long weekend break: discuss the latest here #101

[Liebchenmutti]

To give you all an idea about what I call "born litigators".

I work for a firm with over 250 attorneys. I'm a para professional so I've seen my fair share of litigation. We are consistently ranked every year in the top 10 firms in the COUNTRY for our specialty area (most of which we rank in the top 5 of that list). Out of 250 attorneys we have 3 attorneys (who I consider "born litigators"), but one main standout. The other attorneys in our firm attend Court to just WATCH that one standout attorney. He commands attention in a Courtroom. And that's how I see Juan. He COMMANDS attention. And it's RARE to see attorneys go without anything at all to jog memories or keep on track. Many times attorneys need witness outlines to do their questioning. Juan doesn't. He has an amazing command of this case.

I'm in total awe of his ability.

ITA! I am in awe of his mind--he is brilliant at what he does. It's truly amazing to see him in action--I've never seen any other prosecutor be so detail-oriented and organized and on the ball. He's masterful with defense witnesses--he uses his techniques to get them to give him the answer he wants. Totally awesome.

 

[Colt46]

Haven't been able to watch the good Doctor answer juror questions today because of work, but did any juror ask this question:

Were there any 'Dear Diary' entries on June 4ht about the moment she shot Travis? Any mention at all??? If not, why not? Seems to invalidate all of Dr. Quack's theories about finding 'no negative words' in her 'diary'. No violent tendencies whatsoever!!! Puleeze!

***Or did JA write: "Nothing noteworthy to report today - June 4 2008.

 

[katiedid2]

Just turning on Nancy Grace now and scroll under screen read:

Trialwatcher sitting behind Jodi Arias mom; " I wish Jodi were dead."WHAT????!!! Did I read this correctly?

Is it referencing a comment spoken verbally by the trialwatcher or Jodi's mom??

Yeah heard about that!
Guess someone pulled a
I'm Helen and I'm telling or crime stopper.:what:

 

[StephanieHartPI]

It is not uncommon at all for therapy session to be recorded (with the patients permission)

In the case of his interviewing Jodi, It would have been fine to record with her permission (and the Defense team) and I guarantee it would not have inhibited her.

It's like Video taping...given a few minutes you forget the video is on and act normal (or not lol) Same with a tape, yes at first for the first minute or so, the person may appear a tad big uncomfortable, but then they rattle on and soon forget it's being taped. (like when a P.I. interviews a witness, you just tape it, if they don't want to be taped or refuse, then I can't interview them) I'm not going to end up in court battling a he said she said thing (depending on who is being interviewed)

In the case of Sister Jodi here, I know why he didn't record it. He along with the Defense team made that call because they don't want one more piece of Jodi Crap Speak on tape for all to hear.. The tapes would be considered the same as his raw data, and Mr Martinez could take those and have a Psychiatrist or Psychologist listen and analyze them and have a completely different conclusion.

That's why it was not recorded, this allows the Doctor to write down whatever he wants to write down to favor the Defense. Even if Jodi didn't say it.

I hope the Jury BS meter went up when he said he didn't record it.

 

[krissij]

My favorite juror question was the one asking if a bad haircut could lead to Transient Global Amnesia (or something like that). That one made me spit out my coffee.
Juan is so amazing! I love his passion, knowledge and enthusiasm. On the other hand, JW made me want to throw things at my TV.
MOO

 

[panthera]

Thanks for the response, just to be clear I don't believe one word of JAs character assasination of TA. I haven't heard anyone else who ever knew him say he was violent in any way. But anyone when cornered and attacked would rightfully defend themselves. Think of it this way, the unbelievable self defense fight or flight story the DT is trying to spin would really apply to TA as he was attacked.

:welcome4:

 

[AZlawyer]

Haven't been able to watch the good Doctor answer juror questions today because of work, but did any juror ask this question:

Were there any 'Dear Diary' entries on June 4ht about the moment she shot Travis? Any mention at all??? If not, why not? Seems to invalidate all of Dr. Quack's theories about finding 'no negative words' in her 'diary'. No violent tendencies whatsoever!!! Puleeze!

Talking about all that negative Travis stuff for 19 days on the stand was bad enough considering the "Law of Attraction"...imagine if she'd also written it in her diary! She might end up on death row or something.

 

[katydid23]

I am re-watching Juan now on HLN. I am still trying to process this BOMBSHELL concerning
the original test results.

If I am getting this right, Samuels tried to pull a fast one on us.

 

[katiedid2]

Remember his primary clientele are sex OFFENDERS. His knowledge of PTSD is coming from what he's learned about THEIR victims. How he landed this gig is a mystery to me. I suppose he is well known to defense attorneys, but shezzzz.

