Sen. Kennedy

CINDY ANTHONY TELLS CO-ANCHOR MAGGIE RODRIGUEZ THAT SHE TOO WROTE A SUICIDE LETTER – IN PART TWO OF AN EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW

ON CBS NEWS’ “THE EARLY SHOW”

Cindy Anthony told co-anchor Maggie Rodriguez, during part two of an exclusive interview broadcast earlier this morning on THE EARLY SHOW (7:00-9:00AM, ET/PT), that she too has written suicide notes. Rodriguez conducted the first interview with the Anthonys since the body of their granddaughter was found in Dec. 2008.



Click here to watch part two of Rodriguez’s exclusive interview.

Maggie Rodriguez/THE EARLY SHOW:

MAGGIE RODRIGUEZ, CO-ANCHOR: This morning, we continue our conversation with the parents of Casey Anthony, who is awaiting trial in Florida for the murder of her 2-year-old daughter, Caylee. Cindy and George Anthony are speaking out for the first time since the discovery of Caylee's body in December.



Today, in this exclusive interview, they talk candidly about the investigation, their personal trials and their unwavering support for Casey.



(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)



RODRIGUEZ: Tell me about your daughter. What was she like growing up?



CINDY ANTHONY, CASEY ANTHONY'S MOTHER: Oh, gosh. Casey was just full of energy. And she was very inquisitive. She loved to read. She started reading at a very early age. George used to take her to the library, and she'd get four or five books every week, and she'd read them all.



RODRIGUEZ: What kind of young lady did she grow up to be, George?



GEORGE ANTHONY, CASEY ANTHONY'S FATHER: Oh, very sensitive. I mean, very caring. The kind of daughter that any father is proud of. I mean, I'm proud of my daughter. And to watch Caylee grow up, you know, like she did, I mean, she's like watching her mom being -- coming up again, watching my daughter grow up again.



RODRIGUEZ: What are your fondest memories of Caylee?



CINDY ANTHONY: Oh, my gosh.



G. ANTHONY: I don't think we have enough time to even talk about it.



RODRIGUEZ: So many, right?



CINDY ANTHONY: Oh, man. Her goal was to make us smile and make us laugh. She was very sensitive. If, you know, I came home from work, and she could tell I had a bad day, she'd grab my face and go, C.C., I love you.



RODRIGUEZ: Aww.



CINDY ANTHONY: You know? I mean, that's the type of child she was.



RODRIGUEZ: How do you deal with her being gone? How do you fill that void?



CINDY ANTHONY: You don't. I mean, you don't. There's nothing that can fill that.



RODRIGUEZ: Do you think that you have dealt with her death, the brutal reality of her death?



CINDY ANTHONY: You know, we're dealing with it the best that we can. It's very hard. It's very difficult. You know, there's days that...



RODRIGUEZ: But do you allow yourself to think about that? Or is that something that you just need to block out of your mind, what happened to Caylee?



CINDY ANTHONY: Well, we don't know what happened to Caylee.



RODRIGUEZ: Well, we know that she was murdered.



CINDY ANTHONY: But we don't know what happened to her. That's the thing.



RODRIGUEZ: What finally prompted you, Cindy, to call the police?



CINDY ANTHONY: I could -- when I saw Casey, I could tell something was wrong.



CINDY ANTHONY, 911 CALL: There's something wrong. I found my daughter's car today, and it smells like there's been a dead body in the damn car.



RODRIGUEZ: Do you regret making call?



CINDY ANTHONY: No, I don't regret anything I did. How can I? I don't know how I would react any differently. You know, I know after I made the first 911 call, Casey thanked me in the car because she said I did something that she couldn't do, was to go to the police.



RODRIGUEZ: What questions would you have for her? What has she not answered for you that you need to know?



CINDY ANTHONY: You know, I can't ask those questions. I can't -- you know, I can't answer that. I mean, I had time with Casey to ask questions.



RODRIGUEZ: Are you satisfied with the answers she gave you?



CINDY ANTHONY: You know, I'd love to know -- I'd love to know more.



