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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.
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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.
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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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Jodi Arias trial resumed on November 12 with testimony from an expert witness and arguments over allegations that authorities destroyed evidence that may have benefited the convicted murderer’s case.
Jodi Arias was found guilty of murder last year in the 2008 killing of ex-boyfriend Travis Alexander at his suburban Phoenix home, but jurors deadlocked on whether she should be sentenced to death or life in prison.
Prosecutors have one more shot with a new jury to secure a death sentence. Otherwise, Jodi Arias faces life in prison.
The sentencing retrial resumed after a lengthy break during which news organizations protested a decision to let a skittish defense witness testify in private and authorities were accused of destroying evidence on Travis Alexander’s computer.
Jodi Arias was found guilty of murder in the 2008 killing of ex-boyfriend Travis Alexander
The judge denied a request by the defense to delay the trial based on the allegations of the destruction of evidence, explaining she would take up the matter at a later date.
Prosecutor Juan Martinez said his office had the computer reanalyzed just this week, and it showed the defense claims are false. He also noted that if anything was deleted from the computer, it was done by Jodi Arias’ previous defense attorneys, not authorities.
Defense lawyer Kirk Nurmi told the judge a “plethora of evidence” is being uncovered by computer experts “as we speak.”
Meanwhile, defense-witness testimony resumed after news organizations succeeded last week in getting an appeals court to bar Judge Sherry Stephens from closing the courtroom to the public after some of the testimony by Jodi Arias’ first witness was conducted in private.
Jodi Arias’ attorneys say several people are unwilling to testify on her behalf unless it is done in private because they are afraid of public backlash. They have said that some witnesses at Jodi Arias’ first trial were threatened and harassed for their role in the case.
That first defense witness remains unidentified to the public and did not take the stand again on November 12.
Jodi Arias is back in court for her sentencing retrial in Travis Alexander murder case.
As he delivered his opening statement, prosecutor Juan Martinez displayed a crime-scene photo of Travis Alexander saying: “She loved him so much that this is what she did to him.”
Prosecutor Juan Martinez urged jurors to sentence Jodi Arias to death.
The opening statements came as a jury was seated and testimony began in a retrial to determine whether Jodi Arias lives or dies for her crimes.
It was less of a spectacle than the initial case in early 2013, when onlookers from around the country traveled to Phoenix and lined up outside court for the trial that became a tabloid TV sensation. Still, some of the people who regularly attended the first trial were back in court on October 21.
Jodi Arias has acknowledged killing Travis Alexander but claimed it was self-defense after he attacked her. Prosecutors said it was premeditated murder carried out in a jealous rage after the victim wanted to end their affair and planned a trip to Mexico with another woman.
Jodi Arias is back in court for her sentencing retrial in Travis Alexander murder case
Defense attorney Kirk Nurmi said that Jodi Arias was the victim of profound humiliation by Travis Alexander, and that she is mentally ill and a victim of child abuse.
Kirk Nurmi urged jurors to sentence Jodi Arias to life in prison, saying she is remorseful about killing the man who never acknowledged to others that she was his girlfriend.
“Jodi Arias was always the girl behind the closed door in the bedroom,” Kirk Nurmi told jurors.
He suggested his client would testify during the proceedings expected to last until December.
“She will tell you how horrified she is that she killed the man she loved,” Kirk Nurmi said.
Jodi Arias, a 34-year-old former waitress, was convicted of murder last year in the killing of Alexander at his suburban Phoenix home.
Jurors couldn’t agree on a sentence then. Prosecutors have one more chance with a new jury to secure the death penalty. If the jury fails to reach a unanimous decision, the judge will then sentence Jodi Arias to spend the rest of her life behind bars or to be eligible for release after 25 years.
Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Sherry Stephens told the new jury that they had to accept the guilty verdict on the murder charge.
The first trial was broadcast live, but Judge Sherry Stephens imposed restrictions on the sentencing retrial. Cameras are allowed at the retrial, but no footage can be broadcast until it’s finished.
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A judge has approved Jodi Arias request to represent herself in Travis Alexander murder trial.
Jodi Arias, 34, admitted killing Travis Alexander at his suburban Phoenix home in 2008 but said it was self-defense.
Prosecutors argued it was premeditated murder carried out in a jealous rage when Travis Alexander wanted to end their affair.
Jodi Arias was found guilty of first-degree murder last year but jurors couldn’t reach a decision on sentencing. Under Arizona law, while Jodi Arias’ murder conviction stands, prosecutors have the option of putting on a second penalty phase with a new jury in an effort to secure the death penalty.
Jodi Arias will represent herself in Travis Alexander murder trial (photo Getty Images)
Jodi Arias will have the task of arguing a death penalty case just four weeks from now despite having no legal experience and no college degree or high school diploma. She got her GED in jail.
Travis Alexander’s family, who lauded Jodi Arias’ conviction after spending every day of the trial sitting in the front row of the gallery, often sobbing and looking away from horrific crime scene photographs, will now have to see Arias argue her own case in an attempt to save her life.
Her defense lawyers will remain on as advisory council.
Jodi Arias has long clashed with her defense attorneys and tried to fire them previously. The feud only intensified after she gave a series of media interviews following her May 2013 conviction. Her lawyers also have tried to withdraw several times, but the judge rebuffed their requests.
The five-month trial that began in January 2013 was broadcast live and provided seemingly endless amounts of cable TV and tabloid fodder.
Jodi Arias told jurors of an abusive childhood, cheating boyfriends, dead-end jobs, relationship with Travis Alexander and her contention that he had grown physically violent.
This time around the trial will not be broadcast live after the judge ruled footage may not be used until after a verdict.
If the new jury fails to reach a unanimous decision during the second penalty phase set for September 8, the death penalty will be removed from consideration. The judge would then sentence Jodi Arias to spend her life behind bars or to be eligible for release after 25 years.
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According to court documents, Jodi Arias has failed to convince Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Sherry Stephens that she should be spared the death penalty for killing ex-boyfriend Travis Alexander.
Jodi Arias has failed to convince Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Sherry Stephens that she should be spared the death penalty
The documents show that Judge Sherry Stephens dismissed claims by Jodi Arias’ attorneys that her defense was hurt when a member of the defense team was prevented from visiting Arizona jails.
There was no evidence that Jodi Arias “suffered any prejudice” from the incident, Sherry Stephens said in a ruling filed Friday, Reuters reported.
A woman who helps gather information to fight death sentences was barred for a week from the county jails in March after she was accused of smuggling out a drawing by Jodi Arias, Reuters said.
Jodi Arias, 33, was convicted in 2013 of killing 30-year-old Travis Alexander in June 2008. The same jury found her eligible for the death penalty but couldn’t agree on an actual sentence.
A new jury for the penalty phase will be picked September 8.
Jodi Arias contended that she killed Travis Alexander in self-defense and that the relationship was abusive.
The retrial for the penalty phase of convicted killer Jodi Arias will begin on September 8.
Judge Sherry Stephens has pushed back the Jodi Arias retrial because attorney Juan Martine will be prosecuting in another trial that conflicts with Arias’ trial.
The retrial for the penalty phase of convicted killer Jodi Arias will begin on September 8
According to the Arizona Republic, Juan Martinez is scheduled to begin the trial on May 12, the oldest capital murder case in Maricopa County, which may also be a death penalty trial. Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Joseph Welty ruled the trial of Bryan Hulsey, who was accused of killing a police officer in the Phoenix area in 2007 will go first.
Jodi Arias, 33, was convicted of killing her boyfriend at his suburban Phoenix home in 2008. Jodi Arias said she did it in self-defense. She claimed Travis Alexander had a violent outburst while they were shooting a video and she dropped his camera. The jury found her guilty but couldn’t decide whether to sentence her to life in prison or give her the death penalty but the jury couldn’t reach a verdict on her sentence.
In Arizona, capital-murder trials have three parts. First, a jury has to find the person guilty of first-degree murder. Jodi Arias was found guilty on May 8, 2013. Second, jurors decide whether there were any aggravating factors. The jury found that the murder was committed in an especially cruel fashion one week later. The third is sentencing. Under Arizona law, Jodi Arias’ murder conviction stands, but prosecutors can pursue a death sentence in the penalty phase with a new jury. If the second jury fails to reach a verdict, the death penalty would be removed as an option. Judge Sherry Stephens would then sentence Jodi Arias to either life behind bars or be eligible for release after 25 years.
