JODI ARIAS SENTENCED TO LIFE IN PRISON WITHOUT PAROLE FOR 2008 MURDER OF EX-BOYFRIEND
http://www.foxnews.com/us/2015/04/13/jodi-arias-to-be-sentenced-in-murder-lover-bringing-end-to-lengthy-case/Arias gets life in prison with no chance of parole for murder of ex-boyfriend
Published April 13, 2015FoxNews.com
DEVELOPING:
Jodi Arias gets life in prison with no chance of parole for the 2008 murder of ex-boyfriend Travis Alexander.
Earlier version of the story below:
The long-running legal saga of convicted murderer Jodi Arias will come to a close Monday as a judge formally imposes a life sentence in the 2008 shooting and stabbing death of her on-again-off-again boyfriend Travis Alexander.
The sentencing is largely a formality after a jury deadlocked last month on whether to give her the death penalty or life in prison. The mistrial removed the death penalty as an option, and the only remaining decision is whether the judge will allow the 34-year-old Arias to be eligible for release after 25 years or serve the rest of her life behind bars.
Arias appeared in court in Phoenix Monday, wearing stripes, with only her mom on her side. On the other side of the courtroom were Alexander’s siblings.
The eleven jurors in the jury box were wearing blue, the support color of the Alexander family.
Arias spoke to Judge Sherry Stephens, saying that death would give her "peace and freedom."
"If I died today I would be free and I would be at peace," she said.
Arias said she believes she should be held accountable for actions
"I do remember the moment when the knife went into Travis's throat and he was conscious," she said.
Arias said she wishes, "there was some way to take it back."
Arias told Stephens she's "disgusted" and "repulsed" with herself.
In court statements, Alexander's aunt, Heather Schafer, pleaded with the judge to give Arias the maximum sentence so she will not be able to destroy other families.
Alexander's younger sister, Hilary Wilcox, told the judge that Travis will never get to meet her children.
"I hate it that she has taken my past with my brother and my future with him," Wilcox said.
Arias sat with her head down while the statements were being made.
Arias killed her ex-boyfriend in 2008 after a stormy relationship. Prosecutors say she murdered him in a jealous rage because he wanted to break off the relationship.
Arias shot Alexander and stabbed him nearly 30 times in his suburban Phoenix home before fleeing and driving to Utah to meet up with another romantic interest. She was arrested weeks later and initially denied any involvement.
International media attention soon followed after she did two television interviews in which she told a bizarre story of masked intruders breaking into the home and killing Alexander while she cowered in fear. She subsequently changed her story and said it was self-defense after Alexander attacked her on the day he died.
Her 2013 trial became a media circus as details of their kinky relationship and the violent crime scene emerged in court and were broadcast live. Spectators traveled to Phoenix and lined up in the middle of the night to get a seat in the courtroom to catch a glimpse of what had become to many a real-life soap opera.
Interest in the case intensified after Arias did a jailhouse interview minutes after she was convicted of murder, telling a local TV reporter that she preferred the death penalty over life in prison.
"I would much rather die sooner than later. Longevity runs in my family, and I don't want to spend the rest of my natural life in one place," she said.
The original jury was deadlocked on whether to sentence her to death, setting up another penalty phase trial that began last year. After months of testimony and efforts by Arias' lawyers to portray Alexander as a sexual deviant who physically and emotionally abused her, the second jury also failed to reach a unanimous decision -- this time 11-1 in favor of death.
The 11 jurors who wanted the death penalty said the holdout juror had an agenda and was sympathetic to Arias.
Fox News’ Jennifer Girdon and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
