In December 2008, authorities discovered 2-year-old Caylee Anthony’s remains five months after her disappearance. Now, new details are emerging about the case as the 10th anniversary of Casey Anthony‘s acquittal in connection to Caylee’s murder approaches. In Cellmate Secrets, a new Lifetime true crime series, Anthony’s former cellblock neighbor/friend Robyn Adams reveals how Anthony reacted to news of police discovering Caylee’s remains.
Speaking in the docuseries, which premiered on Friday, Adams revealed that she and Anthony first met while they were both incarcerated at an Orange County, Florida jail in 2008. Although they were not allowed to speak to one another, they communicated by way of “hand signals” from their cell windows, according to E! News. They also exchanged letters with one another, which they hid in books. According to Adams, they “would ask each other, ‘Did you write me?” They would then tell each other, via hand signals, “‘Yes, it’s in the book,’” which were transported from cell to cell via a book cart.
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In December 2008, however, after Caylee’s remains were discovered in a swampy area less than half a mile from Anthony’s home, Adams said she did not need those methods of communication to judge Anthony’s reaction. Adams said that after the Orange County Sherriff’s Office found Caylee’s remains and Anthony was told the news, “it was bad.” Anthony reportedly had to be taken “to medical, because she couldn’t breathe. She was having an anxiety attack, a panic attack.”
Despite Adams’ claims, however, another subject of the docuseries viewed Anthony’s reaction quite different. Silvia Hernandez, a prison guard, said that Anthony “didn’t act like a regular mother, where ‘oh they found my daughter and she’s dead?’—you know, crying, bawling.” From her perspective, Hernandez said Anthony’s reaction was more along the lines of “‘oh, s–. I got caught.’”
The subsequent trial that followed the discover of Caylee’s remains, the Florida v. Casey Anthony trial, captured international attention. After 33 days of testimony, during which sequestered jurors were presented with more than 400 pieces of evidence, Anthony was acquitted of the charges of first-degree murder, aggravated child abuse and aggravated manslaughter of a child. Four misdemeanor counts related to lying to investigators that she was charged with were later overturned. Nearly a decade later, Anthony still lives in Florida, where she is reportedly currently writing a book about her life, the trial, and the loss of her daughter.
