Arizona is one of the few states in which jurors can submit questions they have, and the judge will then ask them during the trial. Based on the questions that the jurors submitted, one of the problems they had was whether to believe her testimony that she had acted in self-defense. They were bothered by the fact that she had already told so many lies to investigators. At least some of the jurors wondered how they could believe anything she said. What were some of the lies that may have troubled the jurors?
Biggest Lies Told by Jodi Arias
1. When she was first questioned on July 15, 2008 about the death of Travis Alexander, she insisted that she had not had any involvement in his death. She said, "I would never want to hurt him." Later, she would have to recant this statement.
2. She also told investigators that she had not seen Travis at all since April of that year, weeks before his death. However, a camera was found at the crime scene with photos inside that proved she was actually in the house on the day of his death.
3. Once she could no longer deny being present when he died, Jodi then told the police that two masked men had killed Travis, also claiming that one of the intruders had held a gun to her head.
4. Jodi must have forgotten the first story, because a short time later she told another tale about a pair of male and female masked intruders and how Jodi, trying to save Travis, had charged down the hall and pushed the female intruder as hard as she could. How heroic of her!
5. When no sign of intruders could be found and it appeared that Jodi was the only person present in the house that day, Jodi tried another tact. In this story, she finally admitted that she had killed Travis, but claimed it was in self-defense.
6. To support her story of self-defense, of course she had to come up with damaging evidence against Travis Alexander. She presented letters that Travis had supposedly sent to her indicating that he was a pedophile. However, court testing indicated that the letters were actually forgeries.
7. Apparently, Jodi Arias could not keep herself from lying, even about where she worked. Her new boyfriend, Ryan Burns, testified that Jodi had told him that the cuts on her fingers came from a broken margarita glass at the restaurant where she worked. She said the name of the restaurant was Margaritaville in the town of Yreka. No such restaurant exists.
8. In attempting to create a fake alibi, she visited Ryan Burns within hours after killing Travis, telling him that she arrived later than promised because she had gotten lost. She also left messages on Travis's phone, and sent him an email telling him that she was looking forward to seeing him soon. All this was done to create the impression that she did not yet know that he was dead.
9. In looking at her alibi, it becomes obvious that she was attempting to carry on a relationship with both Travis Alexander and Ryan Burns at the same time while, simultaneously, not wanting Travis to have a relationship with anyone else but her. The theory is that she killed him in a jealous rage.
10. Finally, even her appearance during the trial was a lie, of sorts. While she was described by the press as a "blonde bombshell" prior to her arrest, she darkened her hair color to brown and wore glasses and conservative clothing during the trial, all in an obvious attempt to look too sweet and innocent to have committed these crimes.
Without a doubt, the jurors were skeptical of these lies. After a four month trial, they convicted her of first-degree murder on May 8, 2013. However, even after being convicted it is possible that she is still spinning a web of lies. In an interview shortly after her conviction, she stated that she would prefer to die "sooner rather than later." She also said that "death is the ultimate freedom." In other interviews she has indicated that she contemplated suicide in the past. The result of these comments is that she has been placed on a suicide watch which has actually caused the penalty phase of her trial to be delayed. Was she still lying when she made these statements? Who knows? Perhaps even she does not know the truth when it comes to her own thoughts and feelings.
Whatever the truth about Jodi Arias, there is no question that the events that happened on the night of June 4, 2008 were a terrible tragedy for Travis Alexander.
Sources:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Killing_of_Travis_Alexander
http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-201_162-57583601/jodi-arias-says-she-prefers-death-penalty/
http://radaronline.com/exclusives/2013/04/jodi-arias-lies-murder-trial-travis-alexander/
You are reading from the blog: http://lies-and-liars.blogspot.com
Photo of courthouse door courtesy of www.morguefile.com
There are inaccuracies in your statements 1,3,5,6,7,9,and 10. Inaccuracies are often referred to as lies. For example, There is no difference between 3 and 4, "masked men" could be male or female. 6 The pedophile letters were never proven to be false. They were copies and therefore inadmissible in a court of law. The handwriting expert said they could not be proven with certainty to be from Travis, which is much different than saying they are forged. 9 Ryan Burns was someone Jodi Arias was just getting to know. Jodi and Travis often discussed their new love interests with each other. At that time she was seeing neither Travis nor Ryan. 10 Prisoners are not allowed to dye their hair. Jodi's hair was brown since at least May, 2008.,so why should she appear in court as a blonde? Brown is her natural hair color. Jodi wears prescription glasses. The "blonde bombshell" is the actual lie. She has explained all this many times.
ReplyDeleteThank you for your comments. I try to be as clear as possible on this blog, but I am sure there are times when I have misrepresented a case. Most of these particular lies in the Jodi Arias case were the statements that particularly troubled jurors, based on the questions they asked and statements they later made. However, you make an excellent point about the hair color. You are correct that she had to let her hair revert to its natural color. That's why I referred to is a lie "of sorts," since her overall appearance at the trial was far difference than the persona she presented when she was dating Travis. Of course, that is true for nearly anyone who is on trial for their life. The lies I used in this article were also based on those that were listed in a variety of media sources. I really appreciate your comments and I hope that the readers of the article will read your comments, as well!
DeleteI don't disagree that these are some whopping great lies you list here. However, labeling them "Biggest Lies Told by Jodi Arias" without clarifying that these were merely the biggest lies she told specifically about murdering Travis Alexander might mislead some people into believing that these were the biggest lies she ever told in her life. The thing is, most murderers tell lies about the murder they commit. What sets apart freaky pathological liars like Scott Peterson, Casey Anthony and Jodi Arias is all the whopping big lies they tell about other topics as well.
ReplyDeleteFor example, Jodi Arias' lie about working at the Margaritaville restaurant in Yreka which didn't exist is a big lie but, in my humble opinion, not as big as her lies about converting to the Mormon faith which obviously she did not really spiritually convert to. She merely parroted back the missionaries' teachings and went through the motions of baptism, because she was trying to fool Travis Alexander into believing she was potentially suitable to be his wife. So, these religion/faith lies were pretty big.
I could go on and on about Jodi Arias' history of outrageous lying -- amazingly similar to Casey Anthony who also could not speak without lying but who had the self control not to testify at her own trial -- which literally every person who knew her has described, including her own parents. However, I think you understand my point without my writing a novel about Jodi Arias' lifetime of lies.
Thank you so much for your comments. I hope that my readers will scroll down and read what you had to say. It is an excellent addendum to my article. You are correct that Jodi Aria has a long history of telling outrageous lies. I am sure that someone will write a book about her life!
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