What Jodi Arias Doesn't Want The Jury To Know......

As her re-trial of the penalty phase approaches, Jodi Arias has filed a slew of Motions aimed at ensuring the new jury doesn't know what she's been up to during her incarceration.  I'm sure there are MANY things she doesn't want the jury to know - and I suspect this is why Arias has proclaimed herself as going "radio-silent" in a recent tweet to supporters.

Two Motions filed recently asked Judge Sherry Stephens prevent her new jury from hearing about her many attempts to fire attorney Kirk Nurmi and she doesn't want them to hear about a statement from a former cellmate that she wanted to kill prosecutor Juan Martinez. One of the Motions states that one or both of her attorneys will need to withdraw from her case if the jury hears how she really feels about Kirk Nurmi's trial performance.  If you recall, shortly after her guilty verdict Arias delivered a 15 page hand written letter to Judge Stephens requesting Nurmi be fired as her attorney, citing his "utter poverty of people skills" and because she didn't feel he liked her.  The Motion claims this information would unfairly prejudice the jury against her.

In this Motion, "Ms. Arias draws the Court's attention to this rule because if she claims and/or assertions contained in Ms. Arias' Change of Counsel are somehow deemed relevant and in turn admissible, both of Ms. Arias' attorneys would then become witness as they would then have relevant perspective on the claims and/or assertions Ms. Arias' made in this Motion", the Motion states. "Thus, both of Ms. Arias' attorneys would be ethically bound to withdraw.  This withdrawal would then interfere with rights due to Ms. Arias"....The Motion then points out that Judge Stephens previously agreed to suppress information back in 2011 when Arias asked the Court to RETAIN Kirk Nurmi, and references a letter sent to the Court from Sandy Arias which supported her daughter's contentions.  Make up your mind would you?  It seems to me that Arias has argued both sides of this coin, keep Kirk Nurmi on my case or you are violating my rights to a fair trial - then, remove Kirk Nurmi from my case or you are violating my rights to a fair trial.  What's really going on here?

I personally feel that Nurmi, at some point became so disgusted with his client's outrageous diva-like behavior that he could barely contain himself.  Couple that with losing at trial, at times battling Juan Martinez as if it were personal - add that with a client who refused to keep her trap shut and stay off the 6 o'clock news, and I'd say he probably has just had it with Arias.  Does Nurmi really believe that Arias killed Travis Alexander in self defense? Does he really believe Travis did half of the things Jodi Arias said he did?  I get the sense that he didn't, but he did what defense attorneys do. He tried to defend someone who really had no legitimate defense. Someone who lied, and lied and lied. Someone who gave interviews against her attorneys advice and was communicating with the potential jury pool and the world through her outrageous tweets from jail.  Someone who didn't appear remorseful. How do defense attorneys deal with clients like Jodi Arias?

I can't say I liked Kirk Nurmi's trial strategy.  How do you defend a woman who stabbed a man 30 times, slit his throat and shot him in the face? Self defense was really a stretch to begin with, and given the fact that Arias seemed to have staged a burglary to obtain the handgun police believe was used to shoot Travis, and given the fact that Jodi Arias just kept on driving to Utah after committing such a heinous act and had no real injuries to her person, people who are forced to kill in self defense just don't behave in the way she behaved.  This would have been a near impossible case for anybody to defend, but the way they went after the victim was truly one of the most despicable defenses ever launched in a courtroom.  Just disgusting, desperate and outright despicable.

How will Judge Stephens rule on these newest Motions?  It will be interesting to see but I'd expect her to be ultra conservative at this point.  The new jury will likely never get to hear about the behind bars antics of this convicted murderer.  The things Arias wants them to hear, maybe.  I'd expect Judge Stephens to disallow the statements from Arias' former cellmate from ever being heard by this jury.  Maybe we'll be surprised and Arias' own tweets will be used against her.  That would be poetic justice.

**Update**

I was just reading that the re-trial has been delayed again! Apparently there is a scheduling conflict involving prosecutor Juan Martinez that is more aged that Jodi Arias' retrial! The Arizona Republic reported that Martinez is scheduled to begin another potential death penalty trial on May 12, 2014 - and that case will go first.  The trial is for a man charged with killing a police officer in 2007.  This is starting to feel like the Twilight Zone.  Will the Alexander family ever see Jodi Arias face justice for killing their brother? It's unbelievable how long it takes for a murder case to even GET to the trial stage, but in the case of Jodi Arias what really struck me is the delays AFTER the verdict.  Seems to me that Judge Stephens originally set a date in July of 2013 to begin the penalty phase re-trial. Had they even come close to staying on schedule, she'd be tucked away in prison already.