Judge Sherry Stephens denied two motions by Jodi Arias to fire her lead attorney, Kirk Nurmi.
Because of the excessive publicity, Jodi Arias attorneys have already filed motions requesting that the sentencing phase of the trial be moved out of the Phoenix area.
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The costs of Jodi Arias’ trial have topped $2 million, a tab being footed by Arizona taxpayers that will only continue to climb with a new penalty phase set for March, officials said.
Jodi Arias, 33, was convicted of Travis Alexander murder in May, but the jury couldn’t reach a verdict on her sentence. Prosecutors are now pursuing a second penalty phase with a new jury in an effort to get the death penalty. Trial is set for March 17.
The former waitress has been held in jail in Maricopa County awaiting her fate while her legal bills continue to mount.
As of Monday, the county had paid $2,150,536.42 for Jodi Arias’ court-appointed attorneys, expert witnesses and other costs associated with her case, Maricopa County spokeswoman Cari Gerchick told The Associated Press.
Maricopa County had paid $2,150,536.42 for Jodi Arias’ court-appointed attorneys, expert witnesses and other costs associated with her case
Maricopa County Attorney Bill Montgomery has refused to provide a tally of how much it has cost to prosecute the case, citing a court order that attorneys not discuss Jodi Arias-related matters.
Jodi Arias admitted she killed her boyfriend, Travis Alexander, in 2008 at his suburban Phoenix home but claimed it was self-defense.
Prosecutors argued it was premeditated murder carried out in a jealous rage when Travis Alexander wanted to end their affair.
The case captured headlines worldwide and became a cable television staple while every minute of the trial was broadcast live. This time around, the judge will be limiting media coverage in hopes of avoiding the same publicity. There will be no live video coverage of the second penalty phase, and electronic devices will be banned, meaning reporters won’t be able to provide real-time updates via Twitter as occurred during Jodi Arias’ first trial.
Under Arizona law, while Jodi Arias’ murder conviction stands, prosecutors have the option of putting on a second penalty phase with a new jury.
If the second panel fails to reach a unanimous decision, the death penalty will automatically be removed from consideration, and the judge will sentence Jodi Arias to spend her entire life behind bars or be eligible for release after 25 years.
Jodi Arias has launched a book club from behind bars and is sharing her reviews of her favorite reads online.
Convicted killer Jodi Arias, who was found guilty of first-degree murder on May 8 for the death of her ex-boyfriend, Mormon motivational speaker Travis Alexander, announced Jodi’s Book Club on Twitter on August 5.
On a newly-launched website, Jodi Arias reviews classics such as To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee – and uses the opportunity to take a few swipes at the justice system.
“I understand now why it’s a classic,” she wrote.
“There is so much quotable material in this book.
“A few that stuck out to me: <<The one place a man ought to get a square deal is in a courtroom, be he any color of the rainbow, but people have a way of carrying their resentment right into the jury box>>.
Jodi Arias has launched a book club from behind bars and is sharing her reviews of her favorite reads online
“And: <<It’s never an insult to be called what somebody thinks is a bad name. It just shows you how poor that person is, it doesn’t hurt you>>. (Atticus Finch). I cried three times reading this book.”
Jodi Arias is able to upload the messages through a friend who chats to the inmate almost daily and then sends tweets out to followers under the @JodiAnnArias account, NBC News reported.
On the website, Jodi Arias reveals she is also reading books about Mormonism, including Under the Banner of Heaven by Jon Krakauer, which is critical of the controversial origins of the faith.
“This is an unbelievably true story of religious fanaticism taken horribly too far,” she writes.
“I typically do not read books with this type of subject matter because some of it is deeply disturbing.”
Jodi Arias adds that the LDS Church might be unhappy with her reading the critical book: “I found it very educational and in an unexpected way, I was endeared to Joseph Smith more than before reading it in spite of the book’s focus on his failures and shortcomings. It showed he was a flawed human being. Only Jesus was perfect, Right?”
“The author also clearly delineates the LDS Church and the splinter groups NOT associated with it that practice polygamy. On a side note: I crossed paths once with some bona fide FLDS polygamists in the Grand Canyon of all places. They looked plucked directly from the 19th century.”
The site says Jodi Arias is currently reading Edgar Cayce on the Akashic Records by Kevin Todeschi, and she has also posted reviews about Into the Wild, Seabiscuit and Memoirs of a Geisha.
At the foot of her site, a note reads: “When Jodi finishes reading; at her request every book, periodical and newspaper she receives is donated to less fortunate inmates.”
On Sunday, Jodi Arias tweeted to her followers to stop sending her books as she is currently “max’d out”.
Though the accused murderer has no access to a computer or cell phone in her Phoenix jail cell, close friend Donavan Bering has been tweeting on Jodi Arias’ after almost daily phone conversations.
Donavan Bering and Jodi Arias met while Bering was also in jail, and she told NBC News she has been an ardent supporter of the killer since the beginning.
Jodi Arias is now waiting for a retrial for the penalty phase of her case. A new jury will be selected and they will decide whether she faces the death penalty or life in prison.
She was convicted of killing her ex-boyfriend Travis Alexander, who was found shot and repeatedly stabbed in his shower in June 2008.
Jodi Arias’ retrial is expected to be conducted in September, and an exact date could be set at a hearing scheduled for August 26.
A new book about convicted murderer Jodi Arias reveals Travis Alexander’s inability to stay away from her helped lead to his grisly 2008 murder.
HLN TV host Jane Velez-Mitchell’s new book about Jodi Arias and the Mesa, Arizona murder of her on-again off-again lover Travis Alexander details the torrid affair that preceded the grisly 2008 crime.
Exposed: The Secret Life of Jodi Arias hits shelves August 20.
The New York Post published an excerpt from the upcoming book.
“Jodi elicited Travis’ reckless forbidden passion,” writes Jane Velez-Mitchell of the practicing Mormon.
Jane Velez-Mitchell’s book about convicted murderer Jodi Arias reveals Travis Alexander’s inability to stay away from her helped lead to his grisly 2008 murder
“Unfortunately for her, it was also what Travis loathed, as it came with more and more guilt each time.”
Jane Velez-Mitchell reveals a deeply unhealthy relationship between Travis Alexander and Jodi Arias that extended even after Alexander broke things off with his future murderer in 2007.
Not long after the breakup, the two began having an intimate relationship again. And according to the book, Travis Alexander was desperately torn between following the dictates of his Mormon faith and those that came from inside himself.
Desperate to stay near her obsession, Jodi Arias offered to clean Travis Alexander’s house for $12.50 an hour. And unable to stop himself from keeping her around, Travis Alexander gave Jodi Arias the keys.
“Unfortunately, giving Jodi access to his house meant Travis was able to keep his addiction to his guilty pleasure full-blown. The pusher was right there serving him his drug on a silver platter,” writes Jane Velez-Mitchell.
But as Travis Alexander began to date other women and distance himself from his fiery former lover, Jodi Arias became progressively unhinged.
“Whether it was because of his upbringing or Jodi’s skills in the bedroom,” writes the TV host, “Travis clearly had a difficult time deciding what he was going to do about Jodi.”
And Travis Alexander’s forays into the “dark side” were hurting his chances of leading the normal Mormon life he so desired.
Jodi Arias’ behavior became progressively erratic – she began stalking Travis Alexander when he was with other women and hacking into his Facebook account. She would show up to his home unannounced.
Though she eventually moved back to her home town in California, the world would soon learn how quickly Jodi Arias returned to Travis Alexander’s Arizona home.
On June 4, 2008, Jodi Arias would stab her former lover some 29 times, shoot him in the face, and slice him ear-to-ear.
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Made-for-TV movie Jodi Arias: Dirty Little Secret appeared maybe a little too early but it’s actually a good film.
Made-for-TV movies, especially those ripped from the headlines of high profile real-life drama, are often tawdry and flat takes on complicated situations. Look-a-like actors may add to visual accuracy of the film, but a Lifetime original movie is often just a Lifetime original movie: prepackaged, disposable, just watchable enough.
Though Jodi Arias, now 32, murdered her ex-boyfriend Travis Alexander back in 2008, her May 8 conviction is still extremely fresh.
