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Title: A sister's anguish: Agony of victim's family as Jodi Arias escapes death penalty after just ONE juror held out and is sentenced to life in jail instead
Source:
Daily Mail Online
URL Source: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/art ... ntenced-life-bars-instead.html
Published: Mar 5, 2015
Author: Associated Press and James Nye
Post Date: 2015-03-05 20:37:24 by cranky
Keywords: None
Views: 1370
Comments: 7
Jodi Arias was sentenced to life behind bars today after a jury failed to reach a verdict on whether to execute her for the murder of her ex-boyfriend Travis Alexander - causing his distraught sister to break down in tears and wish Arias to 'burn in hell'. The harrowing scene played out in Maricopa Country Superior Court as Judge Sherry Stephens declared a mistrial meaning Arias, 34, would not be able to face the death penalty. Tanisha Sorenson was overcome with grief and held her face in her hand as other members of Alexander's family wept while a shackled Arias looked on impassively as she escaped with her life. Speaking to the media afterwards, a furious Sorensen said, 'The real justice will be in the afterlife when Jodi burns in hell.' It is now up to the judge to decide if Arias gets 25-years to-life with parole or without parole and Stephens told the court she would announce this in April. Scroll Down for Video Impassive: Jodi Arias watches the jury enter the courtroom for her sentencing phase retrial in Phoenix on Thursday morning Reaction: Tanisha Sorenson, sister of Travis Alexander, sobs as she hears a hung jury verdict in the Jodi Arias sentencing phase retrial Agony: Tanisha Sorenson becomes inconsolable after hearing that Jodi Arias has escaped the death penalty Arias' mother, Sandra, broke down too and received a hug from a friend. It is the second time a jury has failed to decide on life or death for Arias, 34, and under Arizona state law she cannot be tried again - a sore disappointment for the prosecution who have always sought execution. Indeed, it was revealed afterwards that jurors who deadlocked on punishment for convicted murderer Jodi Arias say they were split 11-1 in favor of the death penalty and that they tried unsuccessfully to get the lone dissenter, a woman, kicked off the panel. Fourteen jurors, including at least one alternate and one woman removed from the panel earlier, talked to reporters Thursday after the verdict. None of them would reveal their names. Many of the jurors said Arias lacked remorse and some said she tried to manipulate them. Jurors also said they believed the holdout was biased and that the woman even had an agenda. 'The one holdout had her mind made up from the beginning,' a male juror said according to AZ Central. 'The 11 of us strived for justice, but to no avail,' another juror, who was also not identified, said. 'We absolutely feel the penalty should have been death.' Realization: Sorenson raises her hand to her face as she breaks down in tears after Jodi Arias verdict was announced The Alexander family released a statement to say they are 'saddened by the jury's inability to reach a decision on the death penalty. However, they understand the difficulty of the decision, and have nothing but respect for the jury's time.' 'Obviously, as I said, during the closing arguments, during the opening statements, and several times during the trial, that the events of June 4, 2008 were a tragedy, and the no verdict ultimately could repair that sadness. I don't think today's victory will repair any sadness or change anything but we hope it can begin the closure process for all those who were affected by that tragedy. Thank you,' Arias' defense attorney Kirk Nurmi told reporters Thursday. The controversial decision came after jurors deliberated for five days over the 2008 murder which Arias was found guilty of in 2013. Arias, a 34-year-old former waitress from Salinas, California, was found guilty of the murder in 2013, but jurors at the original trial deadlocked on whether to give her the death penalty. Prosecutors accuse Arias of murdering her ex-partner, Travis Alexander, in a jealous rage, but she says she acted in self-defense. Alexander, 30, was found dead in a shower at his Phoenix-area home. He had been stabbed multiple times, his throat was cut almost from ear to ear, and he had been shot in the face. In closing statements, defense attorney Kirk Nurmi called for Arias' life to be spared, describing her as a remorseful and mentally ill woman who had been abused since childhood. Prosecutor Juan Martinez accused Arias of acting in a cold and calculating way and said there were no factors preventing the jury from giving her the death penalty. On Tuesday, the jury of eight women and four men were told by Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Sherry Stephens to try harder to come to a decision, after apparently deadlocking. Arias decided not to plead her case directly to the jury at the end of the sentencing retrial after Stephens denied the defendant's request that the courtroom be closed to the public and media during her comments. The original trial in 2013 was broadcast live and drew a large audience with its gruesome crime scene photographs and sexually explicit testimony. Grief stricken:Sorenson cries as she leaves the court house with family and friends on Thursday in Phoenix Tears for her brother: Family members of victim Travis Alexander wept when the judge