Casey Anthony released from jail under armed guard in the dead of night just minutes after deadline for her freedom passed
- She is jeered and taunted with shouts of 'killer' as she is released from jail
- Escorted into black SUV with her lawyer and driven to downtwon Orlando
- Spotted at a private airport half an hour after her release
The woman known as America's 'most hated mother' was escorted into a black SUV by armed officers and driven away from the waiting media at high speed.
Her motorcade sped toward downtown Orlando to a car park near the office of her other lawyer, Cheney Mason. By 12:45, she was spotted at a nearby private airport.
Wearing a pink T-shirt, jeans and blue trainers she clamly walked into the waiting vehicle before being driven to an unkown location.
She was escorted by her lawyer Jose Baez as she was led from the jail at 00.13, less than a quarter of an hour after the deadline for her freedom had passed.
As she emerged, a jeer went up from a crowd of protesters who had gathered outside and she was taunted with shouts of 'we hate you' and 'Caylee'.
Released to an uncertain future: Casey Anthony walks out of the Orange County Jail with her lawyer Jose Baez in Orlando, Florida
Freedom: Casey Anthony, left, walks to a SUV with her lawyer Jose Baez after she was released from the Orange County Jail in Orlando, Florida
Heavy security: Casey Anthony is surrounded by police as she and her defense attorney Jose Baez leave the Booking and Release Center at the Orange County Jail after she was acquitted of murdering her daughter Caylee Anthony
Anthony was given $537.68 in cash from her jail account and escorted outside by two sheriff's deputies armed with semi-automatic rifles.
Outrage over Anthony's sensational acquittal for the murder of her two-year-old daughter, Caylee, was pronounced by placards held by angry protesters at the entrance - calling the 25-year-old a devil and a murderer.
Anthony was acquitted of first-degree murder in Caylee's death earlier this month in a sensational trial that was carried extensively on cable television stations. She was found guilty of four counts of lying to police, but with time served and good behaviour credits, she didn't have to serve out her four-year sentence.
As for her plans, it's not clear where Anthony will stay or what she will do next. Her relationship with her parents, George and Cindy, has been strained since defense attorneys accused George Anthony of molesting Casey when she was young. They also said George Anthony made Caylee's death look like a homicide after the girl accidentally drowned in the family pool.
One of her attorneys, Cheney Mason, said on Friday that Anthony had been scared to leave jail, given numerous threats on her life and the scorn of a large segment of the public that believes she had something to do with the death of her two-year-old daughter, Caylee.
Sped away: Casey Anthony (L) and her defense attorney Jose Baez leave the Booking and Release Center . They sped to downtown Orlando and she was later spotted at a private airport
Getaway: Casey Anthony, behind driver, with her lawyer Jose Baez, back left, leaves the the Orange County Jail
Sped away: The black SUV carrying Casey Anthony as seen from a helicopter as it speeds away from Orange County jail
Media frenzy: Members of the media and bystanders wait in front of the Orange County Jail prior to the release of Casey Anthony
Anger: Protestors surge toward an exit out of the Orange County Jail as they await the release of Casey Anthony
Outrage: Protesters gather at the scene of Casey Anthony's forthcoming release from Orange County Corrections Facility in Orlando, Florida
Mason said he isn't taking any chances: 'We are all vigilant and I am armed.'
Another attorney, Charles Greene, said on Friday that Anthony was 'emotionally unstable' and needed 'a little breathing room' after the draining two-month trial.
However, that 'breathing room' may be hard to come by given that Anthony's first steps of freedom will be under the glare of the media spotlight.
The vitriol directed at Anthony has been pointed: After the verdict, anger spilled onto social networks like Facebook and Twitter from people who had spent weeks watching the trial on local and cable television networks. On Friday, Anthony's legal team said it had received an emailed death threat with a manipulated photo showing the 25-year-old woman with a bullet hole in her forehead. It has been forwarded to authorities.
