Post Verdict -Working Out The Unresolved Questions

[gcharlie]

It's less than two weeks until the status update hearing and CMJA has not shown any change in her demeanor based on her tweets. If anything, she has become more emboldened in all things Jodi. This does not bode well if she hopes that Travis's family would accept some kind of plea for less than the death penalty.

Some of the more bizarre tweets include:
- flaunting a "third" rejection of a plea, which the State denies was ever made.
- making mention of a FaceBook celebrity hate page after a CMJA fanatic was arrested for making death threats against this celebrity.
-announcing a webpage for her book club, which appears to be a club of one as there is no means by which people may join. Since this is an internet club, it cannot benefit prisoners who have no internet access. Due to an outpouring from the public, CMJA has directed that no more books be sent to her. In the meantime, her minions are busy working to add pearls of wisdom from CJMA on the more than 200 books she has read and reviewed. Prepare to be impressed with her literary prowess; in 2012 alone, she read more than 400 books.

Based on her behavior, it appears that CMJA still does not fully grasp the gravity of her situation nor does she understand proper conduct. She's got to be her attorney's worst nightmare in continuing to speak out in her self-aggrandizing fashion.

This all leads me to believe that we will see a retrial of the penalty phase, including CMJA taking the witness stand once again. The girl just can't help herself, even though this time around it is to her disadvantage to take the stand. She's already been found guilty and the murder was deemed especially cruel by the jury. Taking the stand as she appears right now runs the risk of alienating the jury and more importantly leaves her vulnerable to cross examination by Juan Martinez. If Juan has interviewed the first jury, he will know how to strengthen his case for retrial.

I fully expect the penalty phase to go to trial.

She may very well get the death penalty this time around, in large part due to the fact that she is doing nothing to help her case and everything to hurt it.

Tuba, without giving us a reading, can you give us any insight on how things will fare?

 

[Tuba]

I did post on that about one month back and my post was removed.

 

[gcharlie]

I did post on that about one month back and my post was removed.

Would you share your thoughts without consulting the planets?

 

[panthera]

She needed every last drop of the gas in her car and the jerry cans to make it from Pasadena out of Arizona without stopping and then all the way to West Jordan. IMO, the gas was used to get her to West Jordan and were empty when she arrived. This would explain why Leslie Udy did not smell gas in the car. I don't believe that there was enough gas to use as an accelerant and get her to her destination.

Totally agree. Not sure why the car smelled of smoke upon it's return, however, I do not believe she burned the missing evidence. It would be too risky to set a night fire, the car wasn't an off-road vehicle, so therefore whatever she did with the evidence, it was dumped, not burned with the gas in the cans. She needed that gas for the trip.

MOO

 

[geevee]

I updated the route map with labels for when she made stops and we know the time or bought gas, also (according to google) the length of each leg and the approx. amount of time it would take. Daylight savings time isn't observed in Arizona but that doesn't factor in much, because we don't have a receipt with time for the Mesquite, NV stop. Does it affect any other calculation?

Also, she may have slept on the way before or after Ryans, I think she was running on adreneline but who knows, outside of her breathlessness while leaving non-living Travis a lively voice mail she behaved relatively normally, so she may have eaten and slept like it was any other camping trip. Typing that gave me a big chill.

 

[dcsmyth1]

This all leads me to believe that we will see a retrial of the penalty phase, including CMJA taking the witness stand once again. The girl just can't help herself, even though this time around it is to her disadvantage to take the stand. She's already been found guilty and the murder was deemed especially cruel by the jury. Taking the stand as she appears right now runs the risk of alienating the jury and more importantly leaves her vulnerable to cross examination by Juan Martinez. If Juan has interviewed the first jury, he will know how to strengthen his case for retrial.

Well, it works both ways. CMJA also has the benefit of the first trial to correct her mistakes and refine the way she presents herself. I mean, given the gruesome details of the killing, the only way she can try to escape the DP, that I can see, is to 'charm' the jurors. She needs to demonstrate to the jurors that she is not like the 'typical' death row murderer--she is a normal, law-abiding person who simply 'flipped out' (whether a juror believes it happened right before the killing, or a week prior).

And indeed, if you look at the people who are actually on death row, you'll probably be very hard pressed to find one who matches her profile--young, female, attractive, well spoken, and with no prior criminal history.

If she takes the stand, I'm sure she will try to avoid the sometimes combative style she took with JM.

So, despite Juan's chance to refine his own presentation, I think the state still has un uphill battle to get the DP.

 

[gcharlie]

Minutes released today regarding Motion to Vacate Aggravation Phase Verdict:

IT IS ORDERED denying defendant’s Motion to Vacate Aggravation Phase Verdict
Pursuant to Rule 24.2 Arizona Rules of Criminal Procedure, filed July 8, 2013

Stephens opined that the motion to vacate penalty was "not ripe"; since the penalty phase ended in a mistrial with no penalty yet decided, this is basically a non-issue. You can't revoke something that hasn't even been addressed.

Regarding the substantive issue involving separation of powers, the defense again strikes out with the finding that the judicial branch has the responsibility to define terms in keeping with the intent of the legislative branch. The current rules have been standing now since 1973 without change or objection from the legislature, thus they are inferred to be in keeping with the legislature's intent.

 

[geevee]

Sooo...what will the defense do now? Thanks gc.

 

[geevee]

It should have taken her approx. 10.5 hours to get from Mesa to Ryans, throw in an extra hour for making the call to Travis outisde Kingman - unless she borrowed a couple of bottles of Costco water from DB I don't think she had a case of it in the trunk, think she made that up to help explain no additional room for 3 gas can, she said her luggage was also in trunk, one mighty full trunk.

