Will Son Of Sam Law Effect Jodi Arias?

Now that Jodi Arias has been convicted of murdering ex-boyfriend Travis Alexander, Arizona's "Son of Sam" law should prevent her from profiting from the notoriety of her crime.  The law that was named after serial killer Sam Berkowitz prohibits convicted felons from cashing in on their dirty deeds. Will the law be enforceable and encompass Arias' immediate family members and friends? The Alexander has announced they will bring a wrongful death suit against Arias now that the criminal trial is concluding. I can't imagine they would have any problem winning any civil trial, which should put an end to any additional money making schemes Arias may have in the future.

Jodi Arias has been creative in the way she has utilized people on the outside to further her own agenda and spread her thoughts a la Twitter and on a website that features and sells her artwork. Will she find a way around this law as well? If there's a will, there's a way - as far as Jodi Arias is concerned, I wouldn't be surprised if she found a loophole to shimmy through. After viewing a good portion of her post-verdict interview with Fox affiliate KSAZ's Troy Hayden, a few things stood out. Number one, just minutes after the guilty verdict was read, Arias appeared to have makeup on, lip gloss and all. No evidence of tears or running mascara under her eyes. Number two, she continues to contend that Travis Alexander abused her, even after the jury rejected her claims. 

Number three, she clearly despises Juan Martinez. She called him "shady" and "a hypocritical liar", and accused him of hiding evidence that could have helped her case. Is she referring to the letters from Travis Alexander that were found to be forgeries? I can't imagine Juan Martinez would risk a potential mistrial or having a conviction overturned by "hiding evidence". The state had so much evidence of Arias' involvement and guilt, they didn't need to resort to hiding evidence. Arias acknowledged the public's perception of her was mostly negative, but blamed that on the public's need to persecute people. She says persecute, we say prosecute.

Troy Hayden asked her if she looked at Travis Alexander's siblings during the trial. She told him that she avoided eye contact with them, but not for the reasons you might expect (like guilt or sorrow). Instead, she told him she avoided eye contact with them because of the family resemblance they have to one another, "looking at them was like looking at the man who abused me", she said. Wow. No remorse for killing him or lying about things he allegedly did to her. 

When asked about her controversial use of Twitter, she admits it was her idea to begin the activity back in February. She though it was a good way to express her thoughts and ideas. That's funny, seems to me that half of her tweets were quoting somebody else's pearls of wisdom.  The only time Arias seemed to have a genuine moment of regret or sorrow was when she was asked about her mother Sandy's attendance throughout her trial. She covered her face and began to cry and had a difficult time speaking. After composing herself, she said of her mother "I don't deserve her" and "I haven't treated her well". This is the only emotion I've seen in her that is appropriate and real, she said she feels bad for her entire family.

In an ironic moment, Arias adamantly denied Martinez's allegations about her desire to be in the media; as she sat before a camera crew - only minutes after becoming a convicted murderer. Now I've heard it all. I find myself trying to find some reason to cut Jodi Arias a break and try to empathize with what she must be going through right now. Her behavior doesn't allow me to feel anything for her. I'm glad that she will be held accountable for the life that she took. This is not a happy moment. It will always be a tragedy for both families, neither of which will ever be the same again. I wonder if Jodi Arias will ever tell the truth about what happened that night, and will she ever admit to the lies that she's told on the witness stand?

If Arias is sentenced to death, will she take these secrets to her grave? I've heard that prison tends to bring people closer to God. Many inmates have found religion as their only comfort when confronting a life behind bars, and it sometimes compels them to finally be honest about their crimes. Even the infamous Aileen Wuornos came clean and told the world that she hadn't killed in self defense as she claimed throughout her trials. In a statement to the court, Wuornos said she "wanted to get things right with God".

This story is far from over! Have a fantastic weekend.

Justice Delayed - The Jodi Arias Murder Trial

Following Wednesday's guilty verdict in the Jodi Arias murder trial, it seems fitting in proceedings full of drama and innuendo have more twists and turns as Thursday's aggravation phase was delayed for reasons unknown. It is believed that Arias' statements to Fox affiliate KSAZ about her preference of death to life in prison without the possibility for parole prompted jail officials to admit Arias to the prison's psychiatric ward for observation, "suicide watch". She has called the Estrella jail home since being extradited to Phoenix from Northern California back in September of 2008, before being moved Thursday to the Buckeye Rd. building that houses the psych ward.

Once again, Arias' shenanigans are causing delays in the judicial proceedings. She reportedly suffers from headaches and has been caught on camera taking her Immitrix throughout the trial. Her defiance and shock over the guilty verdict are not surprising after getting to know Jodi Arias through her jailhouse tweets and media interviews. This is a woman who shows no remorse for killing another human being. Near the end of her death penalty trial, she tweeted complaints about not receiving her commissary order, comparing it to awakening on Christmas day to no gifts! Does this seem like a woman who grasps the reality of the situation she faces? It's almost as if it's somebody else's reality, not hers. It's par for the course with Jodi Arias.  

