I listened to a recent hearing on a podcast yesterday on my drive home from work. She is utterly ridiculous. What a nightmare for everyone in the judicial system.
Curious, what are her options for appeal when she defends herself and F’s it up?
Lets keep in mind that it's not as if LVD has any chance of messing up an otherwise-winning case. Nor does she have any chance of changing her AZ future for the worse, since she has to serve
multiple life sentences without parole before AZ will be able to impose any punishment on her.
"what are her options for appeal when she defends herself and F’s it up?" -- Because she has chosen to represent herself, she has permanently
waived any right to an appeal on the basis of ineffective counsel. She did this while having the help of counsel, in open court, and where it was explained to her and agreed by her multiple times. That waiver explicitly extends to any counsel that would replace her mid-trial for any reason, even if the court makes that decision (such as if she is deemed incompetent during the trial).
She absolutely has the right to speak for herself.
And while I am far from a fan of her and her toxic ways, when we look at it from her pov -- because she has no downside here, why not? I can postulate several logical reasons why this appeals to her that are really NOT about her wanting to put on a "show":
1 Who can better advocate for her own narcissistic need to paint herself as perfect, and misunderstood, and one who has done no wrong? She's not going to get any of that from a lawyer doing lawyerly things at trial. With every witness, she gets to ask questions that paint LVD in a "good light" and she certainly gets to
confront each and every witness against her (which is her Constitutional right).
2 What else does she have to do with her time? This allows her to be active and working.
3 What better opportunity does she have to be engaged, inventive, and scheming while confined? She now has the endorsement of the court to research, argue, and try to invent angles and arguments that can persuade others.
4 It's a potential education for her, whether we like it or not. In the long run, if she gains some actual legal skills in the process, in writing and filing motions, it can potentially be useful in her prison life ahead to have (and be able to "sell") that sort of skill as needed.