According to USA Today, the film is the product of vigilance on the part of writers who sourced material from videos, court documents, and forensic evidence. And when the trial became progressively more sudsy, so did the script. And though the trial itself wasn’t originally in the movie’s script, writers were reportedly made to hurriedly add it in the eleventh hour, simply because it was too good to be missed.
“Every time Jodi Arias would open her mouth on the stand,” screenwriter Richard Blaney said, “we would get calls asking if we could work it into the script.”
The movie’s drama – taken straight from the froth that was the Jodi Arias trial – may just be art imitating life. And the writers took great pains to write nuanced representations of the people they’re actors would soon portray.
“The obvious responsibility was to speak for Travis,” screenwriter Gregory Small said.
“But we’re not just casting aside what was going on with Jodi, either. She was a fascinating, smart, articulate woman. She seemingly had the people skills and the ability to have led a wonderful life, but some diagnosable deviance led to this.”
Jodi Arias: Dirty Little Secret is a ripped-from-cable-news saga of a woman found guilty of killing her former lover, motivational speaker Travis Alexander. On June 4, 2008, Jodi Arias sta**ed and sla**ed him nearly 30 times, and shot him in the head in what prosecutors said was jealous rage, and what Arias unpersuasively argued was self-defense, when, according to her, he attacked her.
Jodi Arias: Dirty Little Secret unearths no secrets, dirty or otherwise. Every sordid detail, it seems, has been trumpeted for years by the media, then recycled for months during Jodi Arias’ trial in Phoenix that got blanket coverage on TV and in particular on cable’s HLN, vaulting that network to record ratings.
Jesse Lee Soffer and Tania Raymonde playing Travis Alexander and Jodi Arias in the Lifetime movie Jodi Arias Dirty Little Secret
Portraying what led up to the crime, it’s tucked handily between the May verdict for the murder trial and the July retrial in the life-or-death-penalty phase.
Jodi Arias: Dirty Little Secret is a pretty good film. It’s a draw-you-in, sudsy melodrama stocked with guilty pleasures: romance, s**, obsession, betrayal and vengeance.
Tania Raymonde (perhaps best remembered as Alex Rousseau on Lost) is swell as Jodi Arias, with a remarkable likeness to this young woman no man could resist, at least not Travis Alexander as he fought a losing battle with his Mormon principles to feast on this forbidden fruit.
Or, to use a metaphor straight from the film, forbidden coffee – which, as Travis Alexander explains to Jodi Arias early on, he shuns as a Mormon because of its addictive properties.
“I’m like coffee,” Jodi Arias teases him.
“Very strong coffee,” Travis Alexander agrees as he submits again.
Jesse Lee Soffer (Jordana Spiro’s jammed-up brother on last season’s short-lived The Mob Doctor) makes a fine Travis Alexander – glib, blandly wholesome and all too relatable in his mission to have it both ways, relationship-wise: treating Jodi Arias as a red-hot plaything while he nurtures a “suitable” wife-worthy prospect.
Trouble arises, of course, as love-struck Jodi Arias bridles at the strictly recreational role she plays in Travis Alexander’s life. Even joining the Mormon church can’t earn her an upgrade from her booty-call status.
Travis Alexander argues that he never promised more. When Jodi Arias was gazing into his eyes, he tells her: “You saw lust. You saw weakness. But you didn’t see love. It was never there.”
So, for a time, Travis Alexander thrives as a satisfied two-timer, while Jodi Arias is increasingly desperate to please.
“I just want to be the girl that he wants,” she tells a chum.
Jodi Arias: Dirty Little Secret is a step up from the reality-TV treatment the case has gotten with its more excessive coverage. The film also serves as a refreshing alternative for telling the tale, dramatized for maximum titillation while, in its tidy, two-hour package, efficiently stripping away the wretched excess.
An oddly respectable bit of fluff, this film would never be mistaken for art, which typically explores something larger than itself. But there’s a lesson to be learned here nonetheless for anyone who looks beyond the tawdriness: If a lover seems too good to be true, he or she probably is.
Jodi Arias: Dirty Little Secret ranks second in original cable movies so far this year, drawing 3.1 million total viewers on its premiere night, June 22.
The Lifetime movie drew fairly killer ratings for the network on Sunday, June 23, pulling in 201 million total viewers – a 55% jump over Lifetime’s average for original movies so far this year, though down from last year’s much hyped Liz & Dick biopic, which starred Lindsay Lohan as screen legend Elizabeth Taylor and drew 3.5 million total viewers with its premiere.
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Jodi Arias swapped the prim collared shirts and business-like attire that she sported throughout her lengthy murder trial for the standard issue stripes now that she is behind bars as a convicted murderer of her ex-boyfriend Travis Alexander.
Jodi Arias, 32, made her first court appearance since the jury was dismissed after they were unable to decide whether she deserved life in prison for the murder of Travis Alexander or if she should be given a death sentence.
The procedural hearing lacked the sizzle of the five-month trial that attracted a global following and had spectators waiting in line in the middle of the night to get a coveted seat in the courtroom.
Last week, the courtroom was about two-thirds full, the hearing was not televised, and there were no arguments in open court.
That verdict will come even later than previously expected, as the judge ruled today that the next hearing is scheduled for July 18.
Jury selection alone could take weeks, given the difficulty of seating an impartial panel in the high-profile case.
Jodi Arias tries the prison stripes and shackles look instead of her skirts and blouses in court appearance
Prosecutors have the option of taking the death penalty off the table, and Judge Sherry Stephens would then sentence Jodi Arias to one of two punishments: life in prison or the more unlikely life in prison with the possibility of release after 25 years.
If prosecutors do pursue death, a new panel must be seated to determine a sentence.
If another deadlock occurs, the death penalty would automatically be removed, leaving the judge to sentence Jodi Arias to one of the life-in-prison options.
Maricopa County Attorney Bill Montgomery said last week his office continues to prepare for a retrial aimed at securing a death sentence.
He had previously said he is confident an impartial jury can be seated to determine Jody Arias’ punishment but added that he is open to input from defense lawyers and the victim’s family about possibly scrapping a new trial in favor of a life sentence for Arias.
Meanwhile, after losing motions for mistrials, appeals to higher courts and efforts to quit the case altogether, Jodi Arias’ attorneys tried a new tactic this month, appealing to the court of public opinion while hoping to influence Bill Montgomery’s decision.
“It is solely for them to determine if continuing to pursue a death sentence upon Ms. Arias, who is already facing a mandatory life sentence, is a good and proper use of taxpayer resources,” defense attorneys Kirk Nurmi and Jennifer Willmott wrote in a statement provided to The Arizona Republic.
Taxpayers footed the bill for Jodi Arias’ court-appointed attorneys at a cost so far of nearly $1.7 million, a price tag that will only balloon if the case moves forward.
Jodi Arias admitted she killed Travis Alexander, but claimed it was self-defense after he attacked her.
Prosecutors argued it was premeditated murder carried out in a jealous rage after the victim wanted to end their affair and planned a trip to Mexico with another woman.
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Jodi Arias has suggested on Twitter that she may consider a plea deal to avoid a death sentence rather than appeal her guilty verdict in Travis Alexander case.
In a tweet posted this weekend, convicted murderer Jodi Arias suggested she had not yet made up her mind on which option to go for.
Jodi Arias’ Twitter account, managed on her behalf by friends, posted on Saturday the following two messages: “Let’s clear up any confusion. Anyone asking 4 donation$ right now on my behalf 4 my appeals is not legit.”
This was quickly followed by another stating: “I’m not currently accepting donations 4 appeals. Just don’t know yet if I will plea or appeal.”
Last week a jury failed to decide upon a sentence for Jodi Arias’ crimes; she will either receive a life sentence or she could be sentenced to death for the murder of her ex-boyfriend Travis Alexander.
An earlier trial heard how Jodi Arias, 32, sta**ed and sla**ed Travis Alexander nearly 30 times, and shot him in the forehead. She then left his body in his shower where friends found him about five days later.
Maricopa County Attorney Bill Montgomery said last month he would have an “ethical obligation” to consider a plea deal if the defense offered one, according to ABC News.
Appearing in court for the first time since the Arizona jury was unable to decide her sentence for murder, Jodi Arias last week swapped her prim, collared shirts and business-like attire that she sported throughout her lengthy murder trial for the standard issue stripes now that she is behind bars.
