© Dr. PhilShocking claim: George Anthony, the father of Casey Anthony, believes his daughter or someone with her drugged his granddaughter thereby causing the youngster's death
The father of Casey Anthony believes his daughter - or someone with her - drugged his two-year-old granddaughter thereby causing the girl's death.
He made the shocking claim in front of his stunned wife during a TV interview aired yesterday.
His daughter was acquitted in July of murdering her daughter, Caylee, in a case that gripped America. The verdict caused national uproar with people venting their fury over social media as well as on radio and TV.
'I believe that Casey or someone else that she was with, possibly gave too much to Caylee, she fell asleep and didn't wake up. That's what I feel,' George Anthony said on the Dr. Phil show.
Host Phil McGraw then asked him what substance he thinks could have been given to Caylee. He replied that it could have been a drug, such as the anti-anxiety medicine Xanax.
He also mentioned chloroform, but seemed to discount that possibility.
Mr Anthony then offered an explanation as to might have motivated his daughter to drug and sedate his granddaughter.
'To go out and have a good time, to be with friends, to have this life that she didn't have with Caylee,' he said.
Anthony's parents shared their opinions during the second part of an interview with McGraw that was broadcast yesterday.
The explanation from George Anthony, who also said that the pain of losing his granddaughter nearly pushed him to suicide, is similar to the view of some outside commentators on what may have happened to Caylee.
© Dr. PhilCindy Anthony expressed shock at her husband's explanation, and said on the show that it was the first time she had 'heard that out of his mouth'
© APTwo-year-old Caylee, left, and her mother Casey Anthony, right, during her trial at the start of July. Her acquittal caused national uproar with people venting their fury over social media as well as on radio and TV
But his wife Cindy expressed shock at her husband's explanation, and said on the show that it was the first time she had 'heard that out of his mouth'.
She believes that Caylee Anthony drowned, that Casey knew where her toddler was buried and may have had help placing her body there.
Caylee Anthony was the focus of a wide-ranging search after her disappearance in June 2008. Casey Anthony told police that a fictitious babysitter had kidnapped the child.
The 25-year-old maintained the same story to her family until the child's skeletal remains were found in a wooded area in December 2008 not far from the the home of George and Cindy Anthony.
During her trial prosecutors argued that Casey Anthony killed the girl by smothering her with duct tape and later buried her to hide the body. But defense attorneys suggested that Caylee died from an accidental drowning in a backyard swimming pool.
She was acquitted in July, but convicted of four charges of lying to police.
She is currently somewhere in Florida serving a year of probation on a separate check fraud conviction. Authorities are keeping her whereabouts confidential for her safety.
Despite her acquittal, Casey Anthony has been scorned by the public, and her parents - who at times have defended her - have not fared much better in popular opinion.
The couple spoke with McGraw for a lengthy, taped interview over a two-day period recently. A portion of the interview devoted to Casey Anthony's murder trial will also be shown later this month
Cindy Anthony said that while she believes her granddaughter drowned, she didn't believe defense attorney Jose Baez's assertion that George Anthony was there or helped cover up the death.
She, too, said she thinks Casey knew where Caylee was buried and that is what upsets her most today.
'I believe Casey knew or had knowledge of placing Caylee there,' she said. '...I'm not justifying what Casey did. But until I find out what happened to Caylee and what happened to Casey that day, I have to live with what I know.'
She also told McGraw that she prayed nightly during the past three years that if Casey was somehow responsible for Caylee's death that she'd go to jail.
She said the fact that her daughter was acquitted tells her she wasn't at fault.
'When that verdict came in and Casey was found not guilty, I got my answer,' Cindy Anthony said '...I'm not gonna be her judge and jury. God is her judge and he set her free.'
The first part of McGraw's interview with Cindy and George Anthony aired on Dr. Phil on Tuesday.
© Dr. PhilAnthony's parents shared their opinions during the second part of an interview with Dr Phil McGraw that aired yesterday. They spoke with McGraw for a lengthy, taped interview over a two-day period
I think it was accidental, but that Casey did give her daughter something to sedate her so Casey could party. A lot of people said the system doesn't work, but it did in this case. The prosecutor simply did not prove his case to the jury and left them with reasonable doubt that Casey was solely responsible for her daughter's death. The prosecutor had no clear-cut, absolute proof, and the defense introduced enough "what if's" to lead to reasonable doubt. I didn't like the verdict, either, but I expected it when I heard the prosecution's "evidence" and the prosecutor's blatant show-boating.