PHOENIX – A judge sentenced convicted murderer Jodi Arias to life in prison without the possibility of release on Monday, ending a nearly seven-year-old case that attracted worldwide attention with its salacious details.
The decision by Judge Sherry Stephens was largely a formality after a jury deadlocked last month on whether to give Arias the death penalty or life in prison. The mistrial removed the death penalty as an option.
READ MORE: Jodi Arias won’t receive death penalty after jury deadlocks on sentence
The only decision left Monday was whether the judge would allow Arias, 34, to be eligible for release after 25 years. She declined to do that, meaning Arias will spend the rest of her life in prison.
Arias’ 2013 trial became a media sensation and gained international attention as details of her tawdry relationship with on-again-off-again boyfriend Travis Alexander and the violent crime scene emerged while the courtroom saga was broadcast live.
Arias gave a rambling statement in which she stood by her testimony and accused police and prosecutors of changing their story during the investigation.
“The most important thing I want to say is that I’m very sorry for the enormous pain I caused to the people who loved Travis,” she said. “I’m truly disgusted and I’m repulsed with myself.”
Arias killed Alexander in 2008 in what prosecutors said was retaliation for his desire to break off the relationship. She shot him 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.
The original jury deadlocked on whether to sentence Arias 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 favour of death. The 11 jurors who wanted the death penalty said the holdout juror had an agenda and was sympathetic to Arias.
Arias will begin serving her sentence in a maximum-security unit at the Perryville prison for women, located 30 miles (48 kilometres) west of downtown Phoenix. If prison officials deem her behaviour good over time, she could be moved to lower-security units.
Comments