Given: JA was the obvious first and only choice as the perp of TA's murder to all of TA's friends; the camera was found; incriminating blood evidence was left; so there was an extremely slim chance JA would had gotten away with the murder. Thanks goodness for all of that!
But, stepping back in time to before the murder and to the time when JA was in the planning stages, I'd like to know how JA envisioned the aftermath, assuming she had not been caught.
How did she imagine she was going to get away with it?
What kind of reaction was she expecting from everyone?
How did she envision her life proceeding afterward?
What were her next plans?
Who did she have in her love-life cross-hairs?
etc
The thing with a psychopath is they can take up to a year planning a murder.
JA agreed to purchase Travis' BMW because her Acura was being repossessed. Only, as Jodi was towing the BMW, she did it with the car in gear which, in turn, burned the motor, iirc. So now her Acura is repossessed and she owes Travis for a car with a busted motor. While she is on the way to Yreka and the BMW is broken down, she turns around and goes back to Travis' for two more days. This time when she leaves, Travis stands at the front of his home and gives her the *advertiser censored** you sign with both hands as she drives away in tears. It is at this time that, imoo, Jodi began planning his death. All the way to Yreka she needed or wanted him dead.
While she was back in Yreka, she worked out. She ran every day. She got her body in shape because she was going to murder Travis.
1) How did she imagine she was going to get away with it?
CMJA thought about the killing obsessively down to the tiniest detail. It consumed her thoughts. She assumed her beauty and charm would be enough to win over LEO. Most of all, I believe she considered herself smarter than LEO. I believe she stole money from TA; the rent money the roommate paid TA in cash. I also believe she meant to take the camera with her but it got mixed in with the washing machine so she could not find it anywhere when she looked. I think she liked the idea of taking TA's pictures while she was slowly killing him and slowly she photographed him.
One thing I wandered about during the crime was why so much of his blood was splattered at the BR sink area. Why did she allow TA to stand at the mirror for any amount of time? What was she doing? Again, I think she was really into the "art" of the crime and in a very sick way enjoyed watching him bleed and suffer and plead.
2) What kind of reaction was she expecting from everyone?
CMJA attended TA's service and sent Travis' Grandma flowers because she was acting a part. TA's friends were having their suspicions about her involvement early on. CMJA lived with Grandma so most likely she told her parents a lie about Travis.
Can you imagine the downgrade from a lovely two story home of a great looking, great hearted, young, professional gentleman who is taking trips to islands to being in Yreka, in her bedroom, with a twin size bed, at Grandma's? It hurt her pride. She was pizzed off. He would pay dearly for pushing her to the curb.
3) How did she envision her life proceeding afterward?
CMJA always seemed to land on her feet. She would live at her grannie's that she stole from and work at the family diner until....Well, she did buy a gun [w/the money she stole from TA]. What was she scared of enough to carry a gun? Killing came very easy for her. The slit throat was always a part of her plan and that action required physical strength.
4) What were her next plans?
Same as 3. That guy Matthew McCartney was still her friend. [Could he be the secret witness?] And the girl who came to court, sat with the aunt and mother, chewed gum and generally looked high was JAs friend. Gus Searcy was another friend.
5) Who did she have in her love-life cross-hairs?
It typically did not take CMJA long to find a one night stand. Gus may have been some help with sending her contacts. So there's that. I think she solely met with Ryan Burns that week in order to have the alibi. [Last I heard, RB married and all is well.]
Travis knew she was the worst thing to ever happen to him but it was too late. There is the one particular photo taken in the shower where Travis appears to maybe be crying. I believe he was.
JMO OMO MOO and all that jazz
These are random assumptions on my part. I have no real idea how the murder occurred.
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