I'm wondering
Will wilmott get another chance after martinez
Please say it isn't so!
:banghead:

 

[Donnareit]

how the doctor explains Jodi's ability to step out of the murder and back into her old life? Dissociative Amnesia should have wrecked havoc on her ability to function:

Table 1

DSM-IV-TR diagnostic criteria for dissociative amnesia

The predominant disturbance is one or more episodes of inability to recall important personal information, usually of a traumatic or stressful nature, that is too extensive to be explained by ordinary forgetfulness.

The disturbance does not occur exclusively during the course of dissociative identity disorder, dissociative fugue, posttraumatic stress disorder, acute stress disorder, or somatization disorder and is not due to the direct physiologic effects of a substance (e.g., drug abuse or medication) or a neurological or other general medical condition (e.g., amnestic disorder due to head trauma).

The symptoms cause clinically significant distress or impairment in social, occupational, or other important areas of functioning.

 

[SmoothOperator]

Thanks, very true no ropes in the pictures. Also no .25 cal pistol in pictures either. Restraint can be accomplished in other ways too such as gun point. Just a curiosity of the physical evidence versus the testimony.

physical evidence versus testimony..

Tho, no pictures of the murder weapons are available, we do however have physical evidence of both the .25 cal semi automatic handgun, and a knife with a non serrated blade were at the scene of the crime when the murder was executed. We do have a picture of Travis during the commission of the murder that indicates severe debilitating wounds were inflicted in a matter of less than 100 seconds of time..that picture however does not show any presence of rope involvement..

The physical evidence we have indicating the above mentioned gun and knife are given to us via Travis' body which was relayed to us by the ME as well as via pictures that prove there was a .25 Cal semi automatic handgun that's bullet ejected from it entered above his right brow, traveled through the frontal lobe of his brain, and lodged itself in his cheek. Travis' body also proves the non serrate bladed knife was present at the scene and inflicted 29 stab wounds, including defensive wounds, along with the knife was used to slit his throat depth to his spine in nearly decapitating him..

IMO the physical evidence does prove as fact that the 25 semi automatic was there, as does it prove the non serrate bladed knife was there at the time of the murder. what physical evidence we do not have is anything whatsoever that indicates there was any rope present at any point on the day of June 4, 2008.

Furthermore we have only the testimony from the killer that there was ever rope involved or present in the home that day and quite literally nothing whatsoever that would even begin to lend credence to this claim made by the killer.

IMO the fact that we do have such solid physical evidence in this case, combined with the fact that the killer's claims involving rope are fully self serving in totality to her latest "version" lead me to have the very strong opinion that the rope is one of several completely fabricated and testified to non existent pieces of evidence that the killer is lying about to quite literally save her .

Jmo about what we do have proven to us via physical evidence vs. testimony solely from the killer and NO ONE else.

 

[TartLemon]

Why does NG say she's camped out at the AZ courthouse, but continues to say on her live TV show the court is still in session?

 

[G&AMom]

Q: You said first that 3 to 8 people out of 100,000 had transient global amnesia; later you said 3% to 8%. Which is correct? 3 to 8 people, not percent.
Q: You stated that transient global amnesia can be caused by sex or immersion in water; can it be caused by other things like a bad haircut [hard to do shorthand when laughing]? No, the trauma is connected to physiology.
Q: Is Jodi taking medication for PTSD? She has taken tranquilizers and anti-depressants. Sometimes medication is suggested for PTSD. I was not involved [in prescribing], that is done by jail physicians. She told me was taking medication.
Q: If decision making is prevented, how did Jodi get so much done [after the attack]? The higher cognitive functions [fonctions?] shut down, given over to basic instincts. A person could still make judgments and decisions but not higher decisions, more complicated decisions.
Q: Did you diagnose anything else? An anxiety disorder and personality disorder not otherwise specified, not enough information.
Q: When you use the word “appears” does that mean you are not sure? Not 100% sure. We are seldom 100% sure in psychiatry.
Q: Are your opinions based on what a patient tells you about what happened? Not solely. Must review all information, crime scene reports, victim reports.
DS: Hippocampus blocks the formation of memories. [Mentions camera.}
Objection, previous order of the court. Approach. Sustained.
Q: When discussing intrusive thoughts, you referred to “actors”; what did you mean? With intruder story, the two ninjas were one set of actors. With self defense story, Jodi and Travis were another set of actors.
DS: Jodi told me about shaking. I could not see it because of her holding her hands where I could not see them, and the thick wire mesh between us. She gave me a demonstration and talked about the shaking, also mentioned sweaty palms.
Q: Are actions taken in this state (of instinctive behavior) reflective of one’s core personality? Possibly. You are on automatic under stress. Can those actions be the extreme opposite? Can a pacifist become violent? The person doesn’t plan when the hippocampus is in charge; it is automatic. Like an emergency in an elevator, no thought is involved. Has to happen quickly. [You] have no control.
Q: In the process of killing does adrenaline increase whether fight or flight? There are differences in the crime scene. In this case . . .
Objection. Approach

 

[Mr Pizza]

BBM

The problem is you are thinking about it, rather than actually experiencing someone stabbing you with a knife.

