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| Jodi Arias |
More than a year after she was found guilty of murdering her ex-boyfriend, Jodi Arias is back for her death penalty trial . The 34-year-old Arizona woman is facing a new jury who will decide whether or not she deserves the death penalty — something the original jury couldn’t agree on. Lawyers are expected to make their opening statements on the case on Tuesday.
To be clear, Arias is not on trial over the murder of her ex-boyfriend Travis Alexander, who was stabbed 29 times and suffered a gunshot wound to the face at his home in Mesa, Arizona, in 2008. Arias contended that she killed Alexander in self-defense. The previous jury, however, rejected that claim. Arias was convicted of first-degree murder in May 2013, and that conviction still stands.
However, the previous jury became deadlocked during the sentencing period, torn between the death penalty and life in prison. According to CNN, a source close to the previous jury said the vote was 8-4 in favor of the death penalty. A death penalty sentence needs an unanimous vote from a 12-person jury, so Judge Sherry Stephens declared a mistrial.
Arias’ retrial will only focus on what’s called the “penalty phase.” A new jury was carefully picked from a pool of about 400 applicants, with the court making sure prospective jurors were impartial on both Arias’ case and the death penalty.
What happens if this new jury can’t decide if Arias deserves the death penalty? Reuters reports that in the case of a second hung jury, Stephens will take the death penalty off the table altogether and hand down either sentence to Arias: life in prison or life without parole for 25 years.
Source: Bustle, October 21, 2014
