Jodi Arias Trial Verdict Watch: Plea To Jury Deciding Arias Fate- Hang Before Manslaughter If You Must

…” Something happens to ordinary citizens when they get into the jury box.  All of them become defenders of the Constitution. Every single time.  Very difficult…”

-Roy Hazelwood, Former FBI Behavior Analysis Unit Section Chief R current co-founder The Academy Group.

 Travis shaving shower door open to right

 

Hanged v Hung 

The death by hanging option is not a consideration in the event that the Jury in the Jodi Arias trial finds her guilty of murder in the first degree, or felony murder.   The jury cannot “hang” Jodi Arias.

However, they can hang themselves.  I am not referring to what they must have felt like to sit through four months of testimony in the heinous butchering trial in the murder of Travis Alexander.  No doubt 18 days on the stand – the poster child of the girl your mom told you about that guys will f*ck but not marry, Arias’s own words and convenient selective “fugue” state should be considered cruel and unusual for regular folk doing their civic duty.

I could not end my pre-verdict coverage without an editorial that lapses into first and third person.

 

Hung can be a good word.  Some examples:

  1. Relating to a portion of male anatomy for those not buying of the indifference to size
  2. He hung my new Mom’s Day necklace around my neck and it is super-sparkly.
  3. I hung my child’s first abstract-impressionist masterpiece on the wall in my office.
  4. We hung the ribbons for first place on the mantle.
  5. When the jurors in the Aries trial could not reach a unanimous decision on the first degree premeditated-murder and felony charges Judge Sherry Stephens announced the jury had hung and declared a mistrial.

Consider the alternatives before hurling the maters my way, if you will.

The fact that the judge ordered a manslaughter or “heat of passion” instruction at the last minute should be telling that there is great concern that the state has not offered the slam dunk serve-up for these triers of fact.

The trial started with the State disputing its own theory of the sequence of events between the Medical Examiner and the lead detective.  It is followed by evidence that disputes the contention the victim was immediately incapacitated by having him standing over the sink after injury.   Waa?

Hell, let’s just say it. There are 2 separate and distinct areas of a clear and unambiguous attack closely resembling a slaughter house with a substantial absence of blood in others.

Not to mention a picture of a severely wounded but not yet with a fatal neck slit injury of Travis one minute and two seconds later.

One minute and two seconds.   Two hundred pound prime-fitness Travis and 115 lb. Jodi in a battle for life and limb and the State says she stabs him FATALLY first in the chest.    Again, this contradicts the ME testimony.   Travis Alexander was shot first, period.  Whether or not that will make a difference to this jury I have no idea.

Considering this fatal wound was to his chest and NONE of the wounds to his back were even life threatening and clearly inflicted upon an individual who was not in motion- this makes zero sense.  The whole macabre mess goes down in one minute and two seconds if the pictures are to be believed.

One minute and two seconds.

Whether someone believes Arias is guilty or not, as the state presented their alleged version of events, it is unlikely that all jurors are going to be able to conclude that the timestamps on the pictures and the state’s versions of events can both be true.

As an example- to my knowledge, socks do not leave what is called a footwear impression.  There is clearly a “footwear impression on the bathroom floor in blood.  There was a pair of Travis’s gray socks in the washer.  They are the same color as the ones seen what appears to be over a shoe in one of the pictures in evidence.   Doesn’t that mean she was there long enough to do 2 loads of wash?  Possibly.

There are more unexplained incongruences in the State’s case than there are journal entries of this defendant.   It gives me great pause.  Juan Martinez’s closing argument stated theory that is medically unsupported in this case and overall.  Pause layering.

In a murder case with more forensic evidence than any one of the eight seasons of Criminal Minds has featured in a one hour episode, it is unsettling to see how much of it presumably not tested nor introduced as evidence was.

I have never seen juror questions in a capital case following re-direct before but I paid very close attention.  There were many prospective deliberating jurors asking what I would consider questions indicative of folks with forensic knowledge.

 

… “How Do I love thee, let me count the lies…”  Juan Martinez

Juan Martinez alleged that Arias deleted only pictures that implicated her, however, Michael Melendez testified there were roughly 90 pictures remaining on the camera that WERE NEVER introduced into evidence.   It was a juror who asked that question among others regarding the highly prejudicial and for my taste, unverified camera card evidence.   This jury is paying attention to the details.

Which means they are paying attention to the painfully few details offered as well.

Add in the very embarrassing and contradictory testimony of Dr. Horn who while he “sees dead people” apparently is not so big on the reporting of same.   We now we have a prosecution relying almost entirely on the testimony of the medical examiner to support its theory and he shows up in rebuttal with a 3rd version of errors he calls a typo.   Not helpful when the “immediately incapacitated “and non-ambulatory terms were used to discount a struggle between Travis and Jodi.

Dr. Horn may not know it yet but his testimony was downloaded to viral status by every reputable law school or criminal justice professor following the trial.   Not in a good way when the syllabus header is “What Your Witness Can Never do.”

 

If she brought the gun for pre-meditation purposes, why was he not dead from the gunshot wound? Why was he stabbed at all?   It leaves the jury looking over their shoulder to what possible half-truths Arias slipped into to bolster her defense.

Is anyone buying the pedo allegation? No.  Does not matter.   Again, I don’t think the jury will ultimately think PTSD or BPD or even her purchased DD’s will have any weight in the theory they adopt to reach a verdict.

Kirk Nurmi does not like his client.  Jennifer Wilmott liked her client too much and giggled and whispered her way through court most days.  Arias was scribbling for dollars and refusing to look at experts she did not like.   Juan Martinez badgered his own witnesses when they did not respond to his liking.  He throws things in open court like my son did as a toddler.  He then tells the jury to not stink of gas.  Wilmott and Nurmi are the Fred and Wilma of law.  Esteban Flores sat in court for 4 months handing exhibits to Martinez instead of a second prosecutor who could kick him under the table.  What’s with both media investigators having Brooklyn accents, lol?

 

All of it and none of it matters once that door shuts again Monday morning.

It comes down to the evidence they can trust with their own eyes and that was scant, and as I proved is suspect without further analysis.

This case has proven to be the highest profile case since the Anthony verdict and we all know how well that went.  The Cword was overcharged to what the State could prove in both theory and evidence and she now spends her days figuring out how to not pay the myriad of folks who secured her freedom.

But that’s just it.  She’s free and her daughter Caylee is no less dead.  She is no less responsible for her death.  Just not guilty.

Let’s focus on the successful hangings of the past:  Betty Broderick, The Menendez brothers, Phil Spector.

The second time around was the charm.   In many ways, the State and jurors are on the same team as public servants.  You might also consider that as such, it is ok to demand the tools you need if you feel that has not been provided to you.  It happens.

Strictly my opinion, but a manslaughter conviction for the murder of Travis Alexander is not justice for him, nor is it justice for his family.  It is like saying we believe everything else, except the part where he had the right to fight for his life while under attack.   That would be injustice.  As much as I loathe the prospect of Travis Alexander’s poor family having to sit through another trial, I fear for their pain of a manslaughter verdict more.  I fear even more than that this jury convicting Jodi Arias of manslaughter puts her back in society in short order and I for one believe the women is only partially diagnosed and extremely dangerous.

It is ok to make the state prove their case so you can do for the next jury what was not done for your service.

Lastly,  it should also be a consideration that should the state decide to re-investigate and retry this case with the proper diligence,  faced with what I believe is the as yet unknown  motivations and the true events of June 4th 2008-  Arias will have no choice but to plead guilty.

I am aware the argument that this is another bite at the apple for Arias- the clumsy apple-slicer that she is,   but I firmly believe that even she could not dream up a defense that would hold up.

29 stab wounds, a shot to the face and a neck slit from ear to ear from a dropped camera is not going to be an easy discussion with its moving parts and missing cogs- if you can’t make it run don’t try.

So consider this my plea to that juror who is spending the weekend not deliberating (respectfully submitted that move in itself is mind-boggling) and will deny they ever read this.

Conversely, consider this my kudos if you read this after you were able to convict Arias as charged or hold the State and by virtue- our constitution accountable for a do-over.   The case in chief that will allow the next jury to render a verdict in a capital case worthy of easing your conscience and commitment.

We The People CAN mean We Have To BE The People when called on to do so.  Godspeed whatever you decide.

 

Contributing Editor Jacqueline Beaufort

 

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148 Comments

  1. Inda says:

    whodunnit says:
    May 7, 2013 at 11:48 pm

    But after reading these jury instructions, it appears to me that the jury can come up with their OWN scenario, that it doesn’t HAVE to be the state’s specific scenario- that they could come with something else that made her just as guilty of murder one as the State did….
    —————————————————-
    I’ve been wondering this myself today. Looking forward to reading this tomorrow. Thanks.

  2. Pattimon says:

    whatever this jury finally decides I hope that JA is permanently removed from society in order to protect other human beings from one such as her. INMHO she definitely has P. T. S. S. D.: Patently Twisted Sister Sociopathy Disease. Which makes her a very dangerous individual.

  3. elizabeth says:

    As time goes by…sigh…one has to worry that two or more jurors might have become bewitched by Jodi.

    Just like Alyce, Dr Sam, Wilmott, Donahue and the man from New York that put $800.00 bucks in her commissary account for a total of $2200. in contributions.

    Like it or not people LIKE Jodi and jurors might not become the hero’s we expect them to be with a Murder One.

    Please don’t shoot the messenger!

  4. Word Girl says:

    Ugh. I always feel this way when on verdict watch.

    Just having an awful feeling that they’re going to hang: 7-5.

    I’ll be praying for their vision and understanding of justice.

  5. Twitch says:

    Does anyone else think that the jury is under more pressure than normal due to the outcome of the C-Word trial?

    I often wonder if they are going to go through everything that has been presented to them through out the trial with a fine tooth comb just to be 100% sure of their decision., that is not that they wouldn’t have been as diligent to begin with, but after all the backlash from the last “high profile” case I would bet they are being super cautious.

    No one wants to be associated with “that jury” ever again.

    I also wonder if the outrage over the verdict in the C-Word trial will help, hinder, or subconciously influence the jury with this case just because of that very outrage . Anyone who has any snippet of knowledge of that case and sits on the jury in a high profile case for the next couple of years has to have that sitting in the back of their mind come deliberation time even if they don’t consciously acknowledge it.

    Sadly I am stuck in a hotel conference room in Chicago at client meetings Weds & Thurs this week, ugh such poor timing, I mean do these people not know we are on verdict watch!?!

    On another note, I saw where the State vs Jodi Arias FB page notified Dior about Stabby’s drawings that are replicas of Dior print ads that she is selling. They have issues as cease and desist order and are considering if they want to pursue any legal action…. Yep, the hits just keep on coming for Stabby Einstein and I am not one bit saddened by this…….at all.

    «HUGS» to Blink and the Blinksters!!

  6. Twitch says:

    Ewwww holy typos Batman in that last post…sorry, touch screen keyboard at 2something am in a hotel room, eh I’m lucky I am even functionally at the moment.

    :-)

  7. jr says:

    @my prior comment below this one:
    I was wrong about tuesday, but still think our murder one will come. the jury has not had the luxury of discussing this case at all in the last four months, they know the world is watching and the weight of a major outcome for many people and many aspects of the justice system is in their hands. I feel this jury (UNLIKE another jury I know) will take their responsibility seriously enough to weigh all the evidence and apply it to their thorough understanding of the jury instructions…then come to a decision that rings ‘right’ to the rest of us…rather than making it in haste to hit the rides on their “comp’ed” them park vaycay immediately after.

    as for all 12 needing to agree on a charge, i know that is usually the standard but just thought i had heard beth karas or someone explain that in Arizona they can all reach a guilty verdict but if they cant all agree between murder one and murder two, they have to go with murder two….perhaps i heard wrong.
    JR says:
    May 7, 2013 at 1:42 am
    I thought the law in Arizona was:if not all jurors can agree on murder one charge (some or even one are set on murder 2), then they all have to rule it murder 2. that is the only thing that makes me nervous about this seemingly very astute jury.

    the evidence strongly suggests, but does not slam dunk on premeditation and it only takes one person to not be convinced of that.

    however, my gut has been telling me: murder one verdict-tuesday.

    They must have a unanimous verdict for any charge JR

    B

  8. jr says:

    oops typo- meant to say comp’ed themE park vaycay..

  9. Malty says:

    I felt relief when my guess of Tues late came and went
    I think now more time is needed to get murder 1
    I hope that’s the verdict so waiting is OK

  10. Jack says:

    Blink – if the jury acquits or hangs, do you think there is evidence that was not allowed at trial that would make the jury regret their decision once they find out about it? I didn’t follow the trial as carefully as I would have liked to, but I do know that inadmissible doesn’t necessarily mean irrelevant.

    Absolutely. Both that was not allowed and probably not entered by the State, definitely.

    B

  11. whodunnit says:

    In case anyone is wondering if Arias was capable of anticipating all possible angles in her case…..

    The following is a link to a letter that was written by Arias in 2011,to the then presiding Judge, Sally Duncan. In this letter, Arias pleads that Nurmi, who has at that time evidently asked to be recused, be kept on. The basis of her plea is that her case is so complicated and that he has devoted so much time to it, that she will not have fair counsel if he is replaced. To me, it begs two questions ( at least): Why was Nurmi so pivotal in her defense, and why wouldn’t another attorney have the ability to defend her as well.
    My feeling is that Nurmi, as a lawyer who specializes in sex crime, was an important ” teacher” for Arias in terms of what she needed to mount a self defense as abuse victim position. She could not trust that another attorney would see things the same way Nurmi proposed Arias present her claims. Nurmi had been with her in the ” evolution” of her story from intruders to self defense.
    here is link:
    http://twitdoc.com/view.asp?id=94223&sid=20PB&ext=PDF&lcl=JA-Letter-from-Jodi-to-Judge-re-Nurmi-Motion-to-Withdraw.pdf&usr=zou2&doc=139833553&key=key-2gxotllz9sge8erm21fo

  12. whodunnit says:

    To go along with my previous post, this gives context for Arias letter
    http://realitychatter.forumotions.net/t4266-jodi-arias-biology-of-the-defense-case

  13. Sunshine says:

    i seriously cannot take this anymore! i have a leftover klonopin from my last trip to europe (i hate flying because a plane and helicopter crashed on my elementary school when I was in kindergarten) and I am tempted today to take that leftover med, this anxiety is crazy. I cannot even begin to imagine how the alexander family is feeling. since I have done all my errands in the morning before 12pm since deliberations began I have decided that I’m going to Tiffany’s at 1pm to pick up my sisters college grad present…a luxury Ms. Arias will hopefully never have. Knowing me, the second I leave the house, a verdict will come in. Hopefully I can find the HLN channel on sirius lol

  14. hervness says:

    B says:
    I feel very fortunate to be able bodied and sound enough to bitch and complain about nonsense occurring while I am trying to get better, and accepting of the strife of others to help that endeavor so it is not “for not” in some way.

    **********************************************************************

    I give myself reality checks like this quite frequently. I ask myself (when upset or feeling irrational) “is this a First World problem?” If it is, I do what I can and let it go. Good perspective.

  15. Pam says:

    Well, I think today is the day for the verdict. Hoping and praying for justice. I have a good feeling there will be.

  16. Juan Martinez is overrated. Incredible that he didn’t at least posit a theory as to how a camera supposedly lying on the floor could continue to take pictures. Answer: it couldn’t. But cameras have straps, so that they can be worn around one’s (JA’s) neck. And it is very plausible – dare I say probable – that during the struggle, and all the shuffling around of the murder and its aftermath, the shutter button was bumped inadvertently a time or three. Hence we have the photos in evidence. Which btw merely proves the ‘dropped camera’ story to be a blatant concoction, from which the entire self-defense house of cards collapses at once.

    It gets worse. The strap to the camera was in it’s case sealed in plastic. Not used. So where does the strap come from for that camera in the first place?

    B

  17. Slowroller says:

    If they hang, I have the over/under to acquit at 9.

    I have zero faith.

  18. mayhem says:

    HLN just announced at 2:34 p.m. est there is a verdict

  19. VERDICT IS IN TO BE ANNOUNCED 4:30 EST

  20. Survivor says:

    There’s a verdict. While the answer is already written, sending heartfelt prayers to the family.

  21. Pam says:

    verdict is in to be read at 1;30

    Anyone reading the comments before posting or are we all spazzing lol?

    I hope she did not take the klonopin, LOL!

    B

  22. Pam says:

    slowroller I hope you are wrong and I have enough faith for both of us.

  23. Pam says:

    Anyone reading the comments before posting or are we all spazzing lol?

    I hope she did not take the klonopin, LOL!

    B
    ———————————————————————

    Sorry blink. They were not there until I hit the submit comment button lol. Then all kinds of comments appeared. Not denying the spazzing though. Unrelated, hope you have a quick recovery. Prayers to your healing.

    Lol, thank you.

    God Bless and whatever happens everyone- be kind to each other please.
    B

  24. Survivor says:

    Spazzing! Sparing all the long story, just had service fixed in my quiet place to get satellite. Thought maybe I would check out HLN to see if anything was happening. It was less than 60 seconds that they broke in saying there was a verdict. (Wish I had gotten it fixed Friday afternoon ;-) )

  25. lyla says:

    Unanimous verdict REACHED!!

  26. wpg4Juan&Alexanders says:

    Finally.

    sneaky :)
    B

  27. lyla says:

    Praying there is justice for Travis Alexander.

  28. Malty says:

    Ok here we go folks
    Time to get chores done and keep my nose to the TV
    What a exciting day

  29. whodunnit says:

    Will this continue after the verdict?
    I have found myself relieving stress by coming to this site!! have not yet begun to really ferret out all that have learned. Am awaiting the verdict, which will give mea perspective on the justice system… last piece of the puzzle……

  30. Mom3.0 says:

    My prayers to Travis’ family as well as Jodis

    My prayers to the jury

    My thanks to Blink for covering this trial, and for sharing her expertize
    and my thanks to all of you posters who have shared yours thoughts also-

    May the verdict be just- based upon the evidence and beyond a reasonable doubt

    AJMO
    Peace

  31. JessvAZ says:

    Well here we are. Only about an hour and 13 minutes to go. May God be with the Alexanders and I pray for a Murder 1 verdict!

    Blink, I find myself talking to Travis a lot also, this young man did make a difference in many lives even with leaving the earth so early.

  32. Jeff D says:

    The shadow of the dark sadness this case has cast renders this verdict anticlimactic….either way it falls…pffft…life then death…ugh

  33. Sunshine says:

    i didn’t take the klonopin! literally the second i walked in the door it came on that a verdict was reached. i’m feeling positive right now :)

  34. Eloise says:

    GULP!

  35. Jden says:

    Adrenaline rushhhhhhh!!!

  36. lyla says:

    Thank God…Justice for Travis Alexander.

  37. N. Cahela says:

    Praise God! Guilty!

  38. Löni says:

    Praying for Justice and for the family of Travis …

  39. Survivor says:

    RIP Travis. Justice has been served. God bless his family, the jurors and their families as well as the Arias family. Well done, Mr. Martinez for giving your best for Travis. He deserves it and you served him well.

    Thanks, Blink for giving this place to come to for sanity!

    Moving here and I would appreciate it if someone would notice we were first on the web, LOL

    http://blinkoncrime.com/2013/05/08/jodi-arias-trial-verdict-is-in-guilty-of-murder-in-the-slaying-of-travis-alexander/
    B

  40. lyla says:

    A wrongful death suit is being filed against Jodi Arias by the Alexander family.

  41. sneaky says:

    xoxo’s :)

  42. jr says:

    yaaaay. that s all i have to say….today. whether she gets death or not – right now I could go either way. family member in court room said even after verdict was read he looked Jodi in eye and saw nothing, little emotion. meds or that superhuman sociopathy quality?

  43. SOTT says:

    Michael Starr says:
    May 8, 2013 at 1:54 pm
    Juan Martinez is overrated. Incredible that he didn’t at least posit a theory as to how a camera supposedly lying on the floor could continue to take pictures. Answer: it couldn’t. But cameras have straps, so that they can be worn around one’s (JA’s) neck. And it is very plausible – dare I say probable – that during the struggle, and all the shuffling around of the murder and its aftermath, the shutter button was bumped inadvertently a time or three. Hence we have the photos in evidence. Which btw merely proves the ‘dropped camera’ story to be a blatant concoction, from which the entire self-defense house of cards collapses at once.

    It gets worse. The strap to the camera was in it’s case sealed in plastic. Not used. So where does the strap come from for that camera in the first place?

    B

    ———————————————————————————————————————————-

    Regarding the topic of the camera strap above, i am of the belief that the camera was in a strap around her neck. I understand that the camera strap that came with his camera outfit was still in its case, however, if i remember correctly, at one point, she stated that she brought at least one of her cameras with her (if we can believe her) to Travis’ house. If true, i feel she could have used her own strap for his camera.

    The main reason i feel she had the camera on a strap around her neck is that any time the media shows photos of her with her camera, it seems to ALWAYS be on a strap.

  44. Arabian Girl says:

    Scott re: camera strap

    If this was the reasoning behind your opinion of Martinez, you may want to take a broader approach. There were 2+ weeks of details provided by the convicted that Martinez ‘could have’ taken issue with, only to get sucked further and further into her web of lies. Exactly what she was looking for imo. Remember the “I see someone in the iris of the eye” nonsense?

    If makes no difference in the end exactly where the camera was while taking inadvertent pictures and, again imo, Martinez was very smart NOT to let Jodi take the jury further into the proverbial weeds.

  45. SOTT says:

    Arabian girl,

    The statement of “Juan Martinez is overrated” were not my words. They belong to the poster Michael Starr, whose post i copied and pasted into my post in order to reference the topic of the camera strap.

  46. Jacalyn Trautman says:

    This is brilliant detective work. Jodi absolutely had brown hair at the murder. So why does she have blond hair in the photos of June 4, 2008? I think it does prove that she was not invited that day and Travis was surprised in the shower.

    She does not have blonde hair in the alleged photos of June 4th 2008?
    B

  47. S Beaudoin says:

    My murder sequence theory: I think Jodi shot Travis first, which did not incapacitate him immediately. Then she tried to shoot him again but the gun jammed. You can hide a gun in a pants pocket, but no so easily a knife. When the gun jammed, Jodi ran to the bedroom to get her knife from her purse. In that gap, Travis went to the sink to see the damage & coughed up blood. Who would stop at the sink if Jodi was still there with a knife, attacking him. He thought she might have left & tried to get out of the house but couldn’t escape in time. She got her knife and had to kill him in the hallway to prevent him from getting away. Doea anyone agree?

    Welcome S Beaudoin- I invite you to read the thousands of comments in this coverage, we have discussed the theories in great detail.
    B

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