Casey Anthony named most hated person in US

Poll: 57 percent of Americans find her ‘creepy’; she beats out O.J. Simpson, Paris Hilton

Pool / REUTERS

Casey Anthony was acquitted in July of murdering her daughter Caylee in 2008.

updated 8/10/2011 11:49:58 AM ET

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LOS ANGELES — Casey Anthony, the Florida woman who was found not guilty recently of murdering her two year-old daughter, is the most hated person in America, according to a new poll that tracks public perceptions of celebrities.

Anthony, 25, who is now in hiding after being released from jail in July, was more disliked than California's "Octomom," former football star O.J. Simpson and socialite Paris Hilton, according to the poll released on Wednesday by E-Poll Market Research.

Anthony was acquitted in July of murdering her daughter Caylee in 2008, to the surprise and outrage of many legal pundits and millions of Americans who had watched her six-week trial live on television.

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California-based E-Poll's E-Score Celebrity research for the first week of August showed that 53 percent of those questioned were aware of Casey Anthony and her story, and 94 percent of those people disliked her.

Anthony was also considered "creepy" by 57 percent of those questioned and "cold" by 60 percent of respondents.

Video: Casey Anthony Dunk Tank closed (on this page)

Former "The Hills" reality TV show star Spencer Pratt was second in the "total dislike" category, followed by Nadya Suleman, the unemployed single California woman who gave birth to octuplets in 2009 despite already having six children.

O.J. Simpson — who was acquitted in 1995 of murdering his ex-wife and a friend in 1994 — came fourth.

Video: Anthony look-alike describes 'scary' run-ins (on this page)

Jon Gosselin, a reality-TV star famous for his eight kids and a public divorce from his ex-wife Kate Gosselin, came in fifth with 79 percent of America disliking him.

Levi Johnston — the former fiance of Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin's daughter Bristol — Hilton, Hollywood madam Heidi Fleiss and radio shock jock Howard Stern round out the top 10.

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The E-Score Celebrity poll is carried out weekly among a representative sample of 1,100 respondents aged 13 and over. It ranks more than 6,000 celebrities in terms of public awareness, appeal and 46 other attributes.

Video: Judge delays decision in Casey Anthony hearing

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Transcript of: Judge delays decision in Casey Anthony hearing

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MATT LAUER, co-host: But let's begin this half-hour with the ongoing court case to determine if Casey Anthony will have to return to Florida to serve out probation . NBC 's Mark Potter is in Orlando this morning. Hi, Mark. Good morning.

MARK POTTER reporting: And good morning to you, Matt. Court officials say the judge's ruling is expected this week, but not before Wednesday. And it will determine whether Casey Anthony remains in hiding or has to come out to report to a probation officer. After a hearing Friday, the Casey Anthony defense team was in no mood for reporters and all their questions.

Mr. CHENEY MASON: You put a microphone in my face one more time, somebody's going to get hurt. Now get away.

POTTER: The question before the court is whether Casey Anthony must now serve a year of probation after pleading guilty to a check fraud case long before she was tried and acquitted of murder charges in the death of her two-year-old daughter Caylee .

Ms. CASEY ANTHONY: And I 'd like to sincerely apologize to Amy .

POTTER: After stealing checks from her friend, Amy Huizenga , Anthony went on a spending spree at Target and Winn-Dixie .

Ms. LISABETH FRYER (Casey Anthony's Attorney): May I approach? Judge BELVIN PERRY Jr.: Yes.

POTTER: Her defense team argues that for Anthony to serve probation now should be double jeopardy.

Ms. FRYER: Miss Anthony has actually served probation . So the issue is moot on several grounds.

POTTER: Her lawyer says she already served probation while in jail awaiting the murder charge. The Florida Department of Corrections sent a letter to Anthony saying she fulfilled her obligation.

Judge STAN STRICKLAND: So you read this and you understand it, correct?

POTTER: But the sentencing judge, Stan Strickland , says he meant for Anthony to begin probation after her release from jail. Strickland how now recused himself from the case. They defense accused him of making biased statements against Anthony after she was found not guilty of murder.

Ms. FRYER: I would argue that Judge Strickland 's participation in the media would suggest that this was a vindictive sentence based on his disapproval of the jury's finding.

POTTER: The decision on what to do now falls to Judge Belvin Perry , who presided over the murder trial and who says the probation issue is a mess and not clear cut.

Judge PERRY: It is quite evident that this is a legal morass, that -- if anything could go wrong, it went wrong here.

Ms. FRYER: Yes, Your Honor.

POTTER: Legal experts say the argument in favor of probation is that it is usually served after a jail term ends to help monitor a prisoner's return to society, although there are exceptions. At the end of the hearing, Judge Perry said he would have to think about it.

Judge PERRY: I don't know what I'm going to do. I know I've got to do some reading and do some more research.

POTTER: Now if the judge rules that Casey Anthony does have to serve probation for a year, the next question becomes where will she do that? Will it be here in Orlando or in some other place, perhaps even out of state, because of the security concerns. Matt :

LAUER: All right. Mark Potter in Orlando this morning. Mark , thank you very much . It's 33 after the hour. Here's Ann.

Show transcript