said jurors couldn't reach a decision. They sobbed as they left the courtroom New home: This is the exact bed that Jodi Arias will now be transferred to at Lumley Unit of the Arizona State Prison Complex - Perryville near Goodyear Lumley Unit of the Arizona State Prison Complex - Perryville near Goodyear: This will be Jodi Arias' new home Defense attorney Kirk Nurmi pleaded for Arias' (pictured with defense attorney Jennifer Willmott) life during his closing arguments last Tuesday, saying she was physically and emotionally abused by Alexander On Tuesday, Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Sherry Stephens denied a request by Arias' attorneys for a mistrial and instead read additional jury instructions to the jury in her sentencing retrial. Defense attorney Kirk Nurmi said in court that jurors were at an impasse, though the judge and prosecutor Juan Martinez never confirmed that in open court. Jurors posed two questions to Stephens, who didn't reveal details. The judge and lawyers held closed-door discussions shortly before jurors were brought into the courtroom. Stephens told them that she didn't intend to force a verdict and said in her instructions that jurors shouldn't weigh evidence based on the views of other jurors. If the current jury can't decide on a sentence, the death penalty would be removed as an option and the judge would decide if Arias serves life in prison or gets a chance for release after 25 years. Last week, Nurmi pleaded Arias' life, saying she was physically and emotionally abused as a child and by former boyfriend Alexander. A judge declared a mistrial Thursday in the Jodi Arias sentencing case after a jury deadlocked on whether the convicted murderer should be executed or sent to prison for life for killing her lover in 2008. Tragedy: Arias' 2013 trial became a sensation with its tawdry revelations about her relationship with Alexander and that she shot him in the head and slit his throat so deeply that he was nearly decapitated Arias stabbed Alexander 30 times, nearly decapitated him when she slit his throat and shot him in the forehead Alexander's body was found in the shower of his Phoenix home by his friends five days later Nurmi said Alexander was a conflicted Mormon, who used Arias to satisfy his sexual desires and called her 'soulless'. 'Those words have impact and they got to her,' Nurmi said. Arias cried as prosecutor Juan Martinez displayed gruesome autopsy photographs of Alexander on a large screen during his closing argument. Martinez described Arias as a liar who was trying to trick the jury into believing she was the victim. He then pointed to the photograph of Alexander's decomposed body, covered in stab wounds, his throat cut and a gunshot wound to the forehead. 'That's what she wants you to believe,' he said. 'But actually, in reality, it's this.' Alexander's family and friends sobbed in the courtroom as the gruesome photographs were displayed. So concluded the five-month sentencing phase that was much quieter than the 2013 murder trial that made Arias a cable television and tabloid sensation. 
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#1. To: cranky (#0)
And then they publish numerous photos of the victim's sister it various stages of grief....
Perhaps a juror who lied to the court that she would be willing to impose the death penalty. Or someone looking for a book deal or 15 minutes of fame.
Or someone looking for a book deal or 15 minutes of fame. I can't explain it. But then, I can't imagine what a person would need to do in Az to merit the death penalty if Arias' crimes didn't rise to that level.
There are three kinds of people in the world: those that can add and those that can't
Obviously, request denied.
There are three kinds of people in the world: those that can add and those that can't
Don't families routinely show up in court to demonstrate their grief to sway the jury? I doubt this is the first time the family cried for the benefit of jurors. And Jody Arias has cried some crocodile tears for the jury too.
Well, I posted an article about yesterday on the subject of the death penalty, and one of the drawbacks to it was the enormous stress it places on the family of the victim who are virtually obligated to be drug through the court system of appeals for years and also having their very personal feelings being put unwillingly into the public spotlight. So this article and photos are a case in point. Is it worth the "closure" that they supposedly get after, maybe, 10 years of such treatment? And do they ever get closure even when the killer is executed? (I can't answer that but I'm sure the answer varies).
My guess is that many do and also many don't. People are such a messy business. You see some victim families absolutely opposing a death penalty and also others (probably the majority) demanding it. You do hear more news about the ones demanding an execution.
'The siblings request that their privacy be respected.
#2. To: cranky (#0)
#3. To: TooConservative (#2)
Perhaps a juror who lied to the court that she would be willing to impose the death penalty.
#4. To: Pinguinite (#1)
The siblings request that their privacy be respected.
#5. To: Pinguinite (#1)
And then they publish numerous photos of the victim's sister it various stages of grief....
#6. To: TooConservative (#5)
#7. To: Pinguinite (#6)
(Edited)
And do they ever get closure even when the killer is executed?
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