Abstract
Jodi Arias murdered her former boyfriend Travis Alexander. The victim was shot in the head and stabbed over 20 times. Travis Alexander was found lifeless in his bathroom by one of his friends after they came to check up on him. Jodi and Travis met at a convention in 2006 the immediately sparked interest in each other.
At the time that they met they lived in different states. Jodi lived in California and Travis lived in Arizona. They immediately started to have a long-distance relationship. After some time, they ended up breaking up but, continued to see each other sexually. Jodi ended up moving to Arizona because she wanted to be closer to Travis. After some talked she started to clean Travis’s home to earn extra cash. Jodi was a photographer and didn’t make much money.
Jodi eventually moved back to California because she couldn’t afford living in Arizona. Jodi was staying with his grandparents while she was briefly in Arizona. After she moved back to California his Grandparents noticed that their gun was missing. Jodi went on a trip with her friends to Utah and decided that she wanted to take a detour to see Travis. During her visit her and Travis had sexual relations and took several sexy pictures on her camera.
During her visit Travis was brutally murdered after she discovered that he was talking to another woman through text messages. Jodi grabbed is phone while he was in the shower. She saw the text messages and texted the woman back. After that she proceed to the bathroom where Travis was showering and brutally murdered him.
The Crime Scene
On June 9, 2008, Travis Alexander's body was found in the shower of his Mesa, Arizona home. Mr. Alexander’s friends got increasingly worried because they didn’t hear from him in some time. Immediately, after entering the residence the young men saw the horrid crime scene where they found Mr. Alexander’s lifeless body in the bathroom. We were called to the crime scene where we found the victim with a gunshot wound to the head, 27 stab wounds, and a slit throat ear to ear. Several pieces of evidence were taking from Mr. Alexander’s home at that time.
Arias quickly became the focus of our investigation, she was charged with Alexander's murder on July 9, 2008, and was arrested soon after. Initially, Arias denied any involvement in his death. Then, our investigators found her DNA mixed with Alexander's blood at the crime scene. The investigators collected several key points of evidence that pointed to Mrs. Arias.
Our Detectives found Jodi’s bloody palm print and hair at the crime scene. We sent it to the lab for processing. While we canvassed the crime scene, we found a camera in Travis’s washer machine. In the camera photos were later obtained which included before and during his murder. Jodi took pictures of Travis as she was killing him. All evidence was bagged seperatley and sent to the lab promptly to ensure proper chain of custody.
Special Investigations
Because the nature of the crime, we called in our special victims unit to assist with the investigation. When we got to the crime scene we noticed that we would need assistance with all of the evidence. The special victims unit helped us photograph all the bloody evidence. Myself and detective Church were the first to arrive on the scene. The coroner was called after all evidence was gathered. We didn’t want too many people at the crime scene because we didn’t want to risk contamination of any evidence.
Evidence
In the bathroom we recovered a lifeless victim. The victim had one gunshot to the head and 27 stab wounds which we visible. We swabbed the wounds for DNA and bagged it for evidence. We took photos of the victim for evidence on our police polaroid camera. In the bathroom we found a bloody handprint which was small in size compared to Travis Alexander. We took photos of the hand prints and bagged it for evidence. We were able to carefully lift the print and bagged it for evidence. All Travis’s wounds were measured, Photographed and bagged for evidence.
There was blood splatter throughout the bath room. Photographs were taken and bagged for evidence. There was a lot of blood on the bedroom carpet we cut out a piece of the carpet of evidence. After we cut it out it was bagged. In an area in the bedroom we found a shell casing. We bagged it up for evidence. There was a digital card from possibly a camera in the washer machine. We bagged it for evidence. We took several palm impressions from both the bathroom and bedroom walls that were bloody.
Interview/Interrogation
We brought Jodi Arias in for questioning after we suspected her of murdering Travis Alexander. Jodi lied to us several times during her questioning. She told myself and my partner that she did not kill Travis. She told us that there were ninjas that broke into Travis’s apartment and killed him. She said after sometime the let her go. We then proceeded to question her about her and Travis. She stated that they broke up but she was visiting him. She also claimed she wasn’t there and she was with another man.
The Trial
Testimony in the Jodi Arias trial began in January 2013. Several key pieces of evidence were presented to the jury at that time. The jury heard testimony for several months from witnesses. In the beginning of the trial, the jury saw the gruesome evidence against Mrs. Arias. Some of the evidence introduced included: Matching DNA, stab wounds, digital camera, graphic photographs of the scene taken by Mrs. Arias, and a memory card.
Mrs. Arias took the stand a month into the trial. Upon her taking the stand she testified that she killed him in self-defense claiming to be abused by Mr. Alexander. After all the evidence was presented, and the closing arguments were done the jury was given their jury instructions and they started deliberating.
Conviction
Jurors reached a unanimous decision in the case on May 8, 2013. Jodi Arias was found guilty of first-degree murder. Arias now awaits sentencing, which could mean the death penalty.
Sentencing Phase
The sentencing phase started in early 2013. After both sides their arguments, the jury came back hung and couldn’t reach a decision on the death penalty or life in prison. Arias would become only the third female death-row inmate in Arizona history. With the jury being unable to reach a decision, there was a re-trial scheduled for late 2014.
Re-sentencing phase:
In the current phase the defense has made a motion to dismiss all charges because they believe the investigators tampered with evidence in regards to Mr. Alexander’s computer. The re-trial of the sentencing phase will continue until early 2015. Several witnesses have taken the stand including Mr. Alexander’s family. Proceedings with this case are still on going and will last until early 2015.
Several witnesses have taken the stand including Mrs. Arias. With the new trial underway Mrs. Arias will have life in prison or will have the death penalty. Mrs. Arias motioned the court to not allow the media being present in court. The media took this to the appellate court, and they won their motion. The media was allowed back in the courtroom. After conclusion of this phase Mrs. Arias was sentence to life without the possibility of parole.