Cathy Cooper expresses her disagreement with the verdict outside the Orange County Courthouse in Orlando Tuesday. (Alan Diaz/AP)
When Casey Anthony was declared not guilty of murdering her daughter Caylee on Tuesday, the immediate response to the verdict outside the courtroom, online and on television was highly emotional.
Nancy Grace, who has given the case a huge amount of attention since it began almost three years ago, tweeted the verdict as, “Hard to believe.” In the first minutes of her HLN show that evening she declared, “The devil is dancing tonight.”
“She may be celebrating now, but she will ultimately pay,” an outraged Grace said of Anthony. “As the defense sits by and has their champagne toast after that not guilty verdict, somewhere out there the devil is dancing tonight.”
There were also heated words from Grace’s panelists, including an outraged Susan Moss who said, “We’ve been O.J.’d.”
Parallels to the O.J. Simpson trial’s outcome were also drawn by those assembled outside of the Florida courthouse. Some chanted, “Justice for Caylee,” while others wept as cable news camera rolled. People gathered to watch the verdict in a nearby cafe reacted with shock, as video shows.
Trial watchers without a cable news show shared their reaction on different social media tools.
Twitter was immediately flooded with responses to the verdict, with many expressing outrage and confusion at the outcome. “Absolutely disgusted that Casey Anthony was not found guilty,” one Twitter user wrote. A minority wondered who exactly Casey Anthony was. The reaction on Facebook was much the same.
Some celebrities tweeted their opinions of the case, with Kim Kardashian, the reality star daughter of a Simpson defense lawyer, coming under fire for her “speechless” reaction.
In keeping with a regular feature on YouTube, some users filmed themselves while they watched the verdict being read. “I will celebrate if she gets first degree,” peron75 said in his verdict video, which, like many others, contains NSFW language.
More on the Casey Anthony trial:
Live Chat: Why are we so obsessed with the Casey Anthony trial?
The AP: Casey Anthony acquitted of murder in death of her 2-year-old daughter Caylee
BlogPost: Watch a live stream from court
Watch the reactions of those outside the courthouse below:
