If the prosecution had charged her with something that she’d serve 20 years, Casey probably would have been convicted. “ ====
The lesser charges you spoke of were in the indictment. They were availed to the jury. The jury chose, instead, the popcorn soap opera of the family disfunction over the circumstantial evidence they were did not understand. They identified with the soap opera entirely and must have skipped every science class they ever had, which left them closed to the obvious. (In my humble opinion.) :)
If they had the option of going for something lesser, but chose to absolve, then that definitely was a mistrial.
I was under the impression the prosecutor was going for broke.