Jodi Arias, who shot and stabbed boyfriend Travis Alexander in his Arizona home in 2008, has been sentenced to life without parole, in a long and highly publicized case.
The woman had faced the death penalty but that was removed as an option in March, when a jury failed to reach agreement on prison or execution.
Jodi Arias, 34, was convicted of premeditated murder in 2013.
She initially blamed the killing of boyfriend Travis Alexander, 30, on intruders, and later said she had killed him in self-defense.
Jodi Arias shot Travis Alexander and stabbed him nearly 30 times in his suburban Phoenix home.
Four family members of Travis Alexander spoke ahead of the sentence, criticizing Jodi Arias as they broke down in tears.
“Stop murdering my brother again and again by smearing his name,” Travis Alexander’s sister Tanisha Sorenson said, referring to Jodi Arias as “this evil that sits behind me”.
Jodi Arias also gave a statement in which stood by her testimony of self-defense and accused police and prosecutors of changing their story during the investigation.
“The most important thing I want to say is that I’m very sorry for the enormous pain I caused to the people who loved Travis,” Jodi Arias said.
“I’m truly disgusted and I’m repulsed with myself.”
Juror Emily Cova, who voted to spare the life of convicted murderer Jodi Arias, was given security after her name was leaked in social media on March 6.
No threats had been reported against any of the 12 jurors, authorities said. However, the lone holdout on the death penalty had requested the security after her name was posted on social media.
Prosecutors also said they are examining whether the holdout disclosed that her husband had been prosecuted by the same county attorney who headed the case against Jodi Arias.
Jodi Arias was convicted of murder in 2013 but that jury deadlocked on her punishment.
Prosecutors say Jodi Arias killed her ex-boyfriend Travis Alexander as revenge because he wanted to date other women and was planning a trip to Mexico with his latest love interest.
The name of the holdout juror in the sentencing retrial was leaked through a Twitter account that also posted sympathetic comments about Jodi Arias’ victim Travis Alexander.
Meanwhile, a pro-Arias website published names of 11 people it said were the jurors who voted to sentence Jodi Arias to death for the 2008 killing.
A mistrial was declared on March 5 and a judge will sentence Jodi Arias on April 13 to life in prison or life with the possibility of parole after 25 years.
Arizona law prohibits the public release of juror names. It’s unknown how the identities were leaked, but information appeared online after jurors who favored the death penalty expressed frustrations over the holdout.
Juror Emily Cova said she was relieved to hear that authorities were looking into the leak.
“I was a little nervous last night. But I’m feeling better now,” said Emily Cova, who agreed to be named.
Aaron Nash, a spokesman for the clerk of Maricopa County Superior Court, said no member of the clerk’s staff reported being approached by anyone seeking the names of jurors.
“The office’s primary concerns are the safety and privacy of these individuals who responded to this difficult and lengthy call to public service,” Aaron Nash said in a statement.
Most of the jurors discussed their deliberations with the media on March 5. However, the holdout hasn’t publicly commented.
Jodi Arias will remain in the Estrella Jail in west Phoenix as she testifies in a civil case. Further information on the matter wasn’t immediately available.
Once her testimony is complete, Jodi Arias will be sent to prison.
Jodi Arias has escaped the death penalty for murdering ex-boyfriend Travis Alexander in 2008 after an Arizona jury failed to reach a verdict on March 5 in the sentencing retrial of the former waitress.
Jodi Arias, 34, was found guilty of the murder in 2013 but jurors at that trial deadlocked on whether to give her the death penalty. A new jury of eight women and four men was seated in October to hear a sentencing retrial but announced on March 5 it could not decide on a punishment.
Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Sherry Stephens said the jury was hung and declared a mistrial. The judge now will sentence Jodi Arias to life in prison or to life in prison with the possibility of parole after 25 years.
Both sides will have an opportunity to make their case to the judge before she makes that decision.
Prosecutors accuse Jodi Arias of murdering Travis Alexander in a jealous rage but she says she acted in self-defense.
Travis Alexander, 30, was found dead in a shower at his Phoenix-area home. He had been stabbed multiple times, his throat was cut almost from ear to ear, and he had been shot in the face.
The Arizona jury deciding whether Jodi Arias should be put to death for killing her ex-boyfriend Travis Alexander in 2008 has reached a verdict on its sixth day of deliberations, court officials said on March 5.
Court officials said the verdict will be read at 9:30 a.m. local time.
Jodi Arias, a 34-year-old former waitress from Salinas, California, was found guilty of the murder in 2013, but jurors at the original trial deadlocked on whether to give her the death penalty. A new jury was seated in October.
Prosecutors accuse Jodi Arias of murdering Travis Alexander in a jealous rage, but she says she acted in self-defense.
Travis Alexander, 30, was found dead in a shower at his Phoenix-area home. He had been stabbed multiple times, his throat was cut almost from ear to ear, and he had been shot in the face.
Photo Reuters
In closing statements, defense attorney Kirk Nurmi called for Jodi Arias’ life to be spared, describing her as a remorseful and mentally ill woman who had been abused since childhood.
Prosecutor Juan Martinez accused Jodi Arias of acting in a cold and calculating way and said there were no factors preventing the jury from giving her the death penalty.
On March 3, the jury of eight women and four men were told by Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Sherry Stephens to try harder to come to a decision, after apparently deadlocking.
Jodi Arias decided not to plead her case directly to the jury at the end of the sentencing retrial after Judge Sherry Stephens denied the defendant’s request that the courtroom be closed to the public and media during her comments.
The original trial in 2013 was broadcast live and drew a large audience with its gruesome crime scene photographs and sexually explicit testimony.
Judge Sherry Stephens subsequently turned down requests for the penalty phase retrial to be streamed live or broadcast the same day. She has ruled that the verdict itself can be shown live.
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