Caylee Anthony is Dead

There is no nice way to say this. The life of an innocent little 2-year-old girl, Caylee Marie Anthony, was extinguished and her body dumped in the woods near her grand-parents house. Her mother, Casey Anthony, sits in jail, accused of killing her baby daughter even though the girl's body had not yet been found. Read more about the case here.

In a press conference Dr. Jan Garavaglia, the Orange County medical examiner confirmed that the skeletal remains of a young child found in the woods on December 11, is that of Caylee Anthony. The remains were confirmed to be Caylee's through a DNA match. The cause of death was determined to be homicide but the medical examiner could not say exactly how.

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The six-month search for the missing Caylee is over. Questions however remain as to why it took so long to find Caylee's body. It appears as if some clues and tips were not followed up thoroughly.

Roy Kronk, the meter reader who found the remains and called the department four months ago, directing them to the site three times, came forward. He read from a prepared statement, telling reporters that

"Back in August of this year, I previously reported to Crimeline and to the sheriff's communications center that I had spotted something suspicious, a bag in the same area. I have been and will continue to cooperate fully with the ongoing investigation by the sheriff's office and the FBI," Kronk said.

At a news conference, Capt. Angelo Nieves, a Sheriff's Department commander, said investigators were looking into whether Kronk's tips, called in August 11, 12 and 13, were properly followed up. In one of those phone calls, Kronk reported seeing a gray bag on the side of the road, Nieves said. On August 13, a deputy responded to the site and did a "cursory search" but found nothing, Nieves said. He said the department was investigating the "thoroughness" of the deputy's response but would not identify the deputy. Nieves also said that searchers combing the site after the skull's discovery had found "significant skeletal remains" consistent with those of a small child on the outer perimeter of the search area.

Kronk is not the only one, or the first, to have pointed police toward the site containing the remains. KioMarie Cruz, Casey Anthony's childhood friend, also told police to investigate the same wooded area near Hidden Oaks Elementary School a month before the meter reader.

Cruz said that she and Anthony "pretty much used to hang out there most of our time," would "snack on food for hours" and went there to "get away from our parents."

The Sheriff's Department followed up on that tip, but the wooded area was covered in floodwaters, preventing a search. Nieves said the water may have been present at the time of the meter reader's tips as well.

Caylee Marie Anthony died a horrible death but at least there is some closure in knowing that her body has been found. What follows next is the trial of Casey Anthony for the murder of her daughter. Will justice be served??