The procedural hearing lacked the sizzle of the five-month trial, which concluded in May, and attracted a global following and had spectators waiting in line in the middle of the night to get a coveted seat in the courtroom.
Last Thursday, the courtroom was about two-thirds full, the hearing was not televised, and there were no arguments in open court.
Jodi Arias may consider a plea deal to avoid a death sentence in Travis Alexander case
That verdict will come even later than previously expected, as the judge ruled today that the next hearing is scheduled for July 18.
Jury selection alone could take weeks, given the difficulty of seating an impartial panel in the high-profile case.
Prosecutors have the option of taking the death penalty off the table, and Stephens would then sentence Jodi Arias to one of two punishments: life in prison or the more unlikely life in prison with the possibility of release after 25 years.
If prosecutors do pursue death, a new panel must be seated to determine a sentence.
If another deadlock occurs, the death penalty would automatically be removed, leaving the judge to sentence Jodi Arias to one of the life-in-prison options.
Maricopa County Attorney Bill Montgomery said last week his office continues to prepare for a retrial aimed at securing a death sentence.
He had previously said he is confident an impartial jury can be seated to determine Jodi Arias’ punishment but added that he is open to input from defense lawyers and the victim’s family about possibly scrapping a new trial in favor of a life sentence for Arias.
Meanwhile, after losing motions for mistrials, appeals to higher courts and efforts to quit the case altogether, Jodi Arias’ attorneys tried a new tactic this month, appealing to the court of public opinion while hoping to influence Montgomery’s decision.
“It is solely for them to determine if continuing to pursue a death sentence upon Ms. Arias, who is already facing a mandatory life sentence, is a good and proper use of taxpayer resources,” defense attorneys Kirk Nurmi and Jennifer Willmott wrote in a statement provided to The Arizona Republic.
Taxpayers footed the bill for Jodi Arias’ court-appointed attorneys at a cost so far of nearly $1.7 million, a price tag that will only balloon if the case moves forward.
Jodi Arias admitted she killed Travis Alexander, but claimed it was self-defense after he attacked her.
Prosecutors argued it was premeditated murder carried out in a jealous rage after the victim wanted to end their affair and planned a trip to Mexico with another woman.
After murdering Travis Alexander, Jodi Arias left her ex-boyfriend’s body in his shower where friends found him about five days later.
Jodi Arias testified for 18 days during her five-month trial, describing for jurors an abusive childhood, cheating boyfriends, dead-end jobs, a shocking relationship with Travis Alexander, and her contention that he had grown physically abusive.
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Travis Alexander, a 30-year-old salesman from Arizona, was killed by his on-off girlfriend Jodi Arias at his home in Mesa on June 4, 2008.
Travis Alexander’s injuries consisted of multiple s**b wounds, a s**t throat, and a gunshot to the head, according to the medical examiner that ruled his death a homicide.
Jodi Arias, Travis Alexander’s ex-girlfriend, was convicted of the murder and testified that she killed him in self-defense. She was found guilty of first-degree murder on May 8, 2013. Both the murder and trial have received widespread media attention.
The victim, Travis Victor Alexander, was born on July 28, 1977, in Riverside, California. After his father’s death, Travis Alexander and his siblings were taken in by their paternal grandmother, Norma Jean Preston Alexander Sarvey (who died in 2012, aged 80), who eventually introduced them to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Travis Alexander was a salesman for the multi-level marketing company Prepaid Legal Services and he also worked as a motivational speaker.
His convicted murderer, Jodi Ann Arias, was born on July 9, 1980, in Salinas, California.
Jodi Arias and Travis Alexander met in September 2006 at a Prepaid Legal Services conference in Las Vegas, Nevada.
On November 26, 2006, Jodi Arias was baptized into the Latter-day Saint faith by Travis Alexander. They became a couple in February 2007.
After they broke up in June 2007, Jodi Arias moved to Mesa, Arizona, before moving to her grandparents’ house in Yreka, California, in April 2008.
On June 9, 2008, Travis Alexander’s body was discovered in a shower at his home in Mesa, Arizona. His throat had been c*t, and he had been shot in the head and stabbed multiple times. There have been conflicting reports over the number of s**b wounds, with some reports stating 29] and others stating 27.
Medical Examiner Kevin Horn testified that Travis Alexander’s jugular vein, common carotid artery, and windpipe had been sl***ed.
Hs hands also had defensive wounds. Kevin Horn further testified that Travis Alexander “may have” been dead at the time the gunshot was inflicted.
Travis Alexander’s death was ruled a homicide.
His body was discovered as he was scheduled to leave on June 10, 2008, for a work-related trip to Cancun, Mexico. It has been reported that in early 2008, Travis Alexander had told his company that Jodi Arias would be joining him, and that in April he asked to change his companion to a female friend.
Travis Alexander missed an important conference call on the evening of June 4. On June 9, having been unable to reach Travis Alexander, people from Prepaid Legal Services went to his home. His roommates initially said he was out of town. After finding a key to his master bedroom, they entered the room and found large pools of bl**d in the hallway to the master bathroom, where his body was discovered in the shower. In the 911 call they made to authorities, they mentioned an ex-girlfriend, Jodi Arias, whom Travis Alexander had said was stalking him, accessing his Facebook account, and slashing tires.
On May 28, 2008, a burglary occurred at the residence of Jodi Arias’ grandparents, with whom she was living in Yreka, California. A .25-caliber gun and other objects were taken. The grandparents’ gun was never recovered. The prosecutor argued that the burglary was staged by Jodi Arias and the stolen gun was used to shoot Travis Alexander.
Several days before the trip, Jodi Arias repeatedly contacted her ex-boyfriend, Darryl Brewer, asking to borrow two 5-gallon gas cans for a trip to Arizona. The cans were not returned to Darryl Brewer. Receipts presented at trial also showed that Arias had purchased a third 5-gallon gas can, sunblock, and facial cleanser from Walmart in Salinas, California, on June 3, 2008. That evening, at an ARCO gas station in Pasadena, California, Jodi Arias purchased 8.301 gallons of gasoline with her debit MasterCard, and four minutes later purchased 9.59 gallons of gas with cash. The MasterCard was used again on June 6, 2008, three times at a Tesoro gas station in Salt Lake City, at a Pilot Flying J travel center in Winnemucca, Nevada and a 7-Eleven in Sparks, Nevada.
ravis Alexander and Jodi Arias
After Travis Alexander’s death but before his body was discovered, Jodi Arias had continued to call him and had left him several voicemail messages. It was later alleged that she had accessed Travis Alexander’s voicemail messages after his death. She said that Travis Alexander had originally planned to visit her in May 2008 but that his plans had changed. On June 2, 2008, Jodi Arias rented a white Ford Focus in Redding, California, about 100 miles south of her residence. She told the Budget Rent a Car staff that she would only be driving the car locally, but when the car was returned on June 7, it had been driven about 2,800 miles. It was also missing all of its floor mats, and there were what looked like Kool-Aid stains on the front and rear seats. The car was cleaned before police were able to examine it.
A spent .25 caliber round was located near one of the sinks in the master bath. Travis Alexander’s damaged digital camera was located in the downstairs washing machine. The camera was new. Detective Esteban Flores, via phone interview with Jodi Arias, asked her if she knew a possible motive for why someone would want to damage Travis Alexander’s camera. Although images had been deleted, Mesa Police were able to recover the images. The recovered images included Jodi Arias and Travis Alexander, both in se***lly suggestive poses, at approximately 1:40 p.m. on June 4, 2008. The last photo of Travis Alexander alive, and in the shower, was taken at 5:29:20 p.m. on June 4. Moments later, images appear of an individual, believed to be Travis Alexander, “profusely bleeding” on the floor.
A bl**dy palm print was located in the bathroom hallway, which DNA revealed to be a mixture of Jodi Arias’ and Travis Alexander’s DNA. Jodi Arias continued to insist that she had last seen Travis Alexander in April 2008 despite being presented with DNA and photographic evidence by Detective Esteban Flores.
Ryan Burns and others who met Jodi Arias in Utah after the killing indicated she had bandages on her hands and she wore long sleeves on days when it was very hot.
Jodi Arias told different stories about how she received the cuts to her hands. Ryan Burns was told they were from an injury while working at “Margaritaville” restaurant. At the trial, it was revealed by Siskiyou County, California, authorities that no such restaurant exists, nor ever existed in the area. At the time of the killing, she worked at Casa Ramos in Yreka.
