the age of 12 as missing after a 48-hour period. It also it a felony to not report a child’s death or “location of a child’s corpse” to police within two hours.
The name of this bill? Calyee’s Law, of course.
Two-year-old Orlando resident Caylee Anthony went missing in 2008, with her mother failing to report her missing for 31 days. Her body was discovered months later, and her mother, Casey Anthony, went on trial and was found not guilty.
On Thursday, Sen. Greg Evers, R-Baker and chairman of the Senate Criminal Justice Committee, asked permission from his Republican leader to spend the first committee meeting in September to address what, if anything, the chamber should do in response to a not-guilty verdict in the Casey Anthony case that has prompted public outcry.
“While I respect the judicial process and the burden of proof that exists in such cases, I join my fellow Floridians in voicing concern about any inconsistencies or inadequacies in the law that could potentially lead to future issues such as this,” Evers said in a letter to Senate President Mike Haridopolos.
The controversial verdict has ignited a national debate and inspired lawmakers to craft bills targeted at cases like this one.