Walking free: Casey Anthony was acquitted of first-degree murder in her two-year-old daughter Caylee's death earlier this month in a sensational trial that was carried extensively on cable television stations
In Orlando and elsewhere, many remain convinced Anthony isn't totally innocent. David Waechter recorded the trial and watched it at home with his wife every day after work. He said Anthony was guilty of 'something, for sure.'
'I'm perplexed. You know there is something there, but you don't know what,' he said. 'Yet she is getting out.'
Others who have witnessed Anthony's saga with front-row seats said they were ready for the media attention to die down.
'Most people I talk to, they're done with it,' Mandy Williams, a 38-year-old county parks employee, said outside a busy grocery store. 'When it came out she was not guilty, people were ticked off.'
Steven Klosterman, who owns a property management company, said if Anthony were to stay in Orlando, 'I think she'll wind up like her daughter,' given the threats she has received.
'Good luck to her,' said Klosterman, 43. 'She's going to have a hard time.'
Security experts have said Anthony will need to hole up inside a safe house protected by bodyguards, perhaps for weeks, in case someone tries to make good on one of those threats. Ideally, several SUVs with tinted windows will pull up to the jail to whisk her away, probably in the middle of the night, the experts said. Jail officials have not disclosed when she will be released.
Once she is out of jail, Anthony will not get special treatment beyond the protection any person would get if there were a credible threat, law enforcement authorities said.
Exactly where she will go remains unclear. It's unlikely she'll return to the home she once shared with her parents, as the trial left her family fractured.
Protest: Two women gather outside the Orlando jail, in a city where many remain convinced Anthony is not totally innocent
'Get over it!' One peaceful activist calls on protesters and media to put a stop to the circus in the hours before Anthony's expected release
Defence attorney Jose Baez argued during the trial that Caylee accidentally drowned in the family pool and that Casey Anthony's father, George, covered it up to make it look like a homicide. Baez also argued that George Anthony molested his daughter when she was a child - which resulted in psychological issues that caused her to lie and act without apparent remorse after Caylee went missing.
'Most of the time you can always go home, but she doesn't have that option,' said Daniel Meachum, an Atlanta lawyer who has represented football star Michael Vick and actor Wesley Snipes. 'Baez has to have somewhere for her to go for her to get herself together.'
'I'd tell her to go to a big house in the middle of nowhere,' said Dallas-based security expert Stuart Diamond, who has worked for celebrities and federal agencies. 'That would be the safest thing for her. It's more of an effort for someone to really follow through on a threat.'
Casey Anthony was convicted of telling detectives several lies in July 2008, when Caylee's disappearance was reported. She said that Caylee had been kidnapped by a non-existent nanny, among other things.
Caylee's skeleton was found that December in some woods near the home Casey Anthony shared with her parents.
Anthony still faces a civil lawsuit. Attorneys for a woman who claimed Anthony defamed her had tried get her deposed before her release from jail but a judge ruled on Friday that the deposition would take place in October. Also on Friday, Anthony filed notice that she will appeal the four misdemeanour counts of lying to law enforcement.
While defence attorneys argued that Caylee's death was an accident, prosecutors alleged that Anthony suffocated her daughter with duct tape because motherhood interfered with her lust for a carefree life of partying with friends and spending time with her boyfriend. Jurors have told various media outlets that prosecutors didn't prove their case beyond a reasonable doubt as required for a conviction - although most have added that they don't think Anthony is innocent.
Anthony's security may be hampered by her limited financial means, though many have predicted lucrative book and TV interview deals. Two security guards around the clock could cost $10,000 a week, experts said.
The best thing she can do for her safety is keep a low profile, said Mark Geragos, a Los Angeles lawyer who has represented Winona Ryder, Michael Jackson and Nicole Ritchie.
'She needs to lay as low as possible until the next big scandal or trial,' Geragos said. 'It's not time to do a photo spread. It's not time to sit down with Diane Sawyer. None of those things. There is no reason to do any of that.'
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