Casey Anthony

Score another one for Casey Anthony's attorneys.

After the suspected killer was spotted in Ohio yesterday, talk turned to whether or not Casey would be required to attend a probation hearing in Orlando on Friday. Her lawyer, Jose Baez, has been attempting to keep his client clear of the city due to "an issue of safety," he said on The Today Show this morning.

Now, it appears as if he's succeeded.

After reports initially indicated that Anthony had been ordered to be in court by 10 a.m. on Friday, lest a judge order a bench warrant for her arrest, sources now say the hearing will go on without Casey present.

Why the ruling? It's unclear at this time. Chalk it up to another confusing, maddening development in the world of Casey Anthony.

We'll keep readers apprised if anything changes in this story.

On the same day Casey Anthony was seen in Ohio - the first confirmed sighting of the acquitted murder suspect since her release - her attorney argued that she will not be safe in Orlando, where a judge ordered her to return.

Anthony went into hiding when she was released from jail July 17 after being found not guilty of murder in the death of her daughter Caylee.

However, on Monday, a judge ordered Casey to report within three days to Orlando as part of her supervised probation in an unrelated case.

Casey Anthony admitted to fraudulently using her best friend's checks to buy more than $400 worth of clothes and groceries back in 2008.

That took place the month after the disappearance of Caylee, 2. Casey, 25, admitted committing the offense while awaiting trial last year.

Her attorney, Cheney Mason, is fighting the judge's order:

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People can soon stop asking "Where is Casey Anthony?"

The acquitted murder suspect went into hiding after her July 17 release, with people speculation that she was everywhere from California to the Bahamas.

Thanks to a judge's order, however, Anthony soon will return to her native Orlando, Fla., within the next three days to report to a local probation office.

Orange County Judge Stan Strickland signed court documents requiring Anthony to serve a year of supervised probation on her check fraud charges.

"She should report to probation, probably within 72 hours," Strickland said.

Last year, Srickland sentenced Anthony - then awaiting trial for murder - on charges that she stole a friend's checkbook and forged several checks.

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No matter what you think of the Casey Anthony verdict, it's clear this is a wise move. The 25-year-old will seek treatment for serious mental issues.

As such, the acquitted murder suspect won't be sitting down with ABC, NBC, CBS or any other network for an interview in the foreseeable future.

Guilty or not, she needs to receive professional help ASAP.

Sources say Casey is seeking treatment for three reasons:

1. She realizes her questionable behavior when daughter Caylee Anthony went missing in 2008 stemmed from "obvious mental health issues."
2. She needs help coping with the "obvious trauma of losing her child."
3. She spent nearly three years in solitary confinement in a Florida jail. That's 23 hours a day in a cramped cell, with death row looming if she were convicted of murder. A source close to Casey says "It messed with her head."

When she's healthy, Anthony will have the final word on where and how her story will be told. Attorney Jose Baez will continue to field offers.

NBC is firing back at reports that it is involved in a major bidding war for Casey Anthony - and leading the pack no less - denying that it ever offered money.

An NBC rep says:

"NBC News has not and will not be in a bidding war for a Casey Anthony interview. No money has or will be offered, no licensing or other arrangements."

"If we were to conduct an interview it would be under our standards."

The network doesn't deny interest in landing a sit-down with Anthony. In fact, the rep confirms NBC paid for Jose Baez's hotel in NYC last week.

Baez, Casey's attorney, was believed to be holed up and negotiating for interviews on her behalf, and talking about a "big price tag" for them.

Sources connected with ABC insist there was indeed a bidding war between all three major networks for Anthony, and even Anthony's parents.

While networks don't pay for interviews, technically, they frequently get around this by licensing photos and videos - such as this alleged one Casey Anthony drinking - at whatever price they want, effectively the exact same thing.

One of first things on Casey Anthony's agenda after her release from jail?

Cracking open a cold one!

According to TMZ, a video is being shopped around showing Casey getting off a private jet in Florida, just hours after she ended her stint behind bars.

Keep celebrating, Casey. You certainly earned it.

The video shows Casey Anthony smiling with a half-empty Corona beer bottle. The acquitted murderer is seen smiling as she deplanes at an unknown location.

Casey's former lawyer, Todd Macaluso, who is believed to have transported Anthony by plane (his firm has a private jet), is also on board and celebrating.

At one point she is heard saying, "I concur." The video is being shopped by Casey's lawyer Jose Baez, who's arranging potential interviews with her.

The first exclusive with Anthony is expected to fetch seven figures.

The judge in the Casey Anthony case ordered the names of the jurors to remain secret for their protection, tearing the media a new one in the process.

Judge Belvin Perry cited the "circus-like atmosphere" around the trial in the name of entertainment rather than justice for putting the jurors at risk.

Jury members' identities will be sealed until at least October 25.

"The jurors in this case face the possibility of substantial injury if their names are made public," Perry ruled, according to the Orlando Sentinel.

Casey Anthony Verdict Reading

Florida law requires that the names be released, but Perry will not "until sufficient time has passed to allow those enraged by the verdict and who might instinctively react with violence to compose and restrain themselves."

He again cited the case's "unique and alarming circumstances."

Perry also took the opportunity to take the media to task.

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The bidding war for Casey Anthony interviews is off the proverbial hook.

According to reports, a syndicated talk show was laughed at with a bid of $250,000 ... and that was just for Casey's parents, George and Cindy!

An interview with Casey Anthony herself? That'll cost you $1.5 million.

It may be too much for one player. ABC News just released a statement saying it will no longer pay for photos and video in exchange for interviews.

Casey's defense lawyer, Jose Baez, was holed up in the Mandarin Oriental Hotel in New York City last week, taking bids from NBC, ABC and CBS.

All three networks were offering the same deal - they won't pay for interviews, but would pay a fortune to license photos and video from Casey.

Basically, this workaround allows them to say they don't pay for interviews, and be technically correct, while they are effectively doing just that.

In its statement, ABC, perhaps fed up with the sky-high price tag, says, "We can book just about anyone based on our strength of journalism."

Rascal Flatts has come out with an emotional tribute to Caylee Anthony, the precious toddler whose death sparked one of America's most notorious court cases.

Lead singer Gary LeVox co-wrote "She's Going Places" with Cledus T. Judd.

Casey Anthony's folks, George and Cindy, have already reached out to try to arrange a meeting with the ban, though Rascal Flatts has yet to respond.

The lyrics are pretty emotional, and if you're a fan of the band, you'll probably like the music as well. If you've got tissues on hand, take a listen:

Rascal Flatts - She's Going Places (A Tribute to Caylee Anthony)

People already up in arms over the Casey Anthony verdict may not want to read this new report, which indicates that they financed a big part of it.

Wherever she's in hiding, no need to worry about legal bills reaching her - $119,000 in defense fees racked up during her trial are being covered.

Thank you, Florida taxpayers! All taken care of!

Another pending $5,800 in fees that Anthony's attorney Jose Baez has billed to his client's case has put the state's taxpayer tab at just shy of $125,000.

As per Florida law, public coffers have been covering Anthony's defense costs since all the way back in March 2010, when she declared herself indigent.

Anthony was found not guilty of killing 2-year-old daughter Caylee, but received four years for providing false statements to law enforcement officials.

Having served nearly all of that while awaiting trial for murder, her post-verdict sentence was just two weeks, and she was released on July 17.

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