Due to scheduling conflicts with key prosecution witness Dr. Kevin Horn, the aggravation phase of the trial is expected to resume on Wednesday at 10:00AM PST, barring any further delays or bomb threats! Speaking of Thursday's bomb threat, a suspect has been detained for questioning by the Phoenix police department. I am not aware of the suspect's name, but a search of the suspect's hotel room revealed bullets - no gun, or explosives but bullets would seem to be an odd accessory to bring to a hotel room. It's not something that I pack in my travel bag.  I'd be very curious to know where this person was when Dr. Janeen DeMarte's home was broken into and her laptop containing Arias' psychological reports was stolen.

When the verdict was read on Wednesday, the hundreds of people gathered outside of the courthouse erupted in cheers and tears. There were people who traveled from all over the country in order to support Travis Alexander and his family and who just wanted to be there when the verdict was read. Jodi Arias has her own group of supporters as well. As you all know, there are websites dedicated to selling Jodi Arias "original" (and I use that term loosely) artwork and that take donations to support Arias' jailhouse snack and vanity needs as well as her family's travel expenses. The site that proudly claims to be "The #1 Jodi Arias support site" has some sickening and very disturbing things posted there today. I've only visited this site three times - each time out of pure curiosity, but what I saw there today angered and sickened me to a whole new level.  Freedom of speech would likely prohibit any of us from doing anything to get this garbage taken down or curb the distasteful content of the site. The website owner refuses to accept comments from "the haters" who don't agree with their agenda. He/she refers to supporters of Travis Alexander as "haters and pedo-huggers".

What I saw today was so disturbing. The author posted a rant that people like Travis (pedophiles) should not be able to reproduce. There is a photograph posted on that site that is guaranteed to infuriate you - I was hesitant to post it here, but since we started this journey together I feel I need to share it with this forum. To me, this is worse than the crime scene photos and takes distasteful to a level I've never seen - the caption to this photo says "Justice for Travis has long been served and here's the proof":

Photo From JodiAriasIsInnocent.com's website

I don't even know what to say about the statements being posted on that website. It states "Let this be a warning to any other self-righteous bastards that think they can verbally and physically abuse women and get away with it". These are the kind of people who support and believe in Jodi Arias. Who would post such a photo, of a murder victim in a body bag? I can't vouch for the authenticity of this photo, could be a fraudulent or tampered with photograph, but I think we can all agree it takes disrespectful to levels unseen. I have nothing further to say about the incredulous articles posted on that website about the murder victim, the prosecutor, Detective Flores, HLN News and anybody else who dare to shine a negative light on Jodi Arias. Jodi Arias reportedly has no access to the internet. We do know that she regularly tweets through friend Donovan Bering, and there is somebody out there who posts messages on the website dedicated to selling her artwork. I've seen messages from Arias thanking someone she refers to as either SJ or RJ - I believe this is the person who maintains this main website. 

IF Jodi Arias is aware of the material that is being posted on this website, it shows how little respect she really has/had for Travis Alexander, his family and his friends. I believe her jealousy over the very people Travis loved and cared for has turned to bitterness and anger. This has only escalated as the jury rejected her self-defense and abuse claims. The depths to which these people have stooped to is incomprehensible. I did not post this photo for shock value or to inflame people. I am saddened and angry to see something like this out there on the internet. Killing somebody is not something to be proud of, yet this site seems to be thanking Arias for her sinful deeds.

I have only one more thing to say. Jodi Arias may have managed to delay the aggravation phase of her trial for a few days, but make no mistake - the trial will go on. She has been found guilty of first degree murder. Barring some unseen judicial snafu or blatant trial error she will be sentenced. It's too late for an insanity plea.  It seems that Arias is still unwilling to accept any responsibility for her crime and is trying to delay her punishment for as long as she can. Even if she has no remorse for what she has done, you would think as a human being, she would still have some respect for the family and for the deceased. Her behavior doesn't correspond with the deeply religious person she wants us to believe she is. 

The jury has spoken and the guilty verdict is a reflection that Arias' claims about abuse and sexual deviancy were rejected by these 12 jurors. Her post-verdict behavior in giving a media interview only furthers my belief that she is a true sociopath. I truly think she believed her testimony would minimize her  punishment and set her free. As I've been saying since my initial posts back in November and December of 2012, Jodi Arias has underestimated the jurors who will hear her case while overestimating her own charm and intelligence. 

That's all for now, enjoy your weekend!