Anyways, Ryan says she didn't get to his place until around 10:30 - 11:00 a.m. I believe, so we have some missing time on this leg:

6:15 pm - Leaves T's and gets on freeway
10:38 ? pm - Calls Ryan outside Kingman, AZ (4.25 hr drive accord. to google)
6/6 am Buys gas in Mesquite, NV (no receipt w/time)
11:00 am Arrives in W. Jordan (Ryans) Almost 12 hours after calling him, and a trip that should have taken no more than 6.25 hrs. to drive. It seems to be the main stretch where she could detour and hide the weapons. I wonder if she bought more gas in Mesquite than the one transaction we know of? She'd need canned gas to get anywhere other than W. Jordan, right?

 

[Tuba]

Something to resolve: Arias laid the voice mail on Travis's phone at 11:37 p.m. and she was 27 miles south of the AZ border, above Kingman. I did calculate the drive distance and time and it added 45 min. This is in a post up thread. So I figured she had been on the road 4 hr. 33 min. This put her leave time at 7:04 p.m. Since we know she left earlier than that, there was already lost time. The amount of time, 20 min., would be about right for getting blood off her body. I think she would definitely have checked her face in a couple of mirrors too, since she was headed to a check point. That stretch from Mesquite must be the deposit no return for crime scene evidence, I completely agree. I wish we had the missing gas receipt. There were only ten minutes from finishing the voice mail to Travis to a new day and date.

 

[Tuba]

One project we could start would be lay out all the ingredients to what will be served up on August 26 & then assemble them into something that makes sense.

 

[Tuba]

I'll try with this ingredient. The defense team has been disconsolate since July 31, when AZ Sup. Ct. issued its denial of the aggravator challenge in Benson. Prior to that opinion and ruling, Defense had been sluggish in cooperating with any schedule. Since then and now, they are inert. Strong tonic is needed for their appearance on August 26.

 

[gcharlie]

One project we could start would be lay out all the ingredients to what will be served up on August 26 & then assemble them into something that makes sense.

A defense strategy seems to have been meeting in chambers, rather than discussing things in court. This case/trial has also had a lot of ex parte meetings. I would expect to see the same on August 26.

JSS indicated that it is her preference that trial begin in September. She also expressed concern about one issue that might not be resolved in time for this date to be realistic. We still don't know what the issue might be.

Could the Richard Chrisman trial conflict with a penalty trial? I don't know what types of issues could give a judge pause in terms of scheduling other than availability of all parties. What are other possibilities?

 

[Tuba]

Another ingredient for the mix. County Att'y Bill Montgomery is amenable to a negotiated resolution to this penalty phase sentence. Not the Alexander family, not Juan Martinez, but Montgomery. JodiBookPage purports to want a deal too but she has no skills in arbitration, compromise or poker. She wants what she wants, full stop. Then too,what she wants is not an option on the table.

 

[geevee]

As mentioned above, they've tried many heel-dragging motions and charades, even going so far as openly blaming the PT for 2 years worth when the delaying motions all had Nurmi's name on them.

I'm sure after the usual in-chambers cheese and wine there will be other delaying tactics deployed, JM's current case (if it isn't to the jury by then), their own overflowing schedules (and vacations), it ought to be an aggravating hearing, should we be allowed to watch in real time.

 

[Tuba]

Judge Stephens has a propensity for tolerance. Patience on a Monument. She is nothing in this life or death trial if not permissive. Still, she reached her limit with the defense attorneys last month. Will Not & Nor Me had dug in their heels and were not about to be budged. She began laying down some firm dates. We know that despite the sobering ultimatums, Nurmi shined on the deadline for his reply, due August 5. It came in so late on the 9th that it wasn't even recorded until this week (discussed on Sidebar 17). It is possible that the judge's gavel will be replaced by a club.

 

[Tuba]

Somebody take on a most vital ingredient. What Prosecutor Juan Martinez wants. After we accomplish that, we still have to put it all together, adding some salt & pepper and a name for our creation.

 

[geevee]

My feeling is JM wants the highest penalty the law allows and I think he'd knock himself out working towards it (as he already has), but I think the Chrisman trial is going to take more out of him than he may have thought. He is a law and order man and not only does he have to prosecute a law man but with resistance from the police department. For his own sanity's sake he may have to allow a deal with Arias as long as the family approves.

 

[gcharlie]

Just think, if CMJA had done the right thing after murdering Travis by turning herself in, she very well could have negotiated a plea deal for manslaughter with a sentence of 7 to 21 years.

I do wonder what thoughts go through the heads of Martinez, Flores, Stephens and other officials who have worked this case and trial. I have no doubt in my mind that Flores and Martinez both want to see the death penalty for her. As for Stephens, if she has the responsibility of sentencing this woman, I believe that she will give her LWOP as she has witnessed behavior which probably gives her pause about CMJA ever walking free in society.

 

[franquerolane]

I wanted to add to the conversation on the cell phone call that originated while she was still in Arizona. It doesn't make sense that she would
go to all that trouble to be invisible in Arizona and then make a cell phone call knowing she was still in Arizona. Last year we drove to SLC and noticed when we checked the time, some miles south of the Utah border, the time on our cell phones changed to Utah time, an hour later then Arizona time. We figured our cell phones, in Arizona, were pinging off a tower across the state line in Utah. This is desolate country with spotty cell phone reception. Could this same thing have happened to JA in reverse? Could she have thought she was across the Nevada border and she had made it safely out of Arizona with no footprint, but actually, the tower was in Arizona, not Nevada?