In Where the Truth Lies, Casey Anthony has spoken on camera for the first time since her trial for the alleged murder of her daughter Caylee in 2011. The Peacock documentary also sees her reflect on the paternity of her late child.
On July 15, 2008, Anthony's two-year-old was reported missing by her grandmother, Cindy, and in a conversation with a 911 operator Casey Anthony said that Caylee had been missing for a total of 31 days. She also claimed that a nanny had kidnapped her daughter in June, though this statement was later revealed to be a lie.
Anthony was charged with child neglect, making false statements to authorities and obstructing the investigation on July 16, and, in October 2008, Anthony was charged with first-degree murder. Caylee's remains were found in December 2008 in a wooded area near the Anthony family home in Orlando, Florida.
The trial began in May 2011, and in July the jury found Anthony not guilty of first-degree murder, aggravated child abuse and aggravated manslaughter of a child. Anthony was found guilty of four misdemeanor counts of lying to a law enforcement officer, and she was sentenced to four years in prison. She was given credit for time served and was released on July 17, 2011.
Paternity Mystery Explored as Mom Casey Tells Her Story
Prior to Where the Truth Lies, Anthony had not revealed details of her daughter's father, and at the time of Anthony's trial there was some speculation over his identity.
In the new documentary, Anthony said that she knew she was pregnant but had chosen to pretend that she wasn't, and she felt that "no lie was out of bounds, no lie was off limits" to ensure her pregnancy remained a secret.
Anthony said that she became pregnant with Caylee after being drugged and raped at a party but did not reveal if she knew who her attacker was during the interview.
"When I was 18 I was at a house party, had a couple beers, completely lost my memory because I was drugged," Anthony said. "I woke up with my top on, my jeans on the floor with my underwear, and my bra still inside of my shirt but up over my breasts.
"I was lethargic, I was extremely disoriented, and I could feel like I'd had forcible sex. I was scared, confused, full of questions. Why it happened? How it happened? Did I consent, not consent?"
Anthony explained that she didn't tell anyone she had been raped because she "wasn't sure anyone would believe [her]" and she felt that if she did tell anyone then her attacker would claim that she "wanted to be a part of it" and "was asking for it."
She added that she knew she was pregnant at six weeks and that at the time she was dating Jesse Grund, who later became her fiancé. Anthony felt that there "was a possibility" he could be Caylee's father, so she chose not to tell him about the rape.
Anthony said: "As my pregnancy progressed and we realized how far along I actually was we came to realize that wasn't the case, but I made a very selfish decision to not tell Jesse, I let Jesse believe for my entire pregnancy that he was the father.
"I should have told him what happened but I didn't, at that point I hadn't told anyone I was raped. He got a paternity test and even after that I never told Jesse how I got pregnant in the first place. I lied and said it was an old friend from way back when."
In October 2008, Grund made an appearance on the Today Show in which he explained that while he requested the paternity test he had wanted to remain in Caylee's life before receiving the results in case he was her father.
Grund said on the program: "I petitioned for a paternity test, and there was zero percent probability [I was the father].
"My attitude was, until the paternity test comes out, I'm not going waste time or miss out if this really is my child," he added.
In the documentary Anthony looked back at her decision to lie about Caylee's father and how she became pregnant, saying : "I lied to everyone. That's what I'm saying, it's so f***** up.
"It's just years of feeling like I needed to live a certain life or show people I lived a certain life, because I didn't want people to pity me and I didn't want my kid to grow up thinking she was this product of something so bad and that I didn't want her."
Casey Anthony: Where the Truth Lies is out on Peacock now.
About the writer
Roxy Simons is a Newsweek TV and Film Reporter (SEO), based in London, U.K. Her focus is reporting on the ... Read more
