Interproj

FPSY 6102 Cases for Final Project

Jodi Arias

Jodi Arias brutally murdered her boyfriend in 2008 in his Mesa, Arizona, home. The 28-year-old slit her boyfriend’s throat, stabbed him over two dozen times, and shot him in the head. Following the murder, Jodi initially denied any involvement, but police investigators found her DNA at the crime scene, and she was charged with the murder within a month. Initially, she told police that masked men had broken into her boyfriend’s home while she was there, attacked them both, killing her boyfriend, and then decided to allow her to live (Bio, 2016). Later, she admitted killing her boyfriend but explained that she had done so in self-defense due to ongoing physical abuse by him.

According to Bio (2016), Jodi’s 4-month trial began in January 2013 and was aired live to the public. She testified for 18 days in her own defense. The jury convicted her of first-degree murder but was unable to come to an agreement about her sentencing. Finally, in April 2015, after two deadlocked juries, she was sentenced to life in prison and escaped the death penalty.

During Jodi’s 18 days of testimony, she explained to the jury that her boyfriend had been emotionally and physically abusive to her (Pelisek, 2013). According to her, he vacillated between forcing her to have aggressive sex and then ignoring her, punishing her with emotional aloofness. She shared pictures and text messages to support her claims with the jury. In the end, the jury convicted her despite her claims.

References

Bio. (2016). Jodi Arias biography. Retrieved from http://www.biography.com/people/jodi-arias-21221959

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Pelisek, C. (2013). Court report: Jodi Arias’s baffling defense strategy. The Daily Beast. Retrieved from http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2013/02/17/jodi-arias-s-baffling-defense-strategy.html

U.S. Department of Justice. (2015). Judge imposes death sentence for Boston Marathon bomber. Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). Retrieved from https://www.fbi.gov/boston/press-releases/2015/judge-imposes-death-sentence-for-boston-marathon-bomber