She was indicted by a grand jury on a first-degree murder charge on July 9, 2008, and arrested at her grandparents’ home on July 15, 2008.
Jodi Arias was extradited to Arizona on September 5, 2008, where she pled not guilty on September 11, 2008.
She gave three different accounts of her whereabouts. She originally told police that she had not been in the home at the time of Travis Alexander’s death. She later told police that two intruders had broken into Travis Alexander’s home and that they murdered him and attacked her. Finally, Jodi Arias stated that she killed Travis Alexander in self-defense and she was a victim of domestic violence.
The trial of Jodi Arias began on January 2, 2013, in Maricopa County Superior Court before Judge Sherry K. Stephens. Prosecutor Juan Martinez sought the death penalty.
Jodi Arias was represented by appointed counsel L. Kirk Nurmi and Jennifer Willmott. Her counsel argued that Travis Alexander’s death was a justifiable homicide committed in self-defense.
She took the stand on February 4, 2013. When asked about her quote given to Inside Edition that she would not be convicted, Jodi Arias testified: “At the time, I had plans to commit suicide. So I was extremely confident that no jury would convict me because I didn’t expect any of you to be here, I planned to be dead.”
On February 6, Jodi Arias testified that she killed Travis Alexander in self-defense and recounted an intimate encounter with him that started with kissing and ended in a**l s**, describing the act as painful and adding: “It was not something I expected to happen, and I can’t say I wanted it to, but I didn’t stop him.”
Jodi Arias testified for a total of 18 days, which criminal defense attorney Mark Geragos described as “unprecedented”.
As of March 29, 2013, $1.4 million had been spent on providing public defenders for Jodi Arias.
On April 3, a member of the jury was dismissed for “misconduct”.
The defense team asked for a mistrial, which the judge denied.
On April 12, “Juror 11” was excused for health reasons, leaving the jury with eleven men and six women. A third juror was subsequently dismissed after he was arrested on a DUI offense during the course of the trial.
A defense expert diagnosed Jodi Arias with post-traumatic stress disorder, while a prosecution expert diagnosed her with borderline personality disorder.
On May 3, 2013, closing arguments concluded and the jury began deliberations. On May 8, 2013, after 15 hours of deliberation, Jodi Arias was found guilty of first-degree murder. Out of twelve jurors, five jurors found her guilty of first-degree premeditated murder, and seven jurors found her guilty of both first-degree premeditated murder and felony murder.
With this conviction, Jodi Arias was eligible for the death penalty. The aggravation phase of the trial started on May 15, 2013.
In the aggravation phase, the jury determined in less than three hours that Jodi Arias was eligible for the death penalty.
The penalty phase of the trial began on May 16, 2013, where prosecutors called Travis Alexander’s family members to offer victim impact statements, in an effort to convince the jury that Jodi Arias’ crime merits a death sentence.
On May 21, 2013, Jodi Arias offered an allocution, during which she pleaded for a life sentence. She acknowledged that her plea for life was a reversal of remarks she made to a TV reporter shortly after her conviction, when she said she preferred the death penalty.
“Each time I said that, I meant it, but I lacked perspective,” the former waitress said.
“Until very recently, I could not imagine standing before you and asking you to give me life.”
Jodi Arias changed her mind to avoid bringing more pain to members of her family, who were in the courtroom. At one point, Jodi Arias held up a white T-shirt with the word “Survivor” written across it, telling the jurors that she would sell the clothing and donate all proceeds to victims of domestic abuse. She also said she would sell her hair to Locks of Love charity while in prison, and had already done so three times while in jail. Later Jodi Arias gave a series of interviews, explaining how she addressed the issue of life imprisonment.
On May 23, 2013, the sentencing phase of Jodi Arias’ trial resulted in a hung jury, prompting the judge to declare a mistrial for that phase.
A retrial to determine Jodi Arias’ punishment is scheduled to begin on July 18, 2013, with a new jury empanelled for that purpose.
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Bill Zervakos, the jury foreman in the Jodi Arias murder trial, spoke out yesterday, saying that while he believed Jodi was mentally abused by Travis Alexander, it was no excuse to brutally murder him.
Just one day after the judge declared a mistrial when the jury failed to reach a unanimous verdict on whether or not she should be executed, Bill Zervakos spoke of the difficulties they faced during the five-month-long trial.
“When I walked into that court room for the first time and looked at the defendant – it is hard to put it into perspective, looking at that young woman and thinking about the brutality of the crime. It doesn’t wash,” Bill Zervakos said.
“It is difficult to separate yourself from the emotions and personal side of it.”
Speaking to Good Morning America, Bill Zervakos admitted he did not think Jodi Arias did herself any favors when she took the stand for 18 days because she had so many contradictory stories.
The hardest part, Bill Zervakos said, was having to sit six feet away from Travis Alexander’s family while listening to all the horrific things that happened to him.
Bill Zervakos, the jury foreman in the Jodi Arias murder trial, says he believed she was mentally abused by Travis Alexander
“Until you are face to face with someone who is going through that, you cannot put it into words,” he said.
“If you cannot feel that then you have no emotion, no soul.
“But we couldn’t allow ourselves to be emotional and for that I am very proud of my jurors, they did a fantastic job of holding it together – though it was a different story when we got into the jury room.”
Speaking about Travis Alexander, Bill Zervakos said: “I am very sure in my own mind that Jodi was mentally and verbally abused by him. Is that an excuse? Of course not. Did it factor into the decision we made? It has to.”
The next step in the lengthy trial will now come on July 18, when an entirely new jury panel is determined and tasked with delivering the final verdict in the case.
The scene in the Phoenix, Arizona, courtroom on Thursday afternoon – when the jury came back to the judge with their inability to agree – was not one of relief.
Jodi Arias herself looked upset and began crying, though not necessarily tears of joy.
Travis Alexander’s siblings, who have been a constant presence throughout and have all uprooted their lives in California to focus on the trial, were all crying as well.
One female juror was at least sympathetic to them, and she was seen mouthing the word “sorry” toward the Alexanders.
Judge Sherry Stephens, who showed some tough love to the jury on Wednesday, was very complimentary to them.
“This was not your typical trial. You were asked to perform some very difficult duties,” she said.
The jury began deliberating Tuesday, and on Wednesday afternoon they told the Judge that they were unable to reach a unanimous verdict.
Judge Sherry Stephens ordered the jurors to go back and talk more until they came to a decision, but that was still not enough time as they came back later yesterday afternoon still at an impasse.
The new jury will not have any power to change her guilty conviction, and they will be solely tasked with determining how Jodi Arias, 32, will “pay” for the first degree murder.
The decision follows a trial that has staggered on for five months over the 2008 sl**ing of Travis Alexander, Jodi Arias’ on-again off-again boyfriend who she killed in his home in 2008. She sta**ed him nearly 30 times, s**t his throat, and shot him.
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Jodi Arias returns to a 7ft x 11ft cell in Estrella Jail each day as she awaits to find out if she will receive the death penalty for the brutal murder of Travis Alexander.
The bunk bed with thin mattress and pink sheets is where Jodi Arias slept in the night following a harrowing day in court which saw Travis Alexander’s siblings break down as they described how their brother’s horrifying death changed their lives forever.
The Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office invited media into see the roughly 7ft x 11ft cell in Estrella Jail where Arias will be housed until Jodi Arias’ trial has concluded.
Jodi Arias is confined to the cell 23 hours a day and does not share with another inmate.
In the bare room with concrete floor, notepads, bottles of lotion and newspaper clippings litter the small space. A stack of books rests behind the bed.
On the floor, are numerous paper bags full of papers along with a copy of The Intelligent Optimist magazine.
Jodi Arias returns to a 7ft x 11ft cell in Estrella Jail each day as she awaits to find out if she will receive the death penalty for the brutal murder of Travis Alexander
The cell is next to a block of inmate showers and payphones where Jodi Arias has been calling friends who have then tweeted on her behalf to supporters.
According to azfamily.com, self-described “America’s toughest sheriff” Joe Arpaio invited journalists to view Jodi Arias’ living quarters after reports that she had it “cushy”.
Joe Arpaio said: “This is not the Hilton Hotel.”
He also said that Jodi Arias had been relatively well-behaved during her time in one of his facilities – apart from a small infraction involving crayons.
