Before I begin telling you about my day, there are three things I need to clarify. One is about how I’ve handled comments in the past, one is about Judge Strickland, and the last one is about criminal defense attorney and WFTV legal analyst Bill Sheaffer. Before you moan and sigh and expect a diatribe on trolls or anything overtly negative, please read on.

Up until I began writing about the Casey Anthony case, I was moseying along, writing about food, marinating, life’s experiences and human interest stories in what I hoped would be humorous in nature. Sometimes, I tried to write so there was a moral to the story; a lesson to be learned. As I began writing about this crime, I saw readership increase incredibly. I am not bragging. What happened was I became overwhelmed with comments, some nice and some not so nice. Without a solid career behind me in the field of journalism or any experience answering back to unfriendly comments, I wasn’t always on my best behavior and I lost my temper. I was never raised to call people nasty names and when I read comment after comment after comment loaded with hostilities against the Anthonys and Casey’s attorneys, I guess I got a little bit too preachy, but I was rattled by what level people could stoop to. I still am, but I am now pretty much over those snippy comments of the old days; the ones that came from me. Today, I offer an olive branch. You can take it or leave it, but as long as you don’t swear at me or insult me to high heaven, I won’t leave anyone out for disagreeing. That fight in me is over and done with and this lesson has taught me a lot.

I noticed a backlash, whiplash and a lot of smart ass remarks following my meeting with Judge Strickland after the first hearing I went to. All my regular readers were giddy with excitement over seeing me in court. I must admit I was, too, after he asked for me and told me what he told me. You all are free to think what you like, but I know what he said and he has not reprimanded me for lying about what I wrote. Some of you may think he called me up to scold me for some imaginary action, but go back and listen to the raw tape and you can clearly hear what he said. It was a compliment of the highest magnitude and I am very proud of that moment. What I am not proud of is that I wrote about it here. I should have kept my mouth shut, but I’ll tell you what, had it happened to you, you’d be beaming, too. This is lesson number two. When I am complimented by anyone involved in this case, I will keep my mouth shut. I have tasted human cruelty and it is something unsavory. More importantly, I may have unwittingly compromised the judge’s character without knowing it. Please trust me, he is the best judge around, and I would never want to jeopardize his position. Would I ever do it again? No.

The final thing that was weighing on my mind, and I really thought I had settled the matter but I knew I should have done more, was how I handled Bill Sheaffer initially. I was happy when he started a blog. A lot of you may not believe that, but I consider myself a human interest writer and he proffers so much information from a legal perspective that I could never touch, let alone answer with any legal authority. The Casey Anthony blogging/forum world was waiting for someone like him. When Richard Hornsby came along, I was rough on Bill and I had no right to be. When I met him at the last hearing, we really hit it off and I did a complete about face and wrote about that meeting. This was a very important lesson. I never should have opined over someone I knew nothing about. Bill Sheaffer is a consummate professional who I have the utmost respect for. Today, he graciously introduced me to several attorneys, Tony Pipitone from WKMG, who I had not been formally introduced to before, and most of all, to his wife, Carol Ann. While waiting for the proceeding to begin, he brought up the loss of my cat and offered his condolences. Afterward, his wife offered her warm words. I will say this now, and I want everyone to know what I am saying from the bottom of my heart; I apologize to Mr. William J. Sheaffer and to his wife, Carol Ann. I am very proud to know you. Thank you both for being such a kind and wonderful couple. This was a huge lesson in humility and I thank you for being honest-to-goodness, down-to-earth people.

With that, I will take leave until I write about my day. Yes, it was a good one. I shot more footage, but you won’t be able to hear a word of the post-hearing interview with Jose Baez and Andrea Lyon, I’m afraid. I don’t know if I should leave it raw or set it to music. Anyway, this has been quite a learning experience and I hope you continue to grow with me.