RODRIGUEZ: Like what?



CINDY ANTHONY: I want to know what happened.



RODRIGUEZ: She claims that the babysitter snatched her.



CINDY ANTHONY: Yes.



RODRIGUEZ: George, shouldn't she have reported her missing?



G. ANTHONY: Again, I can't say what my daughter was thinking and what she was doing. We just don't know.



RODRIGUEZ: Do you fault her for anything?



CINDY ANTHONY: How can we? We don't know what she's been through.

I don't know what that girl has been through. I mean, George and I are living the same nightmare, but I don't know and I can't judge George for certain things that he's done, you know.



I understand certain things. I understand his suicide attempt. A lot of people don't know. I was there, too. I wrote suicide notes back in end of July and August. No one knows that.



RODRIGUEZ: You did?



CINDY ANTHONY: Yes, I did. Because I couldn't bear not having Caylee around and not knowing. You know, you get to a point when you miss someone so much that you think life's not worth living.



RODRIGUEZ: And what kept you from going through with it?



CINDY ANTHONY: Actually, Casey. Once Casey came home, the first time that Casey came home, the very first night, being able to see her and hug her.



RODRIGUEZ: Have you been able to speak with Casey?



CINDY ANTHONY: Not since October 14th.



RODRIGUEZ: Why?



CINDY ANTHONY: Unfortunately, we have laws in Florida where, you know, anything is up for grabs as far as media has access to whatever, so if we go in for a normal visit, it's going to be on videotape.



CASEY ANTHONY, MOTHER OF CAYLEE ANTHONY: She's not far. I know in my heart she's not far. I can feel it.



CINDY ANTHONY: We go to her hearings and get to see her.



RODRIGUEZ: And she's really close to you, but you can't reach out and touch her.



CINDY ANTHONY: We can't reach out and touch her.



RODRIGUEZ: What's that like for you, George, to have her so close and not be able to touch her?



G. ANTHONY: Oh, it hurts. It hurts very much. I want to be able to let her know that I'm here for you. I want to give her some strength.



CINDY ANTHONY; We haven't even had a chance to grieve with her.

I've not been able to hug my daughter.



RODRIGUEZ: What do you say to people who say the evidence is hard to refute?



G. ANTHONY: Well, I guess I can answer in one way is, has any case ever gotten all this kind of exposure? No.



BRAD CONWAY, ATTORNEY FOR GEORGE AND CINDY ANTHONY: And can I answer that?



RODRIGUEZ: Sure. Of course.



G. ANTHONY: Yes.



CONWAY: The evidence is for trial. There's no evidence out there right now. What there's out there right now is discovery. There's reports, there's photos, but that's not evidence.



RODRIGUEZ: What do you say to people who concluded that your daughter is guilty?



CINDY ANTHONY: She's presumed innocent. You know, the facts have not all come out.



RODRIGUEZ: But people have said some things about her character.

They've said that she was a liar. That was well-documented. Why should people believe her now, when her life is at stake?



CINDY ANTHONY: Well, her life is at stake.



RODRIGUEZ: Do you feel that, since you couldn't save Caylee, at least you will try to save Casey?



CINDY ANTHONY: I don't know what we can do, you know? All we can do is stand behind our daughter, you know. That's all we can do right now.



RODRIGUEZ: Unflinching support.



CINDY ANTHONY: Unflinching support. I believe in her.



G. ANTHONY: You know, there's some people that just say, well, we should just be done with it. Just, you know, like, go like this and just be done with it. You can't. That's our daughter, you know.



RODRIGUEZ: No matter what she may or may not have done?



G. ANTHONY: No matter what, that's still our daughter. No matter what.





RODRIGUEZ: George and Cindy Anthony have created a foundation in Caylee's honor to help other families of missing children get all the tools they need in their searches for their kids. As for Casey, they say that she spends her days in jail reading, mainly law books, and looking forward to the day which she is convinced will come, that she is acquitted.

Watch CBS Videos Online






Zev Shalev is the executive producer of THE EARLY SHOW.




Watch CBS Videos Online