In the area where Jodi Arias is held, there are seven other inmates – but no conversation is allowed.
Jodi Arias was transferred back to the Phoenix jail last week after spending the weekend on suicide watch at another Arizona facility.
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Kirk Nurmi, Jodi Arias’ lawyer, stands to make extra $200,000, paid for by taxpayer, because his bid to stop defending her was denied.
Jodi Arias, 32, killed Travis Alexander, her on-again off-again boyfriend in 2008 by sta**ing him nearly 30 times, s****ing his throat, and finally shooting him.
She is represented by Kirk Nurmi who asked to be taken off the case, but his request was denied.
Kirk Nurmi already earns $225 an hour defending the convicted murderer, but will now earn extra $100 representing her due to his request being refused.
The County Board of Supervisor’s decided to front the money in anticipation of his impending bill for his defense of Jodi Arias, Maricopa County spokesperson Cari Gerchick told The Huffington Post.
Kirk Nurmi asked a second time on Monday after his request for a mistrial was denied by Judge Sherry Stephens – it was also denied.
His claimed that Jodi Arias has not received a fair trial because the jury was not sequestered and cameras were allowed in the courtroom.
The county has spent about $1.7 million to date on Jodi Arias’ defense, Cari Gerchick said.
Meanwhile jurors in the murder trial resumed deliberations today after they were unable to reach a unanimous verdict on whether she should be sentenced to life in prison or death for killing her one-time boyfriend, prompting the judge to instruct them to keep trying.
The panel reported its impasse Wednesday after only about two and a half hours of deliberations. Judge Sherry Stephens told jurors to try to identify areas of agreement and disagreement as they work toward a decision.
The jury then continued deliberating until late afternoon, when it adjourned for the day without a decision.
Kirk Nurmi, Jodi Arias’ lawyer, stands to make extra $200,000, paid for by taxpayer, because his bid to stop defending her was denied
Under Arizona law, a hung jury in the death penalty phase of a trial requires a new jury to be seated to decide the punishment. If the second jury cannot reach a unanimous decision, the judge would then sentence Jodi Arias to spend her entire life in prison or be eligible for release after 25 years.
In the event of a hung jury in the Jodi Arias trial, the case could drag on for several more months, said former Maricopa County Attorney Rick Romley.
“If that happens, this jury would be dismissed and a second jury would be impaneled, and you’d literally have to go through the whole case again,” Rick Romley said, adding the murder conviction would stand and the new panel would be considering only the sentence.
However, the new jury would have to review evidence and hear opening statements, closing arguments and witness testimony in a “Cliffs Notes” version of the trial, Rick Romley said.
Rick Romley also noted that if the current jury deadlocks, the prosecutor could decide to take the death penalty off the table. If that happens, the judge would determine whether Jodi Arias spends her entire life in prison or is eligible for release after 25 years.
The judge cannot sentence Jodi Arias to death.
The panel heard emotional comments last week from Travis Alexander’s family as the prosecutor argued Jodi Arias should be executed for his gruesome killing.
Jodi Arias responded Tuesday by pleading for mercy, saying she can become a model prisoner by teaching inmates how to read and speak Spanish and helping the prison launch recycling programs.
She also wants to be an advocate for domestic violence victims.
The same jury of eight men and four women convicted Jodi Arias of first-degree murder two weeks ago. Jodi Arias sta**ed and sla**ed Travis Alexander about 30 times, shot him in the forehead and s**t his throat in what authorities said was a jealous rage.
Jodi Arias claimed it was self-defense.
She spoke to media outlets in jailhouse interviews Tuesday night just hours after the jury began deliberations.
Jodi Arias talked out about her murder trial, her many fights with her legal team and her belief that she “deserves a second chance at freedom someday”.
She said her lawyers let her down by not calling more witnesses who could have bolstered her claims that she was a victim of domestic violence at Travis Alexander’s hands.
Following her conviction last week, Jodi Arias told a local TV station that she preferred the death penalty.
However, Jodi Arias said Tuesday night that she changed her mind after a tearful meeting with family members, realizing her death would only cause them more pain.
“I felt like by asking for death, it’s like asking for assisted suicide, and I didn’t want to do that to my family,” Jodi Arias told the AP.
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Last night the judge declared a mistrial over the sentencing of Jodi Arias after the jury failed to reach a unanimous verdict over whether or not she should be executed for murdering her ex-boyfriend Travis Alexander.
The jury was dismissed from the courtroom after spending five months on the case, and while they did decide that Jodi Arias was guilty of the premeditated murder of Travis Alexander, they could not decide whether she should spend life in prison or be put to death.
The next step in the lengthy trial will now come on July 18, when an entirely new jury panel is determined and tasked with delivering the final verdict in the case.
The scene in the Phoenix, Arizona courtroom on Thursday afternoon – when the jury came back to the judge with their inability to agree – was not one of relief.
Jodi Arias herself looked upset and began crying, though not necessarily tears of joy.
Travis Alexander’s siblings, who have been a constant presence throughout and have all uprooted their lives in California to focus on the trial, were all crying as well.
One female juror was at least sympathetic to them, and she was seen mouthing the word “sorry” toward the Alexanders.
Judge Sherry Stephens, who showed some tough love to the jury yesterday, was very complimentary to them today.
“This was not your typical trial. You were asked to perform some very difficult duties,” she said.
The jury began deliberating Tuesday, and on Wednesday afternoon they told the Judge that they were unable to reach a unanimous verdict.
Jodi Arias jury cannot decide on death penalty in Travis Alexander murder case and judge declares mistrial
Sherry Stephens ordered the jurors to go back and talk more until they came to a decision, but that was still not enough time as they came back later yesterday afternoon still at an impasse.
The new jury will not have any power to change Jodi Arias’ guilty conviction, and they will be solely tasked with determining how she will “pay” for the first degree murder.
The decision follows a trial that has staggered on for five months over the 2008 sl**ing of Travis Alexander, Jodi Arias’ on-again off-again boyfriend who she killed in his home in 2008. She sta**ed him nearly 30 times, s**t his throat, and shot him.
Even for the most fastidious of court followers who have developed a sense of who Jodi Arias, 32, is over the past five months of the trial, her behavior in the past week has been confusing as she gave conflicting statements about her desire thoughts on a possible death sentence.
Immediately after her guilty verdict was handed down two weeks ago, Jodi Arias granted a local news station an interview where she said that she was “in shock” and that she would rather be given the death penalty as opposed to a life sentence in prison.
Speaking to the local Fox affiliate KSAZ, Jodi Arias said that she would “prefer to die sooner than later”.
“Longevity runs in my family, and I don’t want to spend the rest of my natural life in one place. I’m pretty healthy, I don’t smoke and I’ll probably live for a long time so that’s not something that I am looking forward to.
“I believe death is the ultimate freedom and I’d rather have my freedom as soon as I can get it.”
Those comments prompted courthouse officials to order that Jodi Arias will be placed in a psychological hold and on suicide watch, which inevitably delayed the second portion of the sentencing- where jurors were forced to decide if the murder was especially aggressive.
During the ensuing testimony, called the aggravation portion of the trial, jurors heard from both sides who were able to call witnesses arguing that she should and shouldn’t be forced to die, respectively.
When Jodi Arias addressed the court in her own defense, she pledged, if allowed to live, to donate her hair to cancer patients and start a prison recycling program.
“I have made many public statements that I would prefer the death penalty to life in prison,” Jodi Arias told jurors.
“In each of those cases, I lacked perspective,” she said.
“Until very recently I could not imagine standing before you all and asking for you to give me life,” Jodi Arias said.
“But as I stand here now I cannot in good conscience ask you to sentence me to death.”
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Members of jury for the Jodi Arias court case were sent home at 4.30 p.m. local time after spending the entire day deliberating whether or not they should sentence the convicted murderer to death or to spend her life in prison.
Earlier in the day on Wednesday the jury returned to the courtroom after deliberating for two and a half hours saying that they were unable to reach a unanimous decision, but that did not sit well with Judge Sherry Stephens.
Sherry Stephens ordered the jurors to go back and talk more until they came to a decision.
The rest of the afternoon was not enough, however, as they were sent home and ordered to return at 10 a.m. on Thursday.
