New Proposal for “Caylee’s Law” Generating an Enormous BUZZ!

On the heals of the stunning Casey Anthony verdict, people are looking for a teachable moment or something good that will come out of the mire. Well, there might just be something good that comes out of this after all. Hours after the verdict was announced, Michelle Crowder, of Durante, Oklahoma, started a webpage called, “Create Caylee’s Law.” This new law proposal will make it a federal felony for a parent or guardian to not notify law enforcement in a timely manner if their child goes missing. Since the creation of this petition yesterday afternoon, more than a 114,000 people have signed to this virtual campaign.

With statistics showing that about 2,000 children are reported missing everyday—and in light of the recent Casey Anthony verdict—this new proposal for a law makes perfect sense. This may, however, only be logical in terms of common sense and not in law terms, unfortunately. Since criminal law usually falls under the jurisdiction of the state, each state would have to enact them separately. For this to become a federal law, congress would have to enact such a proposed legislation under the Constitution’s commerce clause, which applies to cases that significantly impact interstate commerce. Still, the proposal seems to make sense, and if enough voices are heard maybe congress can work their magic.