We get this a lot, people who just can't believe a healthy male could be stabbed to death by a girl (a GIRL!) simply because she's holding a knife and he's not.

Rather than think about it, here's a useful experiment which will require the following equipment:

1. A 1" paint brush

2. Paint

3. A 12 year old girl.

Have the 12 year old girl daub the paint brush with red paint. Try to really annoy the 12 year old girl. Then instruct the 12 year old girl to use the paint brush as if it were a knife.

Try to take the paint brush away from her.

What will happen is you will start to get paint on your hands. If you try to grab the paint brush, it will slid through your hands. Obviously it won't cut your hand down to the (very useful) tendons by trying to grab it, but you can note the theoretical damage. Once you get paint on your hands you are now no longer allowed to use your hands. Trying to grab the 12 year old girl in a bear hug will result in you getting paint on your chest, stomach, face etc. At which point you might think it's a good idea to start running so as to figure out how to stop getting paint on you. At which point you will have paint all over your back.

Keep in mind that an actual knife is harder to grab, hurts more and actually does damage.

Oh, and this isn't a facetious experiment. Having done a lot of survival and primitive skills stuff with people who have thought wrong about a lot of stuff, using dummy knives is the best way to teach people that what they think they will do isn't what's actually going to happen and disarming people with knives is the sort of thing that you see in movies which, like blowing up gas tanks, is a lot harder to do in reality.

As a general rule of thumb you should plan on the person having the weapon (yes, even a GIRL!) such as gun, knife, baseball bat, etc winning the conflict whereas the person without a weapon (even manly men) tends to lose.

Wet, naked, ambushed guys who have been socialized since they were zygotes not to hit girls (or anyone, for that matter) have a distinct disadvantage.

Thanks, very interesting experiment indeed. First I would like to clarify, the much larger and stronger victim versus the smaller weaker attacker without regard to gender. The only other question about your experiment would be, are you allowed to knock out or kill the girl with the paint brush or just take it away from her?

 

[KMouse]

If she thought one shot would do it, why did she bring the knife?

I think she had planned a two person attack from day 1. By that I mean she planned to make it look like two attackers such as in the ninja story from when she was still in Yreka. If it looked like two attackers then it couldn't be her. She was miles away grinding on Ryan Burns.

 

[ClosArgs]

Hey AZLawyer I have a question, though I know it should probably on the legal thread. Once a witness has taken the stand and is still under oath may they still consult with the defense or prosecution about ongoing testimony or is that off limits?

 

[StephanieHartPI]

Talking about all that negative Travis stuff for 19 days on the stand was bad enough considering the "Law of Attraction"...imagine if she'd also written it in her diary! She might end up on death row or something.

Nobody will marry her now...

 

[katydid23]

Exhibit 534 vs Exhibit 535. And now 550, the 3 holed punched one.

What is up with this. Did Samuels try to pass off his newly recalculated test results as the original test?

 

[panthera]

The truth is Arias wasn't/isn't that small.... I am 5'1 and I weigh 100lbs :blushing: and I'm pretty strong - trust me I grew up with five brothers and they always taught me to fight etc... maybe it's just in my blood I don't know... but I don't find it difficult to believe that Arias could overpower Travis in a moment of rage.

BBM

To continue that thought, especially when she initiates the attack while he is cornered in the shower.

MOO

 

[SunDawnn]

Jodi Arias trial: Man claims he can see people in Travis Alexander's eye reflection before killing

​

Jodi Arias claims she killed Travis Alexander in self defense.

Arias faces the death penalty if convicted and the trial has gained national attention.

There are websites and blogs dedicated to the trial and Arias.

Now, a Nebraska man says he spotted something nobody else has noticed in one of the photos taken of Alexander moments before he was killed.

HJ Blankenship posted a couple YouTube videos claiming he sees two people with Arias in Alexander's eye.Jodi Arias claims she killed Travis Alexander in self defense.

Arias faces the death penalty if convicted and the trial has gained national attention.

There are websites and blogs dedicated to the trial and Arias.

Now, a Nebraska man says he spotted something nobody else has noticed in one of the photos taken of Alexander moments before he was killed.

HJ Blankenship posted a couple YouTube videos claiming he sees two people with Arias in Alexander's eye.



http://www.newsnet5.com/dpp/news/na...s-eye-reflection-before-killing#ixzz2OE2dbwwG