There are three options going forward: they will either decide to sentence 32-year-old Jodi Arias to death, or to sentence her to spend her life in prison with the prospect of parole after 25 years. The third option would be if they fail to unanimously agree on those two sentences, making them a hung jury.
In that case, the judge will be forced to declare a mistrial and a new jury will be picked.
The new jury will not have any power to change her guilty conviction, and they will be solely tasked with determining how Jodi Arias will “pay” for the first degree murder.
The decision follows a trial that has staggered on for five months over the 2008 slaying of Travis Alexander, Jodi Arias’ on-again off-again boyfriend who she killed in his home in 2008. She sta**ed him nearly 30 times, s**t his throat, and shot him.
Even for the most fastidious of court followers who have developed a sense of who Jodi Arias is over the past five months of the trial, her behavior in the past week has been confusing as she gave conflicting statements about her desire thoughts on a possible death sentence.
Immediately after her guilty verdict was handed down two weeks ago, Jodi Arias granted a local news station an interview where she said that she was “in shock” and that she would rather be given the death penalty as opposed to a life sentence in prison.
Members of jury for the Jodi Arias court case were sent home after spending the entire day deliberating whether or not they should sentence her to death or to spend her life in prison
Speaking to the local Fox affiliate KSAZ, Jodi Arias said that she would “prefer to die sooner than later”.
“Longevity runs in my family, and I don’t want to spend the rest of my natural life in one place. I’m pretty healthy, I don’t smoke and I’ll probably live for a long time so that’s not something that I am looking forward to.
“I believe death is the ultimate freedom and I’d rather have my freedom as soon as I can get it.”
Those comments prompted courthouse officials to order that Jodi Arias be placed in a psychological hold and on suicide watch, which inevitably delayed the second portion of the sentencing- where jurors were forced to decide if the murder was especially aggressive.
During the ensuing testimony, called the aggravation portion of the trial, jurors heard from both sides who were able to call witnesses arguing that she should and shouldn’t be forced to die, respectively.
When she addressed the court in her own defense, Jodi Arias pledged, if allowed to live, to donate her hair to cancer patients and start a prison recycling program.
“I have made many public statements that I would prefer the death penalty to life in prison,” Jodi Arias told jurors.
“In each of those cases, I lacked perspective,” she said.
“Until very recently I could not imagine standing before you all and asking for you to give me life,” she said.
“But as I stand here now I cannot in good conscience ask you to sentence me to death.”
Jodi Arias made the statements as she tried desperately to humanize herself to jurors by sharing childhood photographs, talking about her “red-headed stage” and displaying the drawings she has created while in prison.
She followed up her case with a surprise jailhouse interview on Tuesday where she placed blame on her legal team.
The most emotional portions of the entire trial came last week, when Travis Alexander’s siblings told the court how their lives have been wrecked in the wake of their brother’s brutal murder.
The victim’s brother Stephen Alexander told how he has since been put on several different antidepressants, had to have several hospitalizations for his ulcers, and frequently wakes up in the middle of the night with vivid nightmares.
His sister Samantha told the court that even though she has been a police officer in California for 11 years, the photos of her brother’s crime scene were by far the most gra**ic she has ever seen.
They both said how difficult it was for them to see his murderer in court and on her many television appearances, so the judges’ move to force the jury to a decision deadline may be in light of the victim’s family’s wishes.
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Jodi Arias tearfully pleaded with jurors to spare her from a death sentence in Travis Alexander murder case on Tuesday during a bizarre 25-minute testimony in which she pledged, if allowed to live, to donate her hair to cancer patients and start a prison recycling program.
“I have made many public statements that I would prefer the death penalty to life in prison,” Jodi Arias told jurors.
“In each of those cases, I lacked perspective,” she said.
“Until very recently I could not imagine standing before you all and asking for you to give me life,” she said.
“But as I stand here now I cannot in good conscience ask you to sentence me to death.”
Jodi Arias, 32, made the statements as she tried desperately to humanize herself to jurors by sharing childhood photographs, talking about her “red-headed stage” and displaying the drawings she has created while in prison.
Jodi Arias was found guilty earlier this month in the premeditated murder of Travis Alexander, whose body was found slumped in the shower of his Phoenix-area home in June 2008. He had been st**bed multiple times, had his throat sla**ed and been shot in the face.
“This is the worst mistake of my life,” Jodi Arias said.
“It’s the worst thing I have ever done…Before that day I wouldn’t even want to harm a spider.”
Listing ways that she could contribute positively from prison, Jodi Arias promised to teach women how to speak Spanish and to help improve literacy among inmates, as well as start a book club.
Jodi Arias also noted that she has avoided looking at Travis Alexander’s family during the trial.
“It’s never been my intention to throw mud on Travis’s name,” she said.
Jodi Arias tearfully pleaded with jurors to spare her from a death sentence in Travis Alexander murder case during a bizarre 25-minute testimony
“I loved Travis and I looked up to him. At one point, he was the world to me.”
Jodi Arias choked up as she spoke about the impact of her crime on her own family, saying they would be destroyed if she was sentenced to death.
“I want everyone’s healing to begin and everyone’s pain to stop,” she said. She also grew emotional while talking about her the fact that she will never be able to have children as a result of her actions.
“I’m not going to have children of my own,” she said.
“I’m not going to become a mother. Because of my own terrible choices, I’ve had to lay that dream to rest.”
In closing statements later Tuesday, Defense attorney Jennifer Willmott asked the jury to consider that “people are far better than their very worst deed”.
Jennifer Willmott claimed that Jodi Arias’ personality disorder and alleged emotional abuse that she observed between her mother and father “is in no way an excuse for killing [Travis Alexander]”, but they could have contributed to her crime and should therefore be considered when weighing the death penalty.
“While what she did was absolutely horrible, you have convicted her of that,” Jennifer Willmott said.
“Two wrongs do not make a right.”
“Jodi can still contribute to this world. Her life still has value,” she continued.
“We are asking you to find that Jodi’s life is worth saving.”
Prosecutor Juan Martinez followed up Jennifer Willmott by showing jurors a photograph of Travis Alexander’s bl***ied body from the scene of the murder.
The image caused a physical reaction among members of Travis Alexander’s family who were present, with several turning their heads, shielding their eyes and letting out sobs.
“Travis Alexander was 30 years old [when he was murdered],” Juan Martinez said.
“He’s still today 30 years old, because of her.”
Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Sherry Stephens had on Monday denied requests by the defense for a mistrial and to withdraw from the case. She also denied a motion for a stay to give the defense time to appeal her decisions to the Arizona Supreme Court. The defense said it would not call any more witnesses.
The jury that convicted Jodi Arias of murder found last week she had acted with extreme cruelty and ruled her eligible for the death penalty.
The murder trial has featured testimony and photographs as well as a s** tape and became a sensation on cable television news with the tale of an attractive, young woman charged with an unthinkable crime.
Jodi Arias has said she shot Travis Alexander with his own pistol when he attacked her in a rage because she dropped his camera while taking snapshots of him in the shower. She said she did not remember sta**ing him.
Juan Martinez said Jodi Arias had repeatedly sta**ed Travis Alexander for two minutes as he tried to escape from the bathroom. She then followed the bleeding victim down a hallway and sla**ed his throat when he was too weak to get away.
Travis Alexander, a 30-year-old businessman and motivational speaker with whom Jodi Arias said she was having an on-again, off-again affair, knew he was going to die and was unable to resist his attacker at that point, Juan Martinez said.
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Jodi Arias gave a surprise jailhouse interview just hours after a jury began deliberating her fate, speaking out about her murder trial, her many fights with her legal team and her belief that she “deserves a second chance at freedom someday”.
Jodi Arias repeated many of her claims from previous interviews, testimony on the witness stand and her statements to the jury earlier on Tuesday as she pleaded for mercy.
Her further stints of self-promotion came as the jury were unable to reach a decision on Wednesday on whether she should be sentenced to death.
The judge sent the jury back out to deliberate until 4.30 p.m. (MST). If jurors are unable to agree, then the judge will declare a mistrial for death penalty phase only and a new jury will be brought in.
Jodi Arias also provided some new information about her case and how she believed her lawyers let her down by not calling more witnesses who could have bolstered her claims that she was a victim of domestic violence at the hands of Travis Alexander.
She was convicted last week of first-degree murder in the June 2008 stabbing and shooting death of her one-time lover in what prosecutors described as a cold, calculated killing carried out in a jealous rage. Jodi Arias has maintained all along it was self-defense.
