Dabs
~Unpredictable~
Not really. On average, if someone is sentenced to death, they sit on death row for about 20 years going thru appeals and such. Some die of natural causes before the are even put to death. So, death penalty doesn't mean your ass is going to the gas chamber tomorrow.
Yes. In some states the appeal of a death penalty verdict is automatic and required. There is even a specially trained public defender who is hired. However, in some states, the convict may waive the appeal.
Death penalty cases get some very strange results. And often. I recall one such case in TN in which the person had exhausted all of his appeals. Then he went psychotic. The plan was to medicate him so he could 'appreciate his punishment.' The defender didn't agree with this, so back to court. In the end, the courts held that it is most appropriate to medicate the convict who faces the death penalty so he can appreciate his punishment.
I think in this case there will be some surprises. There is, in fact, a reasonable explanation for the mother being so nonchalant after the disappearance. Most won't buy it, but some will. Sex abuse victims often have what is called dissociative episodes. It is entirely possible she was in a dissociative state and in fact had no recollections regarding her daughter. If she has had a psych work up, and I have no doubt she has, this or some psychotic illness will be offered as a defense.
Dissociative disorder - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Dissociative Disorders
Like I said, this case will have an O. Henry ending. It just isn't as cut and dried as many people want to make it. And I suspect that all involved on both sides are walking around nauseated 24/7.
I don't buy Casey was molested, never will. I don't see it and I don't believe it. She is saying that NOW, to try and save her ass- to hell with everyone else.
She would throw her own Mother under a moving train to party with a guy, I have no doubt, she is just like a sociopath, she only thinks of herself.