Casey Anthony Update: Hearing on defamation suits, bankruptcy ends without ruling, report says
(CBS) A judge in Tampa, Fla. today weighed next steps for two defamation lawsuits against Casey Anthony, who was acquitted in 2011 of killing her daughter Caylee. The hearing without a ruling, the Orlando Sentinel reports.
PICTURES: Caylee and Casey Anthony, personal photos
Anthony, whose case drew national attention and an intense media spotlight, was convicted of four misdemeanors for lying to law enforcement. Two were reversed on appeal.
Both suits were reportedly halted by Anthony's January bankruptcy filing. One was brought by Zenaida Gonzalez, who said her reputation was damaged when Anthony said a similarly-named nanny kidnapped Caylee - a claim later shown to be false. The second suit was brought by Roy Kronk, a meter reader who discovered Caylee's body and claimed he was wrongly implicated in her death.
Gonzalez and Kronk are both reportedly listed as creditors in Anthony's bankruptcy, in which Anthony listed $790,000 in debt and less than $1,100 in assets.
Anthony's civil lawyers, who say the lawsuits are "frivolous," want the defamation suits to proceed in federal court, but Gonzalez and Kronk want jury trials in state circuit court, reports the Orlando Sentinel.
Anthony did not attend Thursday's hearing. She has been in hiding since her acquittal in the death of her daughter..