The jury began deliberating Tuesday as they worked to determine whether she should live or die for her crime. If the jury opts for a life sentence, the judge will have the option of determining whether she spends the rest of her days behind bars or is eligible for release after 25 years.
Jodi Arias acknowledged it was unlikely she would ever be released, but believed she deserves a second chance.
Following her conviction last week, Jodi arias told a local TV station that she preferred the death penalty.
She said on Tuesday night that she changed her mind after a tearful meeting with family members that same day, realizing that her death would only cause them more pain.
“I felt like by asking for death, it’s like asking for assisted suicide and I didn’t want to do that to my family,” Jodi Arias said.
Jodi Arias said she fought from the beginning to keep cameras out of the courtroom to limit the media spectacle, and believes that the jury should have been sequestered. She stated flatly that she did not receive a fair trial.
“The prosecutor has accused me of wanting to be famous, which is not true,” she said.
However, Jodi Arias has sought the spotlight at every turn, providing TV interviews and even using a third-party to tweet throughout the trial.
Jodi Arias repeated her claims that she never wanted to go to trial in the first place but instead wanted to reach a deal with prosecutors on a second-degree murder count that would have carried a maximum of 22 years in prison. However, she said, “no deal was offered”.
Jodi Arias gave a surprise jailhouse interview just hours after a jury began deliberating her fate
She gave the interviews on Tuesday after the judge lifted an order barring jail officials from arranging any media requests.
The judge did not elaborate on the reason for the ruling, but Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio’s office quickly began making the media arrangements that lasted late into the night.
A shackled Jodi Arias wore makeup for the interviews and showed up in a jail classroom with a comb in hand as she fixed her hair for the cameras. When pressed for details on some of her conflicting stories, she was mostly evasive, citing advice from her attorneys and possible pending appeals.
She was also asked about the conflicts she had had with her two court-appointed lawyers, Kirk Nurmi and Jennifer Willmott.
Jodi Arias said she wanted at least three people called as witnesses who could have testified to having seen bruises on her neck “when I was choked out” by Travis Alexander but she said she was rebuffed by her lawyers.
The prosecutor insisted her claims of self-defense were an exaggerated attempt to avoid being convicted.
Jodi Arias said her lawyers “felt a little betrayed” and blindsided by her post-conviction interview but that they gave their blessings for Tuesday night’s interviews, warning her to be cautious.
She said she sometimes wishes she’d never met Alexander, “just because of how ultimately everything ended and I say that for his sake and mine – not just a selfish thing”.
Jodi Arias said if the attack never occurred and she never crossed paths with the victim, she would likely now be a happily married 32-year-old with children, good finances and a successful wedding photography business.
Earlier on Tuesday, Jodi Arias told jurors she planned to use her time in prison to bring about positive changes, including donating her hair to be made into wigs for cancer victims, helping establish prison recycling programs and designing T-shirts to raise money for domestic abuse victims.
Jodi Arias became emotional as she displayed for jurors photos of her friends, boyfriends and family members, including newborn relatives she has met only from behind bars.
She asked jurors to reject the death penalty for the sake of her family.
“I’m asking you to please, please don’t do that to them. I’ve already hurt them so badly, along with so many other people,” she said.
“I want everyone’s healing to begin, and I want everyone’s pain to stop.”
Jodi Arias stabbed and slashed Travis Alexander nearly 30 times, shot in him in the forehead and slit his throat, nearly decapitating him, before leaving his body in his shower to be found by friends about five days later.
“To this day, I can hardly believe I was capable of such violence. But I know that I was,” Jodi Arias told jurors.
“And for that, I’m going to be sorry for the rest of my life.”
Her speech to jurors came a day after her attorneys asked to be removed from the case, saying the five-month trial had become a witch hunt that prompted death threats against a key witness in the penalty phase. They also argued for a mistrial. The judge denied both requests.
Travis Alexander’s family showed little emotion as Jodi Arias’ mother, father and sister looked on from the other side of the gallery and cried.
After Jodi Arias finished speaking, Judge Sherry Stephens explained to jurors that their finding would be final
The jury heard closing arguments later on Tuesday, with Jennifer Willmott citing Jodi Arias’ mental health problems and lack of a criminal record among the reasons to spare her life.
“The question now before you is: Do you kill her? Do you kill her for the one act that she did, the one horrible act, or can you see that there is a reason to let her live? Can you see that there is value in her life?” she said.
Prosecutor Juan Martinez said that despite Jodi Arias’ claims, there were no factors in the case that would warrant a sentence other than death.
He implored jurors to look at the “whole panorama” of the case, not just Jodi Arias’ statement on Tuesday, and explained how Travis Alexander’s family will live with the pain of their loss for the rest of their lives.
“They can’t forget that what happened on that afternoon, Travis Victor Alexander suffered immense physical pain,” Juan Martinez said.
“They can’t forget that.”
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The family who now lives in the home where Jodi Arias killed her ex-boyfriend Travis Alexander is treated to a constant stream of unwanted visitors who drive past the home because of their morbid fascination about the case.
Travis Alexander’s home was sold in foreclosure in 2009, the year after he was stabbed nearly 30 times and shot by Jodi Arias.
“I was a little nervous about it. My husband, though, it didn’t bother him. He said, <<This is a good deal. It’s a beautiful home. It’s in a great school district>>,” the homeowner told USA Today.
“When we signed the papers, we didn’t realize this was going to be that big of a case.”
The couple and their three sons, who are not releasing their name, have had to adapt to a lurid following of people from mostly outside of Arizona who have become enthralled with the case.
The murder trial, which began on January 2, 2013, is just now beginning to wind down with the closing arguments expected later this week.
That said, the jury could deliberate for weeks, causing the spectacle around the murder- and in turn, this home- to continue for many.
“A lot of people came by the house on their spring break – it was really bad with people showing up around that time,” the homeowner said to USA Today.
Travis Alexander’s home was sold in foreclosure in 2009, the year after he was stabbed nearly 30 times and shot by Jodi Arias
“There was a lady who drove up from Casa Grande and said she wanted to talk to me so she could get <<closure>>.”
The family that bought the home did so after seeing more than 150 others in their search, including a number of vandalized abandoned homes.
As such, it came as little surprise when parts of the carpet were missing along with faucets and the shower.
At the time, the family didn’t realized that they had been collected as evidence by investigators trying to piece together who had stabbed Travis Alexander, and left his dead body in his shower for five days before anyone called the police.
That said, the murder kept the price of the home down meaning that the family paid $206,000 for it in 2009, as compared to the $250,000 that Travis Alexander had paid for it in 2004.
The family’s offer on the house was accepted before they learned about the murder, but they still decided to go ahead with the deal once they were informed by the realtor and read up on the circumstances of the 30-year-old’s death.
The family’s three boys- and massive redesign inside the home- now reportedly give it a “cozy” feel, and while the homeowner will not release photos of the new decorating scheme, she says it looks nothing like the crime scene photos presented to the jury (and the public) during the lengthy trial.
The case has reignited interest in the case and now the family has to deal with a steady stream of self-guided tours.
“We’ve had people pull in our driveway and stop and park and get their cell phones out and take pictures of the house,” the homeowner told CNN.
“I am hoping that once this trial is over this can kind of become our home instead of Jodi Arias’ home or Travis Alexander’s old home.”
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Yesterday, Jodi Arias’ defense attorneys filed a motion for mistrial as one of their character witnesses scheduled to testify during the May 20, 2013, penalty phase on Arias’ behalf as backed out due to receiving death threats.
This isn’t the first time someone who has testified for Jodi Arias received public backlash. Her ex-boyfriend Darryl Brewer testified and requested his face to be hidden from the camera.
Travis Alexander and Jodi Arias before his murder on June 4, 2008
Criminal defense attorneys Kirk Nurmi and Jennifer Willmott are expected to argue eight, mitigating factors hoping the jury will spare Jodi Arias’ life and give her either life in prison without the possibility of parole, or life in prison with parole after 25 years. One of the mitigating factors is that Jodi Arias was 27-years-old at the time she stabbed her lover Travis Alexander 29 times, slit his throat from ear to ear and shot him in the head. If Jodi Arias were sentenced to life with the possibility of parole, she could be looking at getting out of prison when she is approximately 52 years old.
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