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Reuters

Convicted killer Jodi Arias pleaded with an Arizona jury on Tuesday to spare her the death penalty for the sake of her family and sentence her instead to life in prison for killing her ex-boyfriend.
Arias, 32, was found guilty earlier this month in the murder of Travis Alexander, whose body was found slumped in the shower of his Phoenix-area home in June 2008. He had been stabbed 27 times, had his throat slashed and been shot in the face.

The murder trial, which featured graphic testimony and photographs, became a sensation on US cable television with its story of an attractive, intelligent and soft-spoken young woman charged with an unthinkable crime.
The former waitress from California had previously said publicly that she preferred execution to life in prison, but reversed herself on Tuesday, citing concern for her family, in a final act in a marathon court drama that began in January.
“As I stand here now, I can’t in good conscience ask you to sentence me to death because of them,” she said, gesturing to her father and other family members in court.
“I made many public statements that I would prefer the death penalty to life in prison. Each time I said that, though I meant it, I lost perspective. Until very recently I could not have imagined standing before you all and asking you to give me life ... I thought I would rather die,” she said.
Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Sherry Stephens asked the jury on Tuesday afternoon to begin deliberations on a sentence for Arias following closing arguments in the penalty phase of her trial. The jury adjourned for the day without reaching a verdict and will resume deliberations on Wednesday.
If the jury is unable to reach a unanimous decision, a new jury would be impaneled to determine whether the death penalty should be imposed.
In an interview from jail late on Tuesday, Arias told the Arizona Republic newspaper she was not going to “think too much” about the looming verdict, but would just “take what’s coming to me.”
Should the jury give her a death sentence, she said she would wait for the mandatory appeals process “just taking it day by day.” If she gets life in prison, she would “make the most of it” and do what do she can do “to help other people there.”

During her trial, Arias admitted killing Alexander but said she had acted in self-defence after he attacked her. She also characterised her relationship with Alexander as physically and emotionally abusive.
“To this day, I can hardly believe I was capable of such violence, but I know that I was, and for that I’m going to be sorry for the rest of my life ... I was horrified by what I had done, and I am horrified still,” Arias said.
During Tuesday’s court appearance, she told jurors she could lead a productive life in prison, and that there were many things she could do to “effect positive change” and contribute to society.
She mentioned that already, from behind bars, she had donated her long hair to a charity that provides wigs to children, including cancer patients, suffering from hair loss.

	Prosecutors said Arias had repeatedly stabbed Alexander for two minutes as he tried to escape and that she then followed him down a hallway and slashed his throat
“If I’m allowed to live in prison, I will continue to donate to that organisation for the rest of my life,” she said, adding that she would also like to contribute to campaigns for litreacy and to curb domestic violence.
In closing arguments, defence attorney Jennifer Willmott walked jurors through eight mitigating factors - among them that Arias had suffered abuse, had no criminal history and was 27 at the time of the murder - and urged them to show mercy.
“Jodi took Travis away ... but two wrongs do not make a right. Jodi can still contribute to this world,” Willmott told jurors, as Arias sat calmly by her side.
“We are asking you to find that Jodi’s life is worth saving .. Despite her very worst deed, you can still show mercy and find that she still has value in her life and sentence her to a term of life in prison,” she said.
Prosecutor Juan Martinez countered that there were no documented reports to corroborate Arias’ claims of abuse and urged the jury to return a death sentence.
Tuesday’s final proceedings came a day after Judge Stephens denied a defence request for a penalty phase mistrial as well as a subsequent request by defence lawyers to withdraw from the case. The judge also denied a motion for a stay to give the defence time to appeal her decisions to the state Supreme Court.
Arias has told the court she had shot Alexander with his own pistol after he attacked her because she had dropped his camera while photographing him in the shower. She said she did not remember stabbing him.
Prosecutors said Arias had repeatedly stabbed Alexander for two minutes as he tried to escape and that she then followed him down a hallway and slashed his throat.
Alexander, a 30-year-old businessman and motivational speaker with whom Arias said she was having an on-again, off-again affair, knew he was going to die and was unable to resist his attacker at that point, Martinez said.
Jurors heard testimony last week from Alexander’s younger brother Steven, who said the killing had invaded his dreams and that since the murder he had been hospitalized several times for ulcers. He said he never wanted to see Arias again.
Alexander’s younger sister Samantha said thoughts of “the pain, agony, the screams and the fear” of her brother’s last moments were stuck in her mind.
On Tuesday, Arias acknowledged the siblings’ distress and said she “never meant to cause them so much pain.”
“It is my hope that with the verdict you have rendered thus far they will finally gain a sense of closure. Steven said he doesn’t want to look at his brother’s murderer anymore. If I get life, he won’t have to,” Arias said.


Jodi Arias asks Arizona jury to spare her death penalty

Jodi Arias in court. Photo: Reuters

Arias listens to a question during an interview at the Maricopa County Estrella Jail. Photo: AP

A Maricopa County Sheriffs Deputy stands watch next the cell of convicted killer Jodi Arias at the Maricopa County Sheriffs Office Estrella Jail. Photo: AP

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