Judge Rodney May said on Tuesday that he will wait 30 days before deciding whether the trustee in Casey Anthony's bankruptcy case can sell the commercial rights to her life story, in hopes of clearing some of her outstanding debts, the Associated Press reported.
"I am skeptical about the property rights," Judge May said. "It could used as an injunction dressed up as a sale," he added.
Judge May is worried about the effect on imposing long-term restrictions on her, the press reports said.
Stephen Meininger, her Tampa-based bankruptcy trustee, told a hearing on Tuesday - in which Anthony did not appear- argued that her best bet for paying back the approximately $792,000 in debt is to put the rights to her life story up for auction, seen as an unusual legal strategy.
"The Trustee does not cite any law to support his contention that he can sell 'property' that has not yet been created," Anthony's attorneys, David Schrader and Debra Ferwarda wrote in an April 4 court filing. "The Trustee's Motion also creates a slippery slope that would have dangerous repercussions far beyond the scope of this case."
Meninger's attorney said that he has received offers of $10,000 and $12,000 from people seeking to purchase the rights to the story.
Anthony, 26, was acquitted of murder charges in 2011, in the death of Caylee, her two-year-old daughter. Since her murder trial, she has listed about $792,000 owed to multiple creditors. Anthony had filed for bankruptcy in Florida in late January, claiming about $1,000 in assets, and $792,000 in liabilities.
Court papers have listed Anthony as unemployed, without recent income. Her debts include closed for her criminal defense lawyer, Jose Baez. She also owes about $145,000 for the Orange County Sheriff's office and $68,540 for the I.R.S. In taxes, interest and penalties.
She also owes 61,505 for the Florida Department of Law Enforcement for court costs, the AP reported.
Debra Ferwada, one of Anthony's bankruptcy attorneys, argued that the potential buyers in such an auction would "give them control over Ms. Anthony for the rest of her life."
