Convicted murderer Jodi Arias is expected to address jurors on Tuesday as they decided whether to sentence her to death or life in prison for brutally killing Travis Alexander, her ex-boyfriend in Arizona five years ago, Reuters reported.
The jury found Arias guilty earlier this month in the premeditated murder of Alexander, whose body was found dead in his Mesa Arizona home in June 2008 with multiple stab wounds, his throat slashed, and signs that he was shot in the face.
Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Sherry Stephens on Monday denied requests by the defense for a mistrial and to withdraw from the case. She also denied a motion for a stay to give the defense time to appeal her decisions to the Arizona Supreme Court, news reports said. The defense concluded that it would not call any more witnesses.
Arias is due to make her final statement to the jury.
After being convicted, Arias said she would prefer the death penalty rather than a life in prison. After the trial,she was temporarily placed on suicide watch in jