The State of AZ vs. Jodi Arias

Jury selection is slated to begin on November 19, 2012 in the State of Arizona vs. Jodi Arias.  It's been more than 4 years since Travis Alexander was viciously murdered in the shower of his Mesa AZ home.  28 year old Jodi Arias was arrested and charged in the murder not long after the crime, yet her antics have caused delay after delay.  It's time to get the show on the road.  It's time for justice for Travis Alexander and it's time to give his friends and family a little closure.

For those of you who aren't familiar with this case, Travis Alexander was a 30 year old motivational speaker, and by all accounts a devout Mormon and a really good guy.  He had a ton of friends, he did well for himself and had a very promising future.  Obviously, I didn't know Travis - but if you see a picture of him, you can just tell what type of person he was.  He had a big, warm smile and kind eyes.  His biggest mistake in life is that he met and dated a woman named Jodi Arias.  The relationship with her would literally kill him.

Early on in the relationship, Travis' friends noticed that Jodi was overly possessive of Travis - and jealous of other women and even of his friends. They warned him, don't get too serious with this one.  They dated for several months before the jealousy issues took a toll on their relationship and they ended it.  Travis seemed to be moving on, and even dated other women.  Was Arias stalking him?  One morning after spending the evening with another woman, he found his car with four slashed tires.  He replaced the tires, it happened a second time.  He believed she was breaking into his Facebook account and reading his e-mails.  Fatal Attraction 2008.

I'm sure there's alot more to the story, but it all came to a very tragic and violent end in June, 2008 when concerned friends entered his home after not being able to reach him for several days.  I'm sure they will never forget what they found.  A bloody and battered Travis lay dead in his shower.  He had been shot in the face, stabbed 27 times and had his throat slit.  He had been dead for several days.  It wasn't long before those same friends pointed police to ex-girlfriend Jodi Arias.

When initially questioned by the police, Arias told them she hadn't seen Alexander in several months and was not even in Arizona on the night of the murder.  Evidence left at the scene contradicted her statements. A bloody palm print found on the wall in his house was found to be hers. Police recovered a digital camera that was mixed with bedsheets in the dryer.  Although somebody attempted to erase all photos taken from the camera, police technicians were able to recover the photos.  They were damning to say the least.

There were pictures of Travis and Jodi, taken on what police believe was the night of the murder in various intimate poses on his bed, in the shower.  They were time and date stamped.  There was a picture of a very much alive Travis taking a shower, followed by a picture of a bloody and battered Travis in the shower.  Thankfully technology was able to catch a killer. 

I saw one of Jodi Arias' jailhouse interviews and she is one creepy woman.  She was all smiles, she fussed over her makeup and her hair.  And she was in jail, charged with murder.  She told the reporter that she didn't believe a jury would ever convict her.  Ultimately, she gave 3 versions of what happened that night to police.  In the first version, she said she wasn't there. Second version, she was there when Travis was killed by 3 armed intruders and narrowly escaped with her life!  Yet she never thought to call police or an ambulance?

In her last and most current version, she claims that she killed him in self defense.  When somebody is shot in the face, stabbed 27 times and has his throat slit, it's a slaughter - not self defense. I think Jodi Arias greatly underestimates the value a jury places on a human life.  I think Jodi Arias greatly overestimates her own intelligence and charm.  What do you think?