Tomorrow murder defendant Jodi Arias will be back on the witness stand, while Prosecutor Juan Martinez continues his cross examination of the 32 year old woman standing trial for first degree murder for killing ex-boyfriend Travis Alexander on June 4, 2008.
Martinez has only just begun his cross examination of Arias, who testified in her own defense for 7 days and her statements went mostly uncontested. The prosecutor came out swinging, and has already started to tear apart some of the more hideous of allegations Arias has made about Travis Alexander including the allegation that she walked in on Alexander "pleasuring himself" to the photo of a 5-6 year old boy on January 21, 2008. According to her testimony, following that alleged incident, Travis Alexander became increasingly aggressive and physical with her and on January 22, 2008 he "body slammed" her to the ground, kicked her in the ribs and left finger.
In a dramatic moment during the trial, Arias raised her left hand and displayed a visibly bent left ring finger for the jury. She claims this finger was broken when she raised her hand to defend her face from Travis Alexander's foot - she claims he kicked her. Juan Martinez has produced photos of Arias and her sister Angela in which her left hand is prominently displayed around the shoulder of her sister, and the finger appears completely normal - not disfigured as it appeared when she raised it for the jury during her direct examination.
In addition, Martinez produced entries from Arias's own journal or diary from this crucial time period. She writes "I haven't written because there is nothing noteworthy to report" - the entry is from January 24, 2008. Wouldn't be getting body slammed and kicked in the ribs and hand be "noteworthy"? And more importantly, IF she had truly caught Mr. Alexander in that compromising position on January 21, 2008 I believe she would have written something about that. Her explanation has been that she never would have written about the violence or what she saw Travis doing because she wanted to protect his reputation. Is the jury buying this story? Martinez is doing a good job so far in providing actual phone records that do not match Arias's account for January 21 when she claims he was calling her frantically, and she didn't answer those calls. He is showing that the likelihood of these events having happened seems little to none. The phone records don't support it, the text messages between the pair don't support her story and her own diary entries don't support it.
If the jury decides that Jodi Arias made these horrible stories up, how badly will they punish her? If these stories aren't true, what - if any part of her testimony can be believed? I think Ms. Arias is in big trouble and will have a difficult time wiggling out of the questions that are coming next week. I know I may sound very opinionated against Jodi Arias, and I'm really trying to be objective here, but I just didn't find her to be credible before the trial, and even less credible after her testimony. If she fabricated these stories about this 30 year old man, somebody who is not here to defend himself - and she is alleging just about the worst thing she could allege about a person, she'll get what's coming to her. Talk about adding insult to injury. Juries do not like feeling like they have been duped, and they are not stupid.
I've heard so many comparisons to the Casey Anthony case and what the jury decided on her case. The only thing this case has in common is the defendants are young, attractive and liars. The State of Florida couldn't say how little Caylee died, so it was very difficult to prove she was murdered, and how. This case doesn't have those problems. I don't believe Jodi Arias would have admitted to this killing, had it not been for those recovered photos and the bloody palm print that she couldn't dispute. She's already admitted on the stand, that she came up with the "two masked intruder" story to try to match the evidence the police had. I believe she's had a lot of time in jail to do her research, look at the evidence and build her defense by adding whatever she believes can't be disproven by the State. Ah, think again Jodi. Martinez is a tough prosecutor, and I believe he will try to expose as many inconsistencies as he has time to find.
The photo of Travis Alexander's closet is very telling. He was very neat, everything was arranged just so. Yet she expects the jury to believe that while being chased in a relatively small area, she had time to go into that closet, and somehow climb onto a step ladder or a shelf to grab a gun on a top shelf? Nothing was disturbed in that closet! Unless she took the time to straighten it up before she left, it's another thing that doesn't fit. She also described Travis as "chasing her", and when they ended up back in the bathroom where the fight originated, he grabbed her by the waist - taking a "linebacker" stance - (this she seems to clearly remember), and at this point they would've had to be close if he had her by the waist - and she held the gun up with both hands and pointed it at him. Wouldn't that have been right in his face?? The medical examiner stated this wasn't a point blank range gunshot wound, likely she was standing above him. I don't know how long Travis's arms are, but again - her story doesn't make sense.
She said after she shot him, "he kept coming" at her and screamed "I'm going to kill you b****". Would a person who was just shot in the head be able to speak, and continue pursing her? Doubtful. She testified that she wasn't even aware the shot hit him. If Travis was shot first, his head would've been bleeding quite a bit. She testified that he got on top of her, "he was a wrestler in high school", and this terrified her because she couldn't get out from underneath him. People who are lying tend to add a lot of detail, such as the high school wrestler comment. If he was on top of her, his head would've been dripping blood all over her. There's no way she didn't know she shot him, that is IF he was alive when she shot him, as she claims. This is all about that aggravating factor - that's why she has to insist the shot came first.
I realize people can black out, and they can block out things that are very traumatic for them. But since Arias remembers the smallest of details prior to, and immediately after killing him, it just seems to be too convenient and unlikely that she wouldn't remember pushing a knife with force into a human body, 27-29 times. And don't get me started about slicing his throat. That had to have been hard to do, yet she did it - and doesn't remember it. Convenient. I wish Travis Alexander were here to tell that jury how it made him feel when Jodi Arias was plunging that knife into his chest over and over and over. We've had to listen to Nurmi asking Arias "how did it make you feel when Travis said this..."
Lastly - the big surprise of the day last Thursday were definitely the magazines that had the messages, written in pencil and in code that Arias tried to get out to somebody during a jailhouse visit. This is the first I've heard of the magazines, and it was quite a moment when Juan Martinez had Jodi Arias read each sentence separately - and then together. They made sense when you put it all together, and seemed to point to Arias trying to have somebody alter their testimony to fit what she had been telling her attorneys for the last year. Wow, talk about a catch! Thank you for all the great comments. I really enjoy reading them and talking to others about this case! Can't wait to see what happens tomorrow and next week. This trial has been full of drama, and surprises. Have a great weekend!
MY CRIMETIME BY MY FORTE. A DISCUSSION OF MURDERS IN THE NEWS.
Arias Tripped Up During Cross Examination
Prosecutor Juan Martinez is hammering away at key issues that Jodi Arias testified about, and he's doing a pretty good job discrediting her story about walking in on Travis Alexander "pleasuring himself" to photos of young boys on January 21, 2008. She claims this happened at some point during the afternoon, after she got off from her shift at Mimi's Cafe - she couldn't recall what time she worked that day, what time she got off, or what time she arrived at Travis Alexander's home that day. She went there to help him put away some boxes in the attic. She says he gave her a little angel statue that day.
She testified that when she left that day, she forgot the angel - when she returned to his house to get it, she claims that she walked in on him "pleasuring himself" to a photo of little boys. Her testimony was one of the most dramatic points in the trial - and much was made about how upsetting this was to her, and it's been a central theme throughout this trial. She claims that after catching Travis in this act, she left the house and was so upset that she drove home and threw up in the bathroom. She then left her house and drove around aimlessly - and she claims Travis called her numerous times trying to reach her to explain what she had just walked in on. She testified in great detail about how awful this event was, and how it scared her. Prosecutor Juan Martinez has just about proven that it never even happened. I'm not at all surprised it never happened, but I am surprised at how he's put together the real physical evidence that seems to point to this being a complete and total fabrication.
Martinez and Arias were nearly sparring today. She was defiant, wouldn't answer his question directly with a "yes" or "no" answer - and they argued each and every point. What he ultimately showed the jury, through phone records, text messages between Jodi and Travis - is that IF this had really happened, neither of them acknowledged anything had happened, and her timeline of when this supposedly happened doesn't fit with the actual phone and text message time lines. Earlier today, Martinez highlighted Arias's 1/24/08 diary or journal entry in which Arias wrote "I haven't written in a while because nothing noteworthy to report". This was just 2 days after Travis supposedly body slammed her, threw her to the ground and kicked her in the ribs and broke her left ring finger (1/22/08) and 3 days after she supposedly walked in on Travis "in the act" of pleasuring himself. If those events are not noteworthy, I don't know what is!
HMurder defendant Jodi Arias has been on the witness stand for a little more than an hour this morning, but Prosecutor Juan Martinez has already began to dig in and bring up the inconsistencies from her (direct) testimony. The questioning has frequently been broken up with objections and sidebars, seemingly before each question Martinez asks. Arias appears somewhat nervous, as the prosecutor hammers away at her and she has no way to wiggle out of answering.
He has been able to bring out some major issues: "The finger" He entered a photo into evidence that was taken 5/15/08 of Jodi Arias with sister Angela. In the photo, Arias has her left arm around her sister and her left hand is very clearly depicted. There doesn't appear to be any abnormality in that left ring finger that she (dramatically) lifted up and showed the jury during her direct examination. When she showed the hand/finger to the jury under direct, she told a story about a January 21, 2008 fight that she had with Travis Alexander in which Alexander "body slammed" Arias in his bedroom, then kicked her in the ribs and kicked her raised hand - she claims he broke her finger during that incident. Her hand appears completely normal in the 5/15/08 photo. He also brought up the different accounts Arias gave to different people of what happened to that hand and finger.
Martinez is bringing out Jodi Arias's personal journals today. He hasn't been able to ask many questions so far, between the sidebars and time allowed for the defense attorneys and Jodi Arias to read and review the journal entries. It's been a painstakingly slow cross exam. They are in a lunch break now, however I think something major is coming with the next journal entry they all just reviewed. Juan Martinez previously referred to a journal entry written by Arias on 1/22/08, she wrote " I haven't written in a few days because there's nothing noteworthy to report". This was just 1 day after she supposedly had this physical fight with Alexander in which she alleged he kicked her in the ribs, body slammed her and ultimately kicked her in that left hand. Wouldn't she have written about something that frightening in her personal diary or journal? They have just reviewed her 1/24/08 entry. I believe Martinez is trying to impeach Arias's testimony about the violence she suffered at the hands of Travis Alexander and his alleged "deviant" behavior with her own journal.
As we all remember, one of the most shocking allegations Arias has made about Travis Alexander is that sometime in January of 2008, she walked into Travis Alexander's home to find him "pleasuring himself" on his bed - she claims he had photos of 5-6 year old boys on the bed with him. I believe Martinez has cross checked these incidents with entries made in Arias's personal journals. Arias claims she never told family or friends about Travis's violence or any of the sexual "deviance" she so blantantly discussed during this trial because she was trying to protect his dignity and his reputation. That may be believable, but diaries and journals are private by nature. We write things in our diaries that we do not expect anyone else to ever read. Wouldn't she have made some notation of these incidents in her own personal diary? We've only seen one diary entry so far, but there was nothing whatsoever about the alleged January 21, 2008 "body slam, kick to the ribs and broken finger" fight that she tearfully recounted to this jury!
Wow, I cannot wait to hear more. Martinez is fired up. The defense team is doing their best to break his stride, objecting frequently and causing numerous sidebars. I hope this pace doesn't continue throughout the cross. Martinez limited his objections, and let the defendant tell her story with minimum interruptions when the defense was doing the questioning. She was allowed to "tell her story". I'm hoping Judge Stephens gives Martinez the same latitude she gave Kirk Nurmi & Jodi Arias. The flow has been so slow so far, and I really want to hear Martinez question Arias without the interruptions and sidebars that have plagued the first 2 hours of the cross.
Another thing I've noticed, much more today than in the past: Jodi Arias removes or lowers those eyeglasses when she reads documents! Are those eyeglasses just props for the trial? We haven't seen Jodi Arias in eyeglasses in any of her MySpace photos, or any other personal photos we have seen so far. I think this was part of the "Transformation of Jodi Arias" that I wrote about a few weeks ago. Purely for looks - in an effort to tone down her looks, make her look innocent and intelligent. Although Jodi Arias was a high school dropout (she got her GED during her time in jail), she is a very intelligent and articulate woman. For all of us who have been biting our tongue as Arias ranted for 7 days, without challenge - our time has come. Jodi Arias is now on the hot seat and it's been a long time coming. I honestly don't have anything against Jodi Arias. I just don't like liars, and I don't like it when people make hideous things up about somebody who isn't around to defend themselves. That's what I don't like about this defendant.
Her memory has been extraordinary, until now...she recalled things that happened years ago in great detail during her earlier testimony, yet now she is plagued with lack of memory, "I don't recall" has been her answer to many of Martinez's questions. If Juan Martinez is able to discredit her story in which she walks in on Travis looking at the pictures of little boys, I think much of Arias's testimony will be shot. If she's willing to fabricate something so distasteful about a person she supposedly loved - what part of her story can be believed? Only the jury can judge Arias in the end. The journal may not be absolute proof that she made these stories about him up, but if he is able to show that she made no mention in the diary, the journal, in any text message or e-mail to Travis or anybody else - than all we have to go on is Jodi Arias's word. I don't think it will be enough. Look for updates later today!
Juan Martinez has absolutely drilled away at Jodi Arias on this first day, and some have criticized his line of questioning by saying he was all over the place and not focused - but he eventually got where he needed to be. He's tripped her up in her own lies. Didn't she realize there would be records of the calls between her and Travis, and there would be copies of their text message conversations? Jodi Arias couldn't recall the exact time she walked in on Travis - all she could say is that it was in the afternoon. She said he called her repeatedly afterwards, but she didn't answer. She eventually returned his call but it was later. Martinez showed the jury the text messages between Jodi and Travis from 1/21/08 - their conversation was around them swapping automobiles. Not sure why they were going to swap cars, but by the text messages it appears Travis got a ride from a friend to attend a "family home meeting" that night - those normally begin at 7:00PM.
6:48PM JA sends text "can we swap cars before FHE?"
7:20PM JA sends text "never mind"
7:24PM TA sends text "I got a ride from some peeps in the ward, now you can just go get it and let me know when exchange is done"
7:29PM JA sends text "I'm almost asleep ZZZZZZ"
There is absolutely no discussion that would lead us to believe anything at all out of the ordinary happened that day. Martinez also challenged Arias on the point that she said he called her repeatedly after she left his home. There were 5 calls from Travis to Jodi on 1/21/08, and 5 calls from Jodi to Travis on 1/21/08. He had the times of each call - Arias was clearly getting rattled, you could see her trying to think of what she could say. She mentioned that Travis also had a "land line" that he often times called her on. She testified that after going home and throwing up, she drove around for a long time before ending up at the "Visitor Center", which I believe is a Mormon Visiting Center. She says she sat there and cried that day. Yet the text messages show she was asleep, or was nearly asleep when a text message or phone call woke her up. This was around 7:30PM. Travis would've been at that Family Home Meeting.
While none of this absolutely proves that event didn't happen, it makes it look very unlikely that it did. The phone records, the text messages, her journal and diary - all of those things directly contradict something as outrageously major as that happening on January 21, 2008. It looks to me like it was an ordinary day for both of them. Court is on break right now, but I wanted to update this page again because there is so much happening.
After the afternoon break, the sparring continued - with Arias coming back at Juan Martinez with some sarcastic remarks of her own. When asked again about her selective memory, Arias said something like "yes, when men like you and Travis are yelling and screaming at me, my brain gets scrambled". To that, Prosecutor Martinez said "so it's the Courts fault, MY fault that you can't remember things?". Some of the TV commentators questioned whether Martinez is going too far, if he should go easier on Arias because she is a woman. To that, I say - we should all be treated equally. He is coming at her hard for many reasons. That's the way Juan Martinez prosecutes cases, and Arias has been on the stand for 7 days, telling what he believes to be outright lies. It's his job to prove the State's case, and if she is lying, he's going to try to trip her up.
Near the end of the day, Martinez entered two magazines into evidence. The magazines were apparently subscriptions Jodi Arias received while in jail. They both had her name and address on the label - one was a photography magazine and the other a entertainment magazine. In August of 2011 during a visitation with somebody named Ann Campbell, Jodi Arias requested that the magazines be given to Campbell, her visitor. The jail has a process for releasing any article from an inmate to a visitor - it goes through a rigorous screening process, and these magazines were not given to the guest.
Inside the magazines, there were cryptic notes written in pencil. The writing was deep in the pages, near the binding - to remain hidden from jail staff, presumably. There were several sentences and/or phrases on a dozen different pages. If you were to read just one, it may not have meaning but in their totality, they had a message from Jodi Arias. I wasn't able to write down the exact message in time, but it said something like "what you told my attorney contradicts what I've been saying for over a year...get down here ASAP before you talk to them again. Interview was excellent. We can fix this". WOW - what was THAT all about? Seems as if Jodi Arias may have been trying to get a witness to change their statement and/or their testimony? Martinez had Jodi Arias read the writing on each page, separately - and then he had her read the entire thing, put together. Although they haven't yet elaborated on what that cryptic message was, or who the ultimate recipient was supposed to be, a message being smuggled out of jail can never be a good thing for a defendant who already has credibility problems.
This has been one of the most dramatic and riveting trials I've ever viewed. They couldn't write drama this compelling. It's just a tragedy that this really happened.
She testified that when she left that day, she forgot the angel - when she returned to his house to get it, she claims that she walked in on him "pleasuring himself" to a photo of little boys. Her testimony was one of the most dramatic points in the trial - and much was made about how upsetting this was to her, and it's been a central theme throughout this trial. She claims that after catching Travis in this act, she left the house and was so upset that she drove home and threw up in the bathroom. She then left her house and drove around aimlessly - and she claims Travis called her numerous times trying to reach her to explain what she had just walked in on. She testified in great detail about how awful this event was, and how it scared her. Prosecutor Juan Martinez has just about proven that it never even happened. I'm not at all surprised it never happened, but I am surprised at how he's put together the real physical evidence that seems to point to this being a complete and total fabrication.
Martinez and Arias were nearly sparring today. She was defiant, wouldn't answer his question directly with a "yes" or "no" answer - and they argued each and every point. What he ultimately showed the jury, through phone records, text messages between Jodi and Travis - is that IF this had really happened, neither of them acknowledged anything had happened, and her timeline of when this supposedly happened doesn't fit with the actual phone and text message time lines. Earlier today, Martinez highlighted Arias's 1/24/08 diary or journal entry in which Arias wrote "I haven't written in a while because nothing noteworthy to report". This was just 2 days after Travis supposedly body slammed her, threw her to the ground and kicked her in the ribs and broke her left ring finger (1/22/08) and 3 days after she supposedly walked in on Travis "in the act" of pleasuring himself. If those events are not noteworthy, I don't know what is!
HMurder defendant Jodi Arias has been on the witness stand for a little more than an hour this morning, but Prosecutor Juan Martinez has already began to dig in and bring up the inconsistencies from her (direct) testimony. The questioning has frequently been broken up with objections and sidebars, seemingly before each question Martinez asks. Arias appears somewhat nervous, as the prosecutor hammers away at her and she has no way to wiggle out of answering.
He has been able to bring out some major issues: "The finger" He entered a photo into evidence that was taken 5/15/08 of Jodi Arias with sister Angela. In the photo, Arias has her left arm around her sister and her left hand is very clearly depicted. There doesn't appear to be any abnormality in that left ring finger that she (dramatically) lifted up and showed the jury during her direct examination. When she showed the hand/finger to the jury under direct, she told a story about a January 21, 2008 fight that she had with Travis Alexander in which Alexander "body slammed" Arias in his bedroom, then kicked her in the ribs and kicked her raised hand - she claims he broke her finger during that incident. Her hand appears completely normal in the 5/15/08 photo. He also brought up the different accounts Arias gave to different people of what happened to that hand and finger.
Martinez is bringing out Jodi Arias's personal journals today. He hasn't been able to ask many questions so far, between the sidebars and time allowed for the defense attorneys and Jodi Arias to read and review the journal entries. It's been a painstakingly slow cross exam. They are in a lunch break now, however I think something major is coming with the next journal entry they all just reviewed. Juan Martinez previously referred to a journal entry written by Arias on 1/22/08, she wrote " I haven't written in a few days because there's nothing noteworthy to report". This was just 1 day after she supposedly had this physical fight with Alexander in which she alleged he kicked her in the ribs, body slammed her and ultimately kicked her in that left hand. Wouldn't she have written about something that frightening in her personal diary or journal? They have just reviewed her 1/24/08 entry. I believe Martinez is trying to impeach Arias's testimony about the violence she suffered at the hands of Travis Alexander and his alleged "deviant" behavior with her own journal.
As we all remember, one of the most shocking allegations Arias has made about Travis Alexander is that sometime in January of 2008, she walked into Travis Alexander's home to find him "pleasuring himself" on his bed - she claims he had photos of 5-6 year old boys on the bed with him. I believe Martinez has cross checked these incidents with entries made in Arias's personal journals. Arias claims she never told family or friends about Travis's violence or any of the sexual "deviance" she so blantantly discussed during this trial because she was trying to protect his dignity and his reputation. That may be believable, but diaries and journals are private by nature. We write things in our diaries that we do not expect anyone else to ever read. Wouldn't she have made some notation of these incidents in her own personal diary? We've only seen one diary entry so far, but there was nothing whatsoever about the alleged January 21, 2008 "body slam, kick to the ribs and broken finger" fight that she tearfully recounted to this jury!
Wow, I cannot wait to hear more. Martinez is fired up. The defense team is doing their best to break his stride, objecting frequently and causing numerous sidebars. I hope this pace doesn't continue throughout the cross. Martinez limited his objections, and let the defendant tell her story with minimum interruptions when the defense was doing the questioning. She was allowed to "tell her story". I'm hoping Judge Stephens gives Martinez the same latitude she gave Kirk Nurmi & Jodi Arias. The flow has been so slow so far, and I really want to hear Martinez question Arias without the interruptions and sidebars that have plagued the first 2 hours of the cross.
Another thing I've noticed, much more today than in the past: Jodi Arias removes or lowers those eyeglasses when she reads documents! Are those eyeglasses just props for the trial? We haven't seen Jodi Arias in eyeglasses in any of her MySpace photos, or any other personal photos we have seen so far. I think this was part of the "Transformation of Jodi Arias" that I wrote about a few weeks ago. Purely for looks - in an effort to tone down her looks, make her look innocent and intelligent. Although Jodi Arias was a high school dropout (she got her GED during her time in jail), she is a very intelligent and articulate woman. For all of us who have been biting our tongue as Arias ranted for 7 days, without challenge - our time has come. Jodi Arias is now on the hot seat and it's been a long time coming. I honestly don't have anything against Jodi Arias. I just don't like liars, and I don't like it when people make hideous things up about somebody who isn't around to defend themselves. That's what I don't like about this defendant.
Her memory has been extraordinary, until now...she recalled things that happened years ago in great detail during her earlier testimony, yet now she is plagued with lack of memory, "I don't recall" has been her answer to many of Martinez's questions. If Juan Martinez is able to discredit her story in which she walks in on Travis looking at the pictures of little boys, I think much of Arias's testimony will be shot. If she's willing to fabricate something so distasteful about a person she supposedly loved - what part of her story can be believed? Only the jury can judge Arias in the end. The journal may not be absolute proof that she made these stories about him up, but if he is able to show that she made no mention in the diary, the journal, in any text message or e-mail to Travis or anybody else - than all we have to go on is Jodi Arias's word. I don't think it will be enough. Look for updates later today!
Juan Martinez has absolutely drilled away at Jodi Arias on this first day, and some have criticized his line of questioning by saying he was all over the place and not focused - but he eventually got where he needed to be. He's tripped her up in her own lies. Didn't she realize there would be records of the calls between her and Travis, and there would be copies of their text message conversations? Jodi Arias couldn't recall the exact time she walked in on Travis - all she could say is that it was in the afternoon. She said he called her repeatedly afterwards, but she didn't answer. She eventually returned his call but it was later. Martinez showed the jury the text messages between Jodi and Travis from 1/21/08 - their conversation was around them swapping automobiles. Not sure why they were going to swap cars, but by the text messages it appears Travis got a ride from a friend to attend a "family home meeting" that night - those normally begin at 7:00PM.
6:48PM JA sends text "can we swap cars before FHE?"
7:20PM JA sends text "never mind"
7:24PM TA sends text "I got a ride from some peeps in the ward, now you can just go get it and let me know when exchange is done"
7:29PM JA sends text "I'm almost asleep ZZZZZZ"
There is absolutely no discussion that would lead us to believe anything at all out of the ordinary happened that day. Martinez also challenged Arias on the point that she said he called her repeatedly after she left his home. There were 5 calls from Travis to Jodi on 1/21/08, and 5 calls from Jodi to Travis on 1/21/08. He had the times of each call - Arias was clearly getting rattled, you could see her trying to think of what she could say. She mentioned that Travis also had a "land line" that he often times called her on. She testified that after going home and throwing up, she drove around for a long time before ending up at the "Visitor Center", which I believe is a Mormon Visiting Center. She says she sat there and cried that day. Yet the text messages show she was asleep, or was nearly asleep when a text message or phone call woke her up. This was around 7:30PM. Travis would've been at that Family Home Meeting.
While none of this absolutely proves that event didn't happen, it makes it look very unlikely that it did. The phone records, the text messages, her journal and diary - all of those things directly contradict something as outrageously major as that happening on January 21, 2008. It looks to me like it was an ordinary day for both of them. Court is on break right now, but I wanted to update this page again because there is so much happening.
After the afternoon break, the sparring continued - with Arias coming back at Juan Martinez with some sarcastic remarks of her own. When asked again about her selective memory, Arias said something like "yes, when men like you and Travis are yelling and screaming at me, my brain gets scrambled". To that, Prosecutor Martinez said "so it's the Courts fault, MY fault that you can't remember things?". Some of the TV commentators questioned whether Martinez is going too far, if he should go easier on Arias because she is a woman. To that, I say - we should all be treated equally. He is coming at her hard for many reasons. That's the way Juan Martinez prosecutes cases, and Arias has been on the stand for 7 days, telling what he believes to be outright lies. It's his job to prove the State's case, and if she is lying, he's going to try to trip her up.
Near the end of the day, Martinez entered two magazines into evidence. The magazines were apparently subscriptions Jodi Arias received while in jail. They both had her name and address on the label - one was a photography magazine and the other a entertainment magazine. In August of 2011 during a visitation with somebody named Ann Campbell, Jodi Arias requested that the magazines be given to Campbell, her visitor. The jail has a process for releasing any article from an inmate to a visitor - it goes through a rigorous screening process, and these magazines were not given to the guest.
Inside the magazines, there were cryptic notes written in pencil. The writing was deep in the pages, near the binding - to remain hidden from jail staff, presumably. There were several sentences and/or phrases on a dozen different pages. If you were to read just one, it may not have meaning but in their totality, they had a message from Jodi Arias. I wasn't able to write down the exact message in time, but it said something like "what you told my attorney contradicts what I've been saying for over a year...get down here ASAP before you talk to them again. Interview was excellent. We can fix this". WOW - what was THAT all about? Seems as if Jodi Arias may have been trying to get a witness to change their statement and/or their testimony? Martinez had Jodi Arias read the writing on each page, separately - and then he had her read the entire thing, put together. Although they haven't yet elaborated on what that cryptic message was, or who the ultimate recipient was supposed to be, a message being smuggled out of jail can never be a good thing for a defendant who already has credibility problems.
This has been one of the most dramatic and riveting trials I've ever viewed. They couldn't write drama this compelling. It's just a tragedy that this really happened.
Arias on the Hot Seat - Are Eyeglasses a "Prop"??
Murder defendant Jodi Arias has been on the witness stand for a little more than an hour this morning, but Prosecutor Juan Martinez has already began to dig in and bring up the inconsistencies from her (direct) testimony. The questioning has frequently been broken up with objections and sidebars, seemingly before each question Martinez asks. Arias appears somewhat nervous, as the prosecutor hammers away at her and she has no way to wiggle out of answering.
He has been able to bring out some major issues: "The finger" He entered a photo into evidence that was taken 5/15/08 of Jodi Arias with sister Angela. In the photo, Arias has her left arm around her sister and her left hand is very clearly depicted. There doesn't appear to be any abnormality in that left ring finger that she (dramatically) lifted up and showed the jury during her direct examination. When she showed the hand/finger to the jury under direct, she told a story about a January 21, 2008 fight that she had with Travis Alexander in which Alexander "body slammed" Arias in his bedroom, then kicked her in the ribs and kicked her raised hand - she claims he broke her finger during that incident. Her hand appears completely normal in the 5/15/08 photo. He also brought up the different accounts Arias gave to different people of what happened to that hand and finger.
Martinez is bringing out Jodi Arias's personal journals today. He hasn't been able to ask many questions so far, between the sidebars and time allowed for the defense attorneys and Jodi Arias to read and review the journal entries. It's been a painstakingly slow cross exam. They are in a lunch break now, however I think something major is coming with the next journal entry they all just reviewed. Juan Martinez previously referred to a journal entry written by Arias on 1/22/08, she wrote " I haven't written in a few days because there's nothing noteworthy to report". This was just 1 day after she supposedly had this physical fight with Alexander in which she alleged he kicked her in the ribs, body slammed her and ultimately kicked her in that left hand. Wouldn't she have written about something that frightening in her personal diary or journal? They have just reviewed her 1/24/08 entry. I believe Martinez is trying to impeach Arias's testimony about the violence she suffered at the hands of Travis Alexander and his alleged "deviant" behavior with her own journal.
As we all remember, one of the most shocking allegations Arias has made about Travis Alexander is that sometime in January of 2008, she walked into Travis Alexander's home to find him "pleasuring himself" on his bed - she claims he had photos of 5-6 year old boys on the bed with him. I believe Martinez has cross checked these incidents with entries made in Arias's personal journals. Arias claims she never told family or friends about Travis's violence or any of the sexual "deviance" she so blantantly discussed during this trial because she was trying to protect his dignity and his reputation. That may be believable, but diaries and journals are private by nature. We write things in our diaries that we do not expect anyone else to ever read. Wouldn't she have made some notation of these incidents in her own personal diary? We've only seen one diary entry so far, but there was nothing whatsoever about the alleged January 21, 2008 "body slam, kick to the ribs and broken finger" fight that she tearfully recounted to this jury!
Wow, I cannot wait to hear more. Martinez is fired up. The defense team is doing their best to break his stride, objecting frequently and causing numerous sidebars. I hope this pace doesn't continue throughout the cross. Martinez limited his objections, and let the defendant tell her story with minimum interruptions when the defense was doing the questioning. She was allowed to "tell her story". I'm hoping Judge Stephens gives Martinez the same latitude she gave Kirk Nurmi & Jodi Arias. The flow has been so slow so far, and I really want to hear Martinez question Arias without the interruptions and sidebars that have plagued the first 2 hours of the cross.
Another thing I've noticed, much more today than in the past: Jodi Arias removes or lowers those eyeglasses when she reads documents! Are those eyeglasses just props for the trial? We haven't seen Jodi Arias in eyeglasses in any of her MySpace photos, or any other personal photos we have seen so far. I think this was part of the "Transformation of Jodi Arias" that I wrote about a few weeks ago. Purely for looks - in an effort to tone down her looks, make her look innocent and intelligent. Although Jodi Arias was a high school dropout (she got her GED during her time in jail), she is a very intelligent and articulate woman. For all of us who have been biting our tongue as Arias ranted for 7 days, without challenge - our time has come. Jodi Arias is now on the hot seat and it's been a long time coming. I honestly don't have anything against Jodi Arias. I just don't like liars, and I don't like it when people make hideous things up about somebody who isn't around to defend themselves. That's what I don't like about this defendant.
Her memory has been extraordinary, until now...she recalled things that happened years ago in great detail during her earlier testimony, yet now she is plagued with lack of memory, "I don't recall" has been her answer to many of Martinez's questions. If Juan Martinez is able to discredit her story in which she walks in on Travis looking at the pictures of little boys, I think much of Arias's testimony will be shot. If she's willing to fabricate something so distasteful about a person she supposedly loved - what part of her story can be believed? Only the jury can judge Arias in the end. The journal may not be absolute proof that she made these stories about him up, but if he is able to show that she made no mention in the diary, the journal, in any text message or e-mail to Travis or anybody else - than all we have to go on is Jodi Arias's word. I don't think it will be enough. Look for updates later today!
He has been able to bring out some major issues: "The finger" He entered a photo into evidence that was taken 5/15/08 of Jodi Arias with sister Angela. In the photo, Arias has her left arm around her sister and her left hand is very clearly depicted. There doesn't appear to be any abnormality in that left ring finger that she (dramatically) lifted up and showed the jury during her direct examination. When she showed the hand/finger to the jury under direct, she told a story about a January 21, 2008 fight that she had with Travis Alexander in which Alexander "body slammed" Arias in his bedroom, then kicked her in the ribs and kicked her raised hand - she claims he broke her finger during that incident. Her hand appears completely normal in the 5/15/08 photo. He also brought up the different accounts Arias gave to different people of what happened to that hand and finger.
Martinez is bringing out Jodi Arias's personal journals today. He hasn't been able to ask many questions so far, between the sidebars and time allowed for the defense attorneys and Jodi Arias to read and review the journal entries. It's been a painstakingly slow cross exam. They are in a lunch break now, however I think something major is coming with the next journal entry they all just reviewed. Juan Martinez previously referred to a journal entry written by Arias on 1/22/08, she wrote " I haven't written in a few days because there's nothing noteworthy to report". This was just 1 day after she supposedly had this physical fight with Alexander in which she alleged he kicked her in the ribs, body slammed her and ultimately kicked her in that left hand. Wouldn't she have written about something that frightening in her personal diary or journal? They have just reviewed her 1/24/08 entry. I believe Martinez is trying to impeach Arias's testimony about the violence she suffered at the hands of Travis Alexander and his alleged "deviant" behavior with her own journal.
As we all remember, one of the most shocking allegations Arias has made about Travis Alexander is that sometime in January of 2008, she walked into Travis Alexander's home to find him "pleasuring himself" on his bed - she claims he had photos of 5-6 year old boys on the bed with him. I believe Martinez has cross checked these incidents with entries made in Arias's personal journals. Arias claims she never told family or friends about Travis's violence or any of the sexual "deviance" she so blantantly discussed during this trial because she was trying to protect his dignity and his reputation. That may be believable, but diaries and journals are private by nature. We write things in our diaries that we do not expect anyone else to ever read. Wouldn't she have made some notation of these incidents in her own personal diary? We've only seen one diary entry so far, but there was nothing whatsoever about the alleged January 21, 2008 "body slam, kick to the ribs and broken finger" fight that she tearfully recounted to this jury!
Wow, I cannot wait to hear more. Martinez is fired up. The defense team is doing their best to break his stride, objecting frequently and causing numerous sidebars. I hope this pace doesn't continue throughout the cross. Martinez limited his objections, and let the defendant tell her story with minimum interruptions when the defense was doing the questioning. She was allowed to "tell her story". I'm hoping Judge Stephens gives Martinez the same latitude she gave Kirk Nurmi & Jodi Arias. The flow has been so slow so far, and I really want to hear Martinez question Arias without the interruptions and sidebars that have plagued the first 2 hours of the cross.
Another thing I've noticed, much more today than in the past: Jodi Arias removes or lowers those eyeglasses when she reads documents! Are those eyeglasses just props for the trial? We haven't seen Jodi Arias in eyeglasses in any of her MySpace photos, or any other personal photos we have seen so far. I think this was part of the "Transformation of Jodi Arias" that I wrote about a few weeks ago. Purely for looks - in an effort to tone down her looks, make her look innocent and intelligent. Although Jodi Arias was a high school dropout (she got her GED during her time in jail), she is a very intelligent and articulate woman. For all of us who have been biting our tongue as Arias ranted for 7 days, without challenge - our time has come. Jodi Arias is now on the hot seat and it's been a long time coming. I honestly don't have anything against Jodi Arias. I just don't like liars, and I don't like it when people make hideous things up about somebody who isn't around to defend themselves. That's what I don't like about this defendant.
Her memory has been extraordinary, until now...she recalled things that happened years ago in great detail during her earlier testimony, yet now she is plagued with lack of memory, "I don't recall" has been her answer to many of Martinez's questions. If Juan Martinez is able to discredit her story in which she walks in on Travis looking at the pictures of little boys, I think much of Arias's testimony will be shot. If she's willing to fabricate something so distasteful about a person she supposedly loved - what part of her story can be believed? Only the jury can judge Arias in the end. The journal may not be absolute proof that she made these stories about him up, but if he is able to show that she made no mention in the diary, the journal, in any text message or e-mail to Travis or anybody else - than all we have to go on is Jodi Arias's word. I don't think it will be enough. Look for updates later today!
Jodi Arias to be Cross Examined Today
Yesterday, defense attorney Kirk Nurmi concluded his direct examination of murder defendant Jodi Arias following 7 days of testimony from the now 32 year old Yreka woman who is on trial for the June 4, 2008 murder of ex boyfriend Travis Alexander. Arias testified in excruciating detail about her childhood years and her previous relationships with men, however her recollection of the actual killing of a man she claimed to have loved was very limited. Many have anticipated her memory may become cloudy around this day, but even I was surprised at how little time was devoted to the actual details around this brutal killing.
Arias has provided the most mundane details about things that occurred 20 years ago, yet when it came down to describing the events leading up the actual murder she claimed that she had no memory of stabbing Travis Alexander. She also claims that she didn't know the shot she fired, allegedly using the victims own gun had hit him. Travis Alexander was shot in the forehead. The medical examiner's report concluded that the gunshot more than likely was fired after the victim was already deceased. His body was so badly decomposed by the time it was discovered, it was hard to pinpoint what came first - the 29 stab wounds or the gun shot. His throat was slit from ear to ear. How could somebody not remember something so traumatic? This is a very convenient time to claim you had a blackout. We can't see the jury or their reactions as she was testifying, but I have to believe they were just as disappointed as the rest of us.
Travis's sister Samantha was openly sobbing as Arias testified about the struggle that ensued after Arias reportedly dropped Travis Alexander's camera. Arias would have us believe that Travis Alexander - a man who had so much to look forward to in life, set to leave on a trip he looked forward to enough to exercise and diet for 6 months prior, would get angry enough to threaten the life of Jodi Arias over dropping his camera? Obviously the camera didn't break! The XXX rated photos they took that day were recovered by the police, despite Arias's attempts to delete all photos and remove all evidence that she had been there on June 4. She probably would've testified that TRAVIS was the one who deleted the June 4 photos, except for the fact that photos taken of a dead or dying Travis Alexander were also deleted. It had to have been her.
Her memory comes back after she left the house, convenient. She doesn't remember taking the gun or rope with her as she left - but she had enough sense about her to dispose of the gun in the desert where it would never be recovered, and dispose of the rope in a dumpster in a different location. She had enough sense to know what she did was wrong, and admittedly took steps to begin covering her tracks. So many things that she said did not make sense, knowing what we now know. She is going to be subjected to what I believe will be one hell of a cross examination from Juan Martinez today. There are so many places where her story breaks down that I don't know where to begin. If you look only at the actual killing - her story doesn't hold water. The photo time stamps tell the real story. Travis was alive and looking very calm one minute, and less than 2 minutes later, he is bleeding from the chest and back - and on the ground, completely disabled if not dead.
I believe it would have been impossible to have happened the way she described. A fight of the "life or death" magnitude doesn't start and end the way it did in less than 2 minutes. None of Travis's family, friends or room mates believed Travis Alexander owned or kept a handgun at his home. If he did, what are the chances it was a .25 caliber? The same type that was taken from Arias's grandparents home a week earlier? I don't believe that was a coincidence. Even if you believe the gunshot did come first, would Travis have been able to continue his angry pursuit of Jodi Arias and keep "coming after her" as she described? I believe a person who had just been shot in the face would've been in such shock, she would've had ample opportunity to get the hell out of there - if that had been the way it happened. I doubt he would've posed any grave threat to her after being shot.
The crime scene evidence tells a much different story. Travis Alexander was likely stabbed several times while he was crouched down in the shower. He may have then gotten out of the shower and gone towards the sink - there, his throat was cut from ear to ear. This would've caused massive blood loss, and he may have stumbled into the bedroom and down the hall, where he fell to the floor and was shot in the face. This is what I believe happened. Why did Jodi Arias do this to him? There are many theories. Here's a plausible one. Arias knew Travis was leaving for Cancun at the end of the week. She testified that she believed Travis gave the other ticket to a friend's babysitter. This is the first we've heard about the babysitter. Apparently, Travis owed these friends money, and giving the babysitter the ticket would've been his way of repaying the friend. Doesn't make sense. I believe Jodi Arias knew, or became aware that Travis was taking Marie "Mimi" Hall on that trip. If she only recently found out, this would explain her need to go to Mesa before the trip. I believe this would have bothered her a great deal, regardless of what she is now saying.
From the start of this tragic story, I have believed the Cancun trip was a factor in this murder. The timing fits, the motive fits. Arias may have genuinely loved Travis Alexander, and she may have felt used for sex by him. Some of her testimony was believable, and I think she greatly regrets taking the actions that she took - now. But this killing was not in self defense, no matter how you slice it, even if you believe every word she has said. It doesn't meet the legal definition of self defense in the state of Arizona. If a person slaps you, you cannot shoot them. You can only use a like amount of force when defending yourself. This was not a fair fight. The gun is also a big issue. What really happened to the gun that was "stolen" from the Yreka home of her grandparents? Where is it? Why would somebody break into the home, and not take the piles of quarters that were directly above where the gun was kept? Why only take the .25 caliber, and not the other gun?
Apparently Arias believes as long as the police cannot prove that was the gun that was used in the course of the murder, the jury has to give her the benefit of the doubt. Another thing that bothers me - her loss of memory around the stabbing. She didn't just stab him once, twice or even five times. She stabbed him 29 times. That's alot of work. She had to be covered in Travis Alexander's blood. That's not something you could forget, even if you wanted to. She doesn't remember that, yet her memory comes back once she's out of the house and on her way to Utah. She never looked back, rather she started looking ahead at how she was going to rid herself of all evidence of being in Mesa Arizona. Just a partial list of things she cannot explain away:
The gun's origin
The origin of the knife
Why bring two 10 gallon gas cans, and fill them in CA where gas is expensive?
If she shot him first, she had time to run away after shooting him
She cleaned herself at the home, attempted to wipe away evidence
She deleted the photos
She took 16 minutes to listen to Travis's voicemail messages
She left a voicemail to the man she just murdered
She disposed of one of the murder weapons in the Nevada desert
She disposed of the rope in a dumpster in a separate location
She continued to Utah,was romantic with Ryan Burns
She was not injured - except for small cuts on her hand
She admitted to trying to cover up her involvement and throw the police off
This is just a partial list of the issues she did not adequately address. The defense took so much time trashing Travis Alexander and trying to portray Jodi Arias as the real victim - as if Travis had this coming to him. They spent 95% of her time on the stand making Travis Alexander look as deviant, mean, controlling and abusive as they possibly could. Building their defense out of the audio tape, and whatever text messages or e-mails Arias conveniently saved, yet they had no evidence to back up their claims that he was into little boys or that he ever hit or physically abused her. We are supposed to just take her at her word. When it came time to talk about the reason those jurors are sitting there, the actual killing - they glossed over it in 5 minutes time. I cannot believe how little was said about this brutal and heinous murder. This wasn't a one-gunshot killing, it had to have been rageful, bloody and horrifying for Travis Alexander. He was naked, relaxed and completely defenseless in the shower.
Maybe Travis wasn't the person his family and friends believed him to be. But nothing Jodi Arias alleged about him could justify her killing him in such a brutal manner. Self defense doesn't look the way this looked. This was a rage killing, pure and simple. Today, Jodi Arias will have to face the very tough cross examination from Prosecutor Juan Martinez - who has been patiently waiting for the last 7 days, taking notes and getting ready for his shot at her. You'll want to watch today's proceedings!
Arias has provided the most mundane details about things that occurred 20 years ago, yet when it came down to describing the events leading up the actual murder she claimed that she had no memory of stabbing Travis Alexander. She also claims that she didn't know the shot she fired, allegedly using the victims own gun had hit him. Travis Alexander was shot in the forehead. The medical examiner's report concluded that the gunshot more than likely was fired after the victim was already deceased. His body was so badly decomposed by the time it was discovered, it was hard to pinpoint what came first - the 29 stab wounds or the gun shot. His throat was slit from ear to ear. How could somebody not remember something so traumatic? This is a very convenient time to claim you had a blackout. We can't see the jury or their reactions as she was testifying, but I have to believe they were just as disappointed as the rest of us.
Travis's sister Samantha was openly sobbing as Arias testified about the struggle that ensued after Arias reportedly dropped Travis Alexander's camera. Arias would have us believe that Travis Alexander - a man who had so much to look forward to in life, set to leave on a trip he looked forward to enough to exercise and diet for 6 months prior, would get angry enough to threaten the life of Jodi Arias over dropping his camera? Obviously the camera didn't break! The XXX rated photos they took that day were recovered by the police, despite Arias's attempts to delete all photos and remove all evidence that she had been there on June 4. She probably would've testified that TRAVIS was the one who deleted the June 4 photos, except for the fact that photos taken of a dead or dying Travis Alexander were also deleted. It had to have been her.
Her memory comes back after she left the house, convenient. She doesn't remember taking the gun or rope with her as she left - but she had enough sense about her to dispose of the gun in the desert where it would never be recovered, and dispose of the rope in a dumpster in a different location. She had enough sense to know what she did was wrong, and admittedly took steps to begin covering her tracks. So many things that she said did not make sense, knowing what we now know. She is going to be subjected to what I believe will be one hell of a cross examination from Juan Martinez today. There are so many places where her story breaks down that I don't know where to begin. If you look only at the actual killing - her story doesn't hold water. The photo time stamps tell the real story. Travis was alive and looking very calm one minute, and less than 2 minutes later, he is bleeding from the chest and back - and on the ground, completely disabled if not dead.
I believe it would have been impossible to have happened the way she described. A fight of the "life or death" magnitude doesn't start and end the way it did in less than 2 minutes. None of Travis's family, friends or room mates believed Travis Alexander owned or kept a handgun at his home. If he did, what are the chances it was a .25 caliber? The same type that was taken from Arias's grandparents home a week earlier? I don't believe that was a coincidence. Even if you believe the gunshot did come first, would Travis have been able to continue his angry pursuit of Jodi Arias and keep "coming after her" as she described? I believe a person who had just been shot in the face would've been in such shock, she would've had ample opportunity to get the hell out of there - if that had been the way it happened. I doubt he would've posed any grave threat to her after being shot.
The crime scene evidence tells a much different story. Travis Alexander was likely stabbed several times while he was crouched down in the shower. He may have then gotten out of the shower and gone towards the sink - there, his throat was cut from ear to ear. This would've caused massive blood loss, and he may have stumbled into the bedroom and down the hall, where he fell to the floor and was shot in the face. This is what I believe happened. Why did Jodi Arias do this to him? There are many theories. Here's a plausible one. Arias knew Travis was leaving for Cancun at the end of the week. She testified that she believed Travis gave the other ticket to a friend's babysitter. This is the first we've heard about the babysitter. Apparently, Travis owed these friends money, and giving the babysitter the ticket would've been his way of repaying the friend. Doesn't make sense. I believe Jodi Arias knew, or became aware that Travis was taking Marie "Mimi" Hall on that trip. If she only recently found out, this would explain her need to go to Mesa before the trip. I believe this would have bothered her a great deal, regardless of what she is now saying.
From the start of this tragic story, I have believed the Cancun trip was a factor in this murder. The timing fits, the motive fits. Arias may have genuinely loved Travis Alexander, and she may have felt used for sex by him. Some of her testimony was believable, and I think she greatly regrets taking the actions that she took - now. But this killing was not in self defense, no matter how you slice it, even if you believe every word she has said. It doesn't meet the legal definition of self defense in the state of Arizona. If a person slaps you, you cannot shoot them. You can only use a like amount of force when defending yourself. This was not a fair fight. The gun is also a big issue. What really happened to the gun that was "stolen" from the Yreka home of her grandparents? Where is it? Why would somebody break into the home, and not take the piles of quarters that were directly above where the gun was kept? Why only take the .25 caliber, and not the other gun?
Apparently Arias believes as long as the police cannot prove that was the gun that was used in the course of the murder, the jury has to give her the benefit of the doubt. Another thing that bothers me - her loss of memory around the stabbing. She didn't just stab him once, twice or even five times. She stabbed him 29 times. That's alot of work. She had to be covered in Travis Alexander's blood. That's not something you could forget, even if you wanted to. She doesn't remember that, yet her memory comes back once she's out of the house and on her way to Utah. She never looked back, rather she started looking ahead at how she was going to rid herself of all evidence of being in Mesa Arizona. Just a partial list of things she cannot explain away:
The gun's origin
The origin of the knife
Why bring two 10 gallon gas cans, and fill them in CA where gas is expensive?
If she shot him first, she had time to run away after shooting him
She cleaned herself at the home, attempted to wipe away evidence
She deleted the photos
She took 16 minutes to listen to Travis's voicemail messages
She left a voicemail to the man she just murdered
She disposed of one of the murder weapons in the Nevada desert
She disposed of the rope in a dumpster in a separate location
She continued to Utah,was romantic with Ryan Burns
She was not injured - except for small cuts on her hand
She admitted to trying to cover up her involvement and throw the police off
This is just a partial list of the issues she did not adequately address. The defense took so much time trashing Travis Alexander and trying to portray Jodi Arias as the real victim - as if Travis had this coming to him. They spent 95% of her time on the stand making Travis Alexander look as deviant, mean, controlling and abusive as they possibly could. Building their defense out of the audio tape, and whatever text messages or e-mails Arias conveniently saved, yet they had no evidence to back up their claims that he was into little boys or that he ever hit or physically abused her. We are supposed to just take her at her word. When it came time to talk about the reason those jurors are sitting there, the actual killing - they glossed over it in 5 minutes time. I cannot believe how little was said about this brutal and heinous murder. This wasn't a one-gunshot killing, it had to have been rageful, bloody and horrifying for Travis Alexander. He was naked, relaxed and completely defenseless in the shower.
Maybe Travis wasn't the person his family and friends believed him to be. But nothing Jodi Arias alleged about him could justify her killing him in such a brutal manner. Self defense doesn't look the way this looked. This was a rage killing, pure and simple. Today, Jodi Arias will have to face the very tough cross examination from Prosecutor Juan Martinez - who has been patiently waiting for the last 7 days, taking notes and getting ready for his shot at her. You'll want to watch today's proceedings!
Jodi Arias Explains Killing Travis Alexander
The court is having their noon recess now, so I wanted to post an update on what we've heard so far this morning from murder defendant Jodi Arias. When court resumed this morning, testimony began with the photos that were taken of Travis Alexander in the shower on June 4, 2008. Travis had been getting in shape in anticipation of this the upcoming June 10, 2008 trip to Cancun that he won through his employer, Pre Paid Legal. He had been dieting and exercising since mid 2007 to get himself to a shape and weight he desired. Jodi Arias agreed to take photos of him in the shower, using the water for artistic value.
This doesn't surprise me at all but she claims to have very little memory of the actual killing. The defense has spent hours and days going over every detail of their sex life and Jodi Arias's previous relationships, her childhood - things that are not of vital importance, yet they spent around 5 minutes talking about the actual killing. I'm sure they will have expert witnesses lined up to talk about how common these "blackouts" or memory losses during traumatic events are. Here's how the violence unfolded, according to Jodi Arias:
They were taking photos of Travis in the shower - Jodi was dressed, they were having a good time and looking at the photos as they took them. They deleted the one's that they didn't like, and at some point Jodi says the camera slipped out of her hand and bounced off the floor mat and hit the tile. According to her testimony, this absolutely enraged him. He got out of the shower, grabbed her and "body slammed" her to the floor. This is the second "body slamming" reference I can remember so far. He began yelling at her, telling her "a 5 year old can hold a camera better than you". She got up off the floor and began running down the hall, but instead of heading out a door she ran into his closet. She then told a story of a previous fight they had (one we haven't heard before) in which he got angry and chased her down the hall and she couldn't make it out the door. She based her decision to run into the closet on this previous event.
Once in his closet, she grabbed a gun that Travis had hidden on the top shelf of his closet - she testified that she previously found the gun while cleaning his house, although this is the first we have heard about Travis Alexander owning a loaded gun. The defense showed a photo of the closet, and she identified the shelf where the gun was hidden. It appeared to be fairly high, so I'm wondering how she was able to get to the closet and jump up to grab that gun! Didn't look like she could've reached that high without a chair or ladder, but hard to tell. After grabbing the gun she ran out of the closet and ended up back in the bathroom where the argument began. Travis followed behind, she turned around and pointed the gun at him. She claims that he grabbed her by the waist and lunged at her - the gun went off. She says she didn't mean to shoot him, and didn't immediately realize that the shot actually hit him.
They both fell to the ground. She testified that Travis started to get on top of her and was grabbing at her clothes but she got away from him. As she broke away from him, he yelled "I'll f***ing kill you bitch". She explained that Travis was a wrestler and very strong, so she felt afraid that he might really kill her this time because she claims he nearly killed her before by choking her. After shooting him, "he kept coming". She doesn't have any clear memory after the shooting. When asked if she remembered stabbing him, she said "no". She said "I don't remember a lot from that day, there are gaps". She didn't remember dragging him across the floor when shown the picture they recovered of him on the floor, with her leg in the photo. She didn't remember putting Travis's body in the shower. The only thing she remembers is that she had to get away from him.
The next thing she remembers is being in the bathroom, dropping the knife and hearing it hit the tile floor - and then she screamed. She believes she may have put the knife in the dishwasher, but couldn't say for sure. She described being in "mortal terror" of Travis after dropping his camera? She said that she believed he wasn't going to stop coming after her. She has no memory of stabbing this man 27 times? Or slitting his throat so savagely? I find this very disturbing. I know that people can block trauma from their memory, but her actions following this killing makes me question her convenient memory loss.
She said she started driving, but became lost because she "didn't have her GPS". I'm not sure what she meant by that, but maybe it was because she HAD to keep her cellphone off so they couldn't trace her through the cell towers and find out she had been in Arizona? She doesn't remember taking the gun from the house when she left, but she does recall throwing it out in the middle of the desert. She also took the rope, and she put that in a dumpster behind a gas station. Her memory seems to be crystal clear on some points. Isn't the fact that she disposed of these items in separate places show a consciousness of guilt? She says she was dazed and couldn't believe what had just happened. She said that she knew her life was probably over at this point - later she would say that she was going to kill herself. If she wanted to kill herself, why not do it with Travis Alexander's gun, out in the desert?
When she stopped the car, she grabbed some bottled water from her trunk and washed the blood off of her hands, and put on some shoes. She found her cell phone charger and plugged her phone in and listened to her voice mails. Realizing a lot of time had passed and Ryan Burns and Leslie Udy were expecting her in Utah, she made the decision to go there and act as normal as possible - "delaying the inevitable". She said she knew she "messed up pretty badly". When asked why she hadn't simply called 911 after this fight, she said she was scared and couldn't imagine telling the police or anybody else what she had done. She admitted that Travis had attacked her in the past and nothing really happened, but claims this time the anger was heightened.
She admitted on the stand that she took steps to try to cover the fact that she had been at Travis Alexander's house during this trip. She explained why she left the voicemail on his phone after she left the house - she admitted she left the message to divert suspicion away from her. She said the first few times she attempted to leave a message, she had to delete them and start over because she was crying. She continued on to Utah to Ryan's where she attempted to act as normal as possible. When asked about kissing and being romantic with Ryan Burns, she said she felt safe there, and just wanted to feel normal, like nothing had ever happened. She was anxious to get back home to Yreka and she planned to show up at work for her next shift.
After she got home, she says that she contemplated committing suicide - she had the perfect opportunity in the Nevada desert before she tossed the gun she shot Travis with! Instead, she bought a gun between the time she got home and the time she was arrested, a step towards that goal according to Arias. She seemed to know she would eventually be arrested. She (again) talked about committing suicide, and she even bought a gun. She thought about going to Monterey or killing herself. She tooks steps to get rid of the things she wouldn't want anybody to find, such as the Spiderman underwear, and I'm not sure what else because she didn't elaborate.
There's a lot more Arias needs to explain. I am very surprised at how little detail was given about the actual killing. Kirk Nurmi has spent so much time discussing other aspects of Arias and Alexander's lives, their relationships, and the events that lead up to 6/4/08. Yet the actual killing was barely touched on. How could you NOT remember stabbing someone you love that many times? I would imagine you may want to forget doing something like that - but that's something you'd have nightmares about.
She clearly alleges she shot him first and foremost. The evidence suggests she didn't. There was dried, pooled blood under the shell casing. She claims she didn't realize she shot Travis, or that the shot actually hit him. Would'nt he have bled all over her, if he got on top of her as she claims? Would it have been physically possible for Travis to "keep coming" after her after being shot in the head with a .25 caliber? These are the details that will be absolutely crucial to this case. Nothing I heard today changes my opinion about the self defense allegations. I can't see a person getting mad enough to KILL someone over a dropped camera. People have testified that Travis did not own a gun. These issues, along with the lack of clear memories about the details that really matter makes it look very bad for Jodi Arias.
I do believe part of her testimony is genuine today. I believe she WAS scared. At least she has admitted that she knew what she did was bad and she admitted to trying to cover it up or "delaying the inevitable" as she said. But it's too little, too late. Finally, we have heard her (third) story about what happened that day. I'm still shocked at the very limited testimony about the details of the murder. More to come.....
This doesn't surprise me at all but she claims to have very little memory of the actual killing. The defense has spent hours and days going over every detail of their sex life and Jodi Arias's previous relationships, her childhood - things that are not of vital importance, yet they spent around 5 minutes talking about the actual killing. I'm sure they will have expert witnesses lined up to talk about how common these "blackouts" or memory losses during traumatic events are. Here's how the violence unfolded, according to Jodi Arias:
They were taking photos of Travis in the shower - Jodi was dressed, they were having a good time and looking at the photos as they took them. They deleted the one's that they didn't like, and at some point Jodi says the camera slipped out of her hand and bounced off the floor mat and hit the tile. According to her testimony, this absolutely enraged him. He got out of the shower, grabbed her and "body slammed" her to the floor. This is the second "body slamming" reference I can remember so far. He began yelling at her, telling her "a 5 year old can hold a camera better than you". She got up off the floor and began running down the hall, but instead of heading out a door she ran into his closet. She then told a story of a previous fight they had (one we haven't heard before) in which he got angry and chased her down the hall and she couldn't make it out the door. She based her decision to run into the closet on this previous event.
Once in his closet, she grabbed a gun that Travis had hidden on the top shelf of his closet - she testified that she previously found the gun while cleaning his house, although this is the first we have heard about Travis Alexander owning a loaded gun. The defense showed a photo of the closet, and she identified the shelf where the gun was hidden. It appeared to be fairly high, so I'm wondering how she was able to get to the closet and jump up to grab that gun! Didn't look like she could've reached that high without a chair or ladder, but hard to tell. After grabbing the gun she ran out of the closet and ended up back in the bathroom where the argument began. Travis followed behind, she turned around and pointed the gun at him. She claims that he grabbed her by the waist and lunged at her - the gun went off. She says she didn't mean to shoot him, and didn't immediately realize that the shot actually hit him.
They both fell to the ground. She testified that Travis started to get on top of her and was grabbing at her clothes but she got away from him. As she broke away from him, he yelled "I'll f***ing kill you bitch". She explained that Travis was a wrestler and very strong, so she felt afraid that he might really kill her this time because she claims he nearly killed her before by choking her. After shooting him, "he kept coming". She doesn't have any clear memory after the shooting. When asked if she remembered stabbing him, she said "no". She said "I don't remember a lot from that day, there are gaps". She didn't remember dragging him across the floor when shown the picture they recovered of him on the floor, with her leg in the photo. She didn't remember putting Travis's body in the shower. The only thing she remembers is that she had to get away from him.
The next thing she remembers is being in the bathroom, dropping the knife and hearing it hit the tile floor - and then she screamed. She believes she may have put the knife in the dishwasher, but couldn't say for sure. She described being in "mortal terror" of Travis after dropping his camera? She said that she believed he wasn't going to stop coming after her. She has no memory of stabbing this man 27 times? Or slitting his throat so savagely? I find this very disturbing. I know that people can block trauma from their memory, but her actions following this killing makes me question her convenient memory loss.
She said she started driving, but became lost because she "didn't have her GPS". I'm not sure what she meant by that, but maybe it was because she HAD to keep her cellphone off so they couldn't trace her through the cell towers and find out she had been in Arizona? She doesn't remember taking the gun from the house when she left, but she does recall throwing it out in the middle of the desert. She also took the rope, and she put that in a dumpster behind a gas station. Her memory seems to be crystal clear on some points. Isn't the fact that she disposed of these items in separate places show a consciousness of guilt? She says she was dazed and couldn't believe what had just happened. She said that she knew her life was probably over at this point - later she would say that she was going to kill herself. If she wanted to kill herself, why not do it with Travis Alexander's gun, out in the desert?
When she stopped the car, she grabbed some bottled water from her trunk and washed the blood off of her hands, and put on some shoes. She found her cell phone charger and plugged her phone in and listened to her voice mails. Realizing a lot of time had passed and Ryan Burns and Leslie Udy were expecting her in Utah, she made the decision to go there and act as normal as possible - "delaying the inevitable". She said she knew she "messed up pretty badly". When asked why she hadn't simply called 911 after this fight, she said she was scared and couldn't imagine telling the police or anybody else what she had done. She admitted that Travis had attacked her in the past and nothing really happened, but claims this time the anger was heightened.
She admitted on the stand that she took steps to try to cover the fact that she had been at Travis Alexander's house during this trip. She explained why she left the voicemail on his phone after she left the house - she admitted she left the message to divert suspicion away from her. She said the first few times she attempted to leave a message, she had to delete them and start over because she was crying. She continued on to Utah to Ryan's where she attempted to act as normal as possible. When asked about kissing and being romantic with Ryan Burns, she said she felt safe there, and just wanted to feel normal, like nothing had ever happened. She was anxious to get back home to Yreka and she planned to show up at work for her next shift.
After she got home, she says that she contemplated committing suicide - she had the perfect opportunity in the Nevada desert before she tossed the gun she shot Travis with! Instead, she bought a gun between the time she got home and the time she was arrested, a step towards that goal according to Arias. She seemed to know she would eventually be arrested. She (again) talked about committing suicide, and she even bought a gun. She thought about going to Monterey or killing herself. She tooks steps to get rid of the things she wouldn't want anybody to find, such as the Spiderman underwear, and I'm not sure what else because she didn't elaborate.
There's a lot more Arias needs to explain. I am very surprised at how little detail was given about the actual killing. Kirk Nurmi has spent so much time discussing other aspects of Arias and Alexander's lives, their relationships, and the events that lead up to 6/4/08. Yet the actual killing was barely touched on. How could you NOT remember stabbing someone you love that many times? I would imagine you may want to forget doing something like that - but that's something you'd have nightmares about.
She clearly alleges she shot him first and foremost. The evidence suggests she didn't. There was dried, pooled blood under the shell casing. She claims she didn't realize she shot Travis, or that the shot actually hit him. Would'nt he have bled all over her, if he got on top of her as she claims? Would it have been physically possible for Travis to "keep coming" after her after being shot in the head with a .25 caliber? These are the details that will be absolutely crucial to this case. Nothing I heard today changes my opinion about the self defense allegations. I can't see a person getting mad enough to KILL someone over a dropped camera. People have testified that Travis did not own a gun. These issues, along with the lack of clear memories about the details that really matter makes it look very bad for Jodi Arias.
I do believe part of her testimony is genuine today. I believe she WAS scared. At least she has admitted that she knew what she did was bad and she admitted to trying to cover it up or "delaying the inevitable" as she said. But it's too little, too late. Finally, we have heard her (third) story about what happened that day. I'm still shocked at the very limited testimony about the details of the murder. More to come.....
Arias Explains Fatal Road Trip - June 4, 2008
The defense is finally getting to Jodi Arias's fatal June 4, 2008 road trip and trying to take the sting out of some of the State's evidence against her before Juan Martinez gets a shot at her. As we speak, Kirk Nurmi is questioning Arias on whether or not she arrived at Travis Alexander's home with a gun or a knife. She claims she did not leave Yreka or arrive in Mesa with either. (where did she get the gun and knife?)
Arias explained that on her way to Utah, she had planned to visit ex boyfriends "Matt" and "Daryl" - Daryl is the ex that she lived with and owned a home with. She claimed that Travis did not want her to go to Utah to see Ryan Burns, but rather he wanted her to come to Mesa and see him. In the same sentence she described Travis as being angry with her for planning to go to Utah but then he was sweet so she decided to visit him.
Here are a few key points that were addressed during today's testimony so far:
The rental car: Arias rented a car in Redding, CA - instead of renting a car closer to home in Yreka.
Arias's explanation: She rented the car using Orbitz, and she had to pick it up there to get the rate she wanted.
The rental car color: A representative from the rental car agency testified that Arias requested a car that "wouldn't stand out".
Arias's explanation: The first car the agent gave her was red, and she heard red cars tend to get pulled over by the police more often so she asked for a different car.
(My thoughts) Where did she get that statistic from? There at the rental counter?
Her hair color: The Budget rental car representative was able to pick out Jodi Arias's photo from a police line-up, although in her booking photo Arias had brown hair. Although he identified Arias as the woman who rented the car, he noted that she had blonde hair when she rented the car.
Arias's explanation: She said her hair was "auburn/brown" before and after the road trip.
The gas cans: In addition to filling her gas tank in Southern California, Arias borrowed and filled two 10 gallon gas cans borrowed from ex-boyfriend Darrell.
Arias's explanation: She told attorney Kirk Nurmi and the jury that she took the gas cans because she didn't want to run out of gas in the middle of the Nevada desert.
The license plate: The license plate on Arias's rental car was upside down when the car was returned to the Redding rental car agency.
Arias's explanation: Arias claimed that on her trip, she stopped at a Starbucks. When she came out of Starbucks, there was a group of skateboarders in the parking lot who were laughing in her direction as they rode off. She didn't outright say they were the ones who flipped the license plate on the rental car, but it was clear what she was implying.
Her cell phone: Law enforcement discovered that Arias's cellphone was shut off during crucial times during this trip - namely, during her time in Mesa Arizona.
Arias's explanation: She claims her cell battery was running low, and although she had a car charger with her, she says she couldn't find it in her car. She says she called Matt & Daryl to see if she left it there but they didn't have it. She then shut off her phone to conserve the power.
(My thoughts) A convenient answer - lucky for her, she later found the charger under her car seat later in the trip (probably when she crossed Arizona state lines!)
Arias told the jury that she arrived at Travis Alexander's home around 4:00AM, and entered through a side door that led to the garage and entered the home through the garage into the kitchen. Travis was in his office on his computer when she arrived. Her memory seems sketchy today, she couldn't recall if there were any other cars parked in the driveway when she pulled up to the home. Alexander greeted her after his dog Napolean barked as he noticed Jodi Arias had entered the room. She said Travis smiled and kissed her when he saw her.
Kirk Nurmi bluntly asked Jodi if she shot Travis when she entered the room. She answered "no". He then asked if she stabbed him, she answered "no". I think I see where this is going. Earlier today, Arias explained that in the days after she left on this road trip to Utah, she visited ex boyfriends "Matt" and "Daryl" - Daryl is the ex that she lived with and owned a home with, and who gave her the two gas cans. She claimed that Travis did not want her to go to Utah to see Ryan Burns, but rather he wanted her to come to Mesa and see him. During same sentence, she claims that he was "angry" at her but then he was "sweet", so she decided to make a detour in the trip and see him.
Nurmi is now questioning her about who was at the home when she arrived, Arias said she believed that one of his room mates may have been there, but she didn't know for sure. She was tired when she arrived, and told Travis she wanted to go to sleep. Arias woke up around 12:00PM the following day while Travis was still asleep. Nurmi just asked her "did you get up and grab a gun and shoot him"? She answered "no", he asks "did you grab a knife and stab him?", she answered "no". This line of questioning is strange. I guess Nurmi is trying to make the point that if Arias went to Alexander's house intent on killing him, she had the chance to do so when she arrived and Travis was in his office, and again when she woke up and he was still sleeping.
When Travis woke up, Arias says they had sex several times. Arias claims that Travis wanted to tie her up, but he had a sleigh bed which has no bedposts. She explained how they had to measure out some rope to use to tie her hands together, and then wrap it around the width of the headboard. Nurmi asked what they used to cut the rope and where Travis was when he cut it. She said he used a knife that he got from his own home and he was in the bathroom when he cut the rope they measured.
She claims she didn't really want to be tied up, but she didn't find it "unbearable". She went on to tell the jury that Travis Alexander tied her wrists together. She was naked. but Travis remained in his "temple garments". Nurmi makes a point of asking again how the rope was cut. She repeated her answer. Nurmi is trying to ensure the jury remembers this point that the knife was retrieved by Travis, from Travis's own home - and used/left in the bathroom. If this is true, why didn't the police and crime scene technicians who spent days at the home find any knife sets that were missing a knife? Where did she get the .25 caliber gun??
They reviewed some of the nude photos recovered from Travis's digital camera, and Arias said she felt "stupid" for taking the photos and said they made her very uncomfortable. She has her head down is now sobbing on the stand as she gets closer to the time of the attack. I almost feel sorry for her - if I didn't know the extent of the damage she inflicted on Travis Alexander, I suppose I might feel sorry for her. It's easy to forget about the victim when you see a woman crying on the witness stand. Her demeanor is different today. This is the day she's been dreading and now it's here. Soon she will face cross examination and be forced to explain each and every stab to Travis Alexander's body. She will be cornered with no way out. She's been on the stand for 7 days, telling "her story" and much of what she has said has gone uncontentested - but that's about to change. She seems to know this.
We are now learning from Jodi Arias that in addition to the XXX rated photos they took on June 4, 2008, they also made a "movie" using Jodi Arias's Olympus camera - the video was viewed and then deleted. Arias is speaking softly and looking down a lot today. She is speaking so softly that Kirk Nurmi has had to ask her to speak up and repeat her answers. After they watched the video they made, Arias says they deleted the video and she took a shower alone. She got dressed and began to get ready to "hit the road". During this time, she testified that Travis was first in the kitchen, then in his office. She says his bed sheets were removed and put in the wash following their sexual encounter. She couldn't recall who put them in the washing machine. Again, her recollection of things is getting worse as time goes on. She is having problems remember times, and who did what - in stark contrast to her remembering what colored socks she had on when she was 10 years old earlier in her testimony.
She loaded her stuff into her car, then went to his office to give Travis some photo CD's that she had made for him. The CD's were damaged, scratched - and this angered him. She was laying on the floor next to his dog at the time Travis was attempting to retrieve the photos on the discs she had just given to him. She claims Travis became very angry when the discs were found to be damaged and he threw the CD across the room. It bounced off a wall and nearly hit her in the head. She claimed she saw more signs of anger from him and she became worried - she didn't want the whole trip to be ruined since everything was good before this happened.
Nurmi asked her if she became "fearful" at this point, she answered "no", she was not fearful of him becoming physical but she was "somewhat worried" - but still she didn't leave. She stood up behind him and began rubbing his shoulders and he grabbed her and spun her around and bent her over his desk. She is barely looking at her attorney or the jury. Her head is down, her voice low - her answers seem hesitant. She's using the word "uuumm" quite a bit. I've heard body language experts say that this word is used when a person is trying to buy time to think of something to say. Don't know if that's accurate, but it makes sense to me.
Arias is now describing an encounter in the office where Alexander bent her over his desk in his office and it was clear he wanted to have sex with her. She testified that she was "relieved" he wanted to have sex with her because it was better than him being mad at her and sex always calmed him down. They had sex again in the office. Travis then told her to "go clean herself up". Nurmi asked her if she felt "used or humiliated" after that encounter and she says she was only upset about his comment about cleaning herself up. It seems Nurmi is trying very hard to elicit certain comments from Arias, without outright leading.
Instead of leaving after this ackward encounter she described, she decided to stay, hoping to end the visit on a more positive note. She says he was in a better mood at that point. Juan Martinez is objecting to much of Nurmi's questioning, he seems to be asking the same question more than one time and repeating things Arias has already stated. Nurmi is clearly annoyed about the objections, most of which were sustained by Judge Stephens. Nurmi and Martinez do not like each other and it shows!
Arias is now discussing how Travis Alexander was getting into shape in anticipation for the Cancun trip he won through Pre Paid Legal. He began exercising and dieting back in 2007 for this trip, and he reached his goals and was proud of how he had slimmed down and toned his body for this trip. Arias admits she was never invited on this Cancun trip, but she does say that Travis Alexander told her that he was taking a friends babysitter! She says he told her that he owed these people money, and giving the Cancun ticket to their babysitter would be a way of paying his friends back? This is the first I've heard about this - the significance being that she claims that she DID NOT know that he planned on taking Marie "Mimi" Hall. I seem to recall that she DID know about the trip with Marie Hall, but I could be mistaken. This is how they are getting around to Jodi taking the pictures of Travis in the shower. Travis apparently wanted photos to be taken of himself once he reached his goal weight and body tone.
Arias testified that because her camera was already packed away, they used Travis's new camera to take the shower photos. They are calling it a day in the courtroom now, so first thing tomorrow they should actually get to WHAT happened in the shower and master bathroom of Travis Alexander's home. We are almost there folks! Tomorrow is the day we will hear how this tragedy unfolded.
Arias explained that on her way to Utah, she had planned to visit ex boyfriends "Matt" and "Daryl" - Daryl is the ex that she lived with and owned a home with. She claimed that Travis did not want her to go to Utah to see Ryan Burns, but rather he wanted her to come to Mesa and see him. In the same sentence she described Travis as being angry with her for planning to go to Utah but then he was sweet so she decided to visit him.
Here are a few key points that were addressed during today's testimony so far:
The rental car: Arias rented a car in Redding, CA - instead of renting a car closer to home in Yreka.
Arias's explanation: She rented the car using Orbitz, and she had to pick it up there to get the rate she wanted.
The rental car color: A representative from the rental car agency testified that Arias requested a car that "wouldn't stand out".
Arias's explanation: The first car the agent gave her was red, and she heard red cars tend to get pulled over by the police more often so she asked for a different car.
(My thoughts) Where did she get that statistic from? There at the rental counter?
Her hair color: The Budget rental car representative was able to pick out Jodi Arias's photo from a police line-up, although in her booking photo Arias had brown hair. Although he identified Arias as the woman who rented the car, he noted that she had blonde hair when she rented the car.
Arias's explanation: She said her hair was "auburn/brown" before and after the road trip.
The gas cans: In addition to filling her gas tank in Southern California, Arias borrowed and filled two 10 gallon gas cans borrowed from ex-boyfriend Darrell.
Arias's explanation: She told attorney Kirk Nurmi and the jury that she took the gas cans because she didn't want to run out of gas in the middle of the Nevada desert.
The license plate: The license plate on Arias's rental car was upside down when the car was returned to the Redding rental car agency.
Arias's explanation: Arias claimed that on her trip, she stopped at a Starbucks. When she came out of Starbucks, there was a group of skateboarders in the parking lot who were laughing in her direction as they rode off. She didn't outright say they were the ones who flipped the license plate on the rental car, but it was clear what she was implying.
Her cell phone: Law enforcement discovered that Arias's cellphone was shut off during crucial times during this trip - namely, during her time in Mesa Arizona.
Arias's explanation: She claims her cell battery was running low, and although she had a car charger with her, she says she couldn't find it in her car. She says she called Matt & Daryl to see if she left it there but they didn't have it. She then shut off her phone to conserve the power.
(My thoughts) A convenient answer - lucky for her, she later found the charger under her car seat later in the trip (probably when she crossed Arizona state lines!)
Arias told the jury that she arrived at Travis Alexander's home around 4:00AM, and entered through a side door that led to the garage and entered the home through the garage into the kitchen. Travis was in his office on his computer when she arrived. Her memory seems sketchy today, she couldn't recall if there were any other cars parked in the driveway when she pulled up to the home. Alexander greeted her after his dog Napolean barked as he noticed Jodi Arias had entered the room. She said Travis smiled and kissed her when he saw her.
Kirk Nurmi bluntly asked Jodi if she shot Travis when she entered the room. She answered "no". He then asked if she stabbed him, she answered "no". I think I see where this is going. Earlier today, Arias explained that in the days after she left on this road trip to Utah, she visited ex boyfriends "Matt" and "Daryl" - Daryl is the ex that she lived with and owned a home with, and who gave her the two gas cans. She claimed that Travis did not want her to go to Utah to see Ryan Burns, but rather he wanted her to come to Mesa and see him. During same sentence, she claims that he was "angry" at her but then he was "sweet", so she decided to make a detour in the trip and see him.
Nurmi is now questioning her about who was at the home when she arrived, Arias said she believed that one of his room mates may have been there, but she didn't know for sure. She was tired when she arrived, and told Travis she wanted to go to sleep. Arias woke up around 12:00PM the following day while Travis was still asleep. Nurmi just asked her "did you get up and grab a gun and shoot him"? She answered "no", he asks "did you grab a knife and stab him?", she answered "no". This line of questioning is strange. I guess Nurmi is trying to make the point that if Arias went to Alexander's house intent on killing him, she had the chance to do so when she arrived and Travis was in his office, and again when she woke up and he was still sleeping.
When Travis woke up, Arias says they had sex several times. Arias claims that Travis wanted to tie her up, but he had a sleigh bed which has no bedposts. She explained how they had to measure out some rope to use to tie her hands together, and then wrap it around the width of the headboard. Nurmi asked what they used to cut the rope and where Travis was when he cut it. She said he used a knife that he got from his own home and he was in the bathroom when he cut the rope they measured.
She claims she didn't really want to be tied up, but she didn't find it "unbearable". She went on to tell the jury that Travis Alexander tied her wrists together. She was naked. but Travis remained in his "temple garments". Nurmi makes a point of asking again how the rope was cut. She repeated her answer. Nurmi is trying to ensure the jury remembers this point that the knife was retrieved by Travis, from Travis's own home - and used/left in the bathroom. If this is true, why didn't the police and crime scene technicians who spent days at the home find any knife sets that were missing a knife? Where did she get the .25 caliber gun??
They reviewed some of the nude photos recovered from Travis's digital camera, and Arias said she felt "stupid" for taking the photos and said they made her very uncomfortable. She has her head down is now sobbing on the stand as she gets closer to the time of the attack. I almost feel sorry for her - if I didn't know the extent of the damage she inflicted on Travis Alexander, I suppose I might feel sorry for her. It's easy to forget about the victim when you see a woman crying on the witness stand. Her demeanor is different today. This is the day she's been dreading and now it's here. Soon she will face cross examination and be forced to explain each and every stab to Travis Alexander's body. She will be cornered with no way out. She's been on the stand for 7 days, telling "her story" and much of what she has said has gone uncontentested - but that's about to change. She seems to know this.
We are now learning from Jodi Arias that in addition to the XXX rated photos they took on June 4, 2008, they also made a "movie" using Jodi Arias's Olympus camera - the video was viewed and then deleted. Arias is speaking softly and looking down a lot today. She is speaking so softly that Kirk Nurmi has had to ask her to speak up and repeat her answers. After they watched the video they made, Arias says they deleted the video and she took a shower alone. She got dressed and began to get ready to "hit the road". During this time, she testified that Travis was first in the kitchen, then in his office. She says his bed sheets were removed and put in the wash following their sexual encounter. She couldn't recall who put them in the washing machine. Again, her recollection of things is getting worse as time goes on. She is having problems remember times, and who did what - in stark contrast to her remembering what colored socks she had on when she was 10 years old earlier in her testimony.
She loaded her stuff into her car, then went to his office to give Travis some photo CD's that she had made for him. The CD's were damaged, scratched - and this angered him. She was laying on the floor next to his dog at the time Travis was attempting to retrieve the photos on the discs she had just given to him. She claims Travis became very angry when the discs were found to be damaged and he threw the CD across the room. It bounced off a wall and nearly hit her in the head. She claimed she saw more signs of anger from him and she became worried - she didn't want the whole trip to be ruined since everything was good before this happened.
Nurmi asked her if she became "fearful" at this point, she answered "no", she was not fearful of him becoming physical but she was "somewhat worried" - but still she didn't leave. She stood up behind him and began rubbing his shoulders and he grabbed her and spun her around and bent her over his desk. She is barely looking at her attorney or the jury. Her head is down, her voice low - her answers seem hesitant. She's using the word "uuumm" quite a bit. I've heard body language experts say that this word is used when a person is trying to buy time to think of something to say. Don't know if that's accurate, but it makes sense to me.
Arias is now describing an encounter in the office where Alexander bent her over his desk in his office and it was clear he wanted to have sex with her. She testified that she was "relieved" he wanted to have sex with her because it was better than him being mad at her and sex always calmed him down. They had sex again in the office. Travis then told her to "go clean herself up". Nurmi asked her if she felt "used or humiliated" after that encounter and she says she was only upset about his comment about cleaning herself up. It seems Nurmi is trying very hard to elicit certain comments from Arias, without outright leading.
Instead of leaving after this ackward encounter she described, she decided to stay, hoping to end the visit on a more positive note. She says he was in a better mood at that point. Juan Martinez is objecting to much of Nurmi's questioning, he seems to be asking the same question more than one time and repeating things Arias has already stated. Nurmi is clearly annoyed about the objections, most of which were sustained by Judge Stephens. Nurmi and Martinez do not like each other and it shows!
Arias is now discussing how Travis Alexander was getting into shape in anticipation for the Cancun trip he won through Pre Paid Legal. He began exercising and dieting back in 2007 for this trip, and he reached his goals and was proud of how he had slimmed down and toned his body for this trip. Arias admits she was never invited on this Cancun trip, but she does say that Travis Alexander told her that he was taking a friends babysitter! She says he told her that he owed these people money, and giving the Cancun ticket to their babysitter would be a way of paying his friends back? This is the first I've heard about this - the significance being that she claims that she DID NOT know that he planned on taking Marie "Mimi" Hall. I seem to recall that she DID know about the trip with Marie Hall, but I could be mistaken. This is how they are getting around to Jodi taking the pictures of Travis in the shower. Travis apparently wanted photos to be taken of himself once he reached his goal weight and body tone.
Arias testified that because her camera was already packed away, they used Travis's new camera to take the shower photos. They are calling it a day in the courtroom now, so first thing tomorrow they should actually get to WHAT happened in the shower and master bathroom of Travis Alexander's home. We are almost there folks! Tomorrow is the day we will hear how this tragedy unfolded.
Jodi Arias Trial - One Day Closer to June 4, 2008
Murder defendant Jodi Arias is expected to return to the stand today for her 7th day of testimony. Arias and her defense attorneys have taken us from a 7 year old Jodi's home life, in which she alleges her mother and father were physically abusive towards her - to every relationship she has had with a man, and through her meeting and dating murder victim Travis Alexander.
The jury has listened patiently, as Arias describes her relationship with Alexander in painstaking detail. We've heard more than any of us care to. In the interest of justice and to protect the case against potential appeals, Judge Sherry Stephens has allowed Arias to testify on things that seem irrelevant to self defense - such as their sordid sexual encounters. Arias has spoke, uncontested, about Travis's appetite for role playing (his "antics", according to Arias), his attraction to young boys, an affair he allegedly had with a married woman and the now infamous audio recording that she alleges to have recorded at the insistence of Travis Alexander.
We've watched his family in court trying to mask their feelings about Arias's testimony, we've seen their heartbreak as crime scene photos were displayed and their anguish at the defense's portrayal of their brother. It's been difficult to watch, and I often times find myself screaming at the television as Arias portrays herself as an innocent victim of a sexual deviant, someone who went along with said acts in an effort to please Travis Alexander. I believe her testimony to be a mix of 5% truth, 95% embellishments - we may never know the real formula of whats true and what has been a fabrication. Only Jodi Arias knows for sure, and she may have convinced herself that her third version of events is actually what happened.
My comments on this blog may seem somewhat one-sided. But for anybody who thinks they are, I'd just like to say this. I've been following this story since it broke. You see, June 9th happens to be my birthday. So when I first saw the story, it caught my attention for many reasons aside from the fact that his body was discovered on June 9th. We don't see many cases involving women that are this brutal in nature. Women tend to murder in a more passive manner, like poisoning or a single gunshot. I can't remember a murder that was this brutal since the Susan Wright case. Wright was convicted of murdering husband Jeffrey Wright by stabbing him more than 197 times. She claims she killed him in self defense, her attorneys argued she was a victim of "battered wife syndrome."
Wright then buried her husband next to the home they shared, and attempted to cover her tracks and resume her life as if Jeffrey had simply left. There was some evidence pointing to spousal abuse in that case, but Wright's attorneys had a hard time explaining why it she stabbed him more than 197 times in "self defense". Susan Wright was a bright and attractive woman with two small children. She was ultimately found guilty of murder and sentenced to 20 years in prison for her acts.
Another woman convicted of the brutal murder of her husband and now sits on Arizona's death row: Wendi Adriano. Adriano was convicted of murdering her terminally ill husband Joe in Arizona in 2000. The prosecutor in that case was none other than Prosecutor Juan Martinez. Adriano also claimed she killed her husband in self defense after being attacked by him. The jurors discounted her claims as Joe Adriano was much too ill to have attacked her. He had terminal cancer - and evidence uncovered during that investigation showed that Wendi Adriano had tried to poison husband Joe before that fatal encounter. Adriano was convicted and sentenced to death.
These cases have one common denominator - they all involve women who have used self defense and/or battered wife syndrome, all were extremely brutal. Today, we should get one step closer to learning Arias's version of what happened on June 4, 2008 and what Travis Alexander allegedly did that preceded this killing. The jury wants to know, the families want to know and the world wants to know. After 6 days of Arias's chatter and allegations of deviant behavior, it comes down to this date. Was Arias really in danger, or did she really believe she was about to be killed by Alexander? Only Travis and Jodi know what really happened, so we have to rely on the evidence to tell the story. Regardless of who you believe, the evidence is the teller of truth.
And I believe the evidence doesn't align with the self defense claims. A single gunshot, a single stab wound would have been a more understandable claim of self defense. The many mortal wounds point to something entirely different. A rage killing. Once Jodi Arias began her attack, she couldn't stop herself. I believe she had so much rage built up inside of her against Travis Alexander, perhaps because she did feel used by him and then tossed aside in favor of a more presentable and suitable Mormon partner. For that, I feel sorry for her. We've all been there, but most of us would never take it anywhere near where she went. We are one step closer to June 4, 2008, and one step closer to the cross examination we are all waiting for.
The jury has listened patiently, as Arias describes her relationship with Alexander in painstaking detail. We've heard more than any of us care to. In the interest of justice and to protect the case against potential appeals, Judge Sherry Stephens has allowed Arias to testify on things that seem irrelevant to self defense - such as their sordid sexual encounters. Arias has spoke, uncontested, about Travis's appetite for role playing (his "antics", according to Arias), his attraction to young boys, an affair he allegedly had with a married woman and the now infamous audio recording that she alleges to have recorded at the insistence of Travis Alexander.
We've watched his family in court trying to mask their feelings about Arias's testimony, we've seen their heartbreak as crime scene photos were displayed and their anguish at the defense's portrayal of their brother. It's been difficult to watch, and I often times find myself screaming at the television as Arias portrays herself as an innocent victim of a sexual deviant, someone who went along with said acts in an effort to please Travis Alexander. I believe her testimony to be a mix of 5% truth, 95% embellishments - we may never know the real formula of whats true and what has been a fabrication. Only Jodi Arias knows for sure, and she may have convinced herself that her third version of events is actually what happened.
My comments on this blog may seem somewhat one-sided. But for anybody who thinks they are, I'd just like to say this. I've been following this story since it broke. You see, June 9th happens to be my birthday. So when I first saw the story, it caught my attention for many reasons aside from the fact that his body was discovered on June 9th. We don't see many cases involving women that are this brutal in nature. Women tend to murder in a more passive manner, like poisoning or a single gunshot. I can't remember a murder that was this brutal since the Susan Wright case. Wright was convicted of murdering husband Jeffrey Wright by stabbing him more than 197 times. She claims she killed him in self defense, her attorneys argued she was a victim of "battered wife syndrome."
Wright then buried her husband next to the home they shared, and attempted to cover her tracks and resume her life as if Jeffrey had simply left. There was some evidence pointing to spousal abuse in that case, but Wright's attorneys had a hard time explaining why it she stabbed him more than 197 times in "self defense". Susan Wright was a bright and attractive woman with two small children. She was ultimately found guilty of murder and sentenced to 20 years in prison for her acts.
Another woman convicted of the brutal murder of her husband and now sits on Arizona's death row: Wendi Adriano. Adriano was convicted of murdering her terminally ill husband Joe in Arizona in 2000. The prosecutor in that case was none other than Prosecutor Juan Martinez. Adriano also claimed she killed her husband in self defense after being attacked by him. The jurors discounted her claims as Joe Adriano was much too ill to have attacked her. He had terminal cancer - and evidence uncovered during that investigation showed that Wendi Adriano had tried to poison husband Joe before that fatal encounter. Adriano was convicted and sentenced to death.
These cases have one common denominator - they all involve women who have used self defense and/or battered wife syndrome, all were extremely brutal. Today, we should get one step closer to learning Arias's version of what happened on June 4, 2008 and what Travis Alexander allegedly did that preceded this killing. The jury wants to know, the families want to know and the world wants to know. After 6 days of Arias's chatter and allegations of deviant behavior, it comes down to this date. Was Arias really in danger, or did she really believe she was about to be killed by Alexander? Only Travis and Jodi know what really happened, so we have to rely on the evidence to tell the story. Regardless of who you believe, the evidence is the teller of truth.
And I believe the evidence doesn't align with the self defense claims. A single gunshot, a single stab wound would have been a more understandable claim of self defense. The many mortal wounds point to something entirely different. A rage killing. Once Jodi Arias began her attack, she couldn't stop herself. I believe she had so much rage built up inside of her against Travis Alexander, perhaps because she did feel used by him and then tossed aside in favor of a more presentable and suitable Mormon partner. For that, I feel sorry for her. We've all been there, but most of us would never take it anywhere near where she went. We are one step closer to June 4, 2008, and one step closer to the cross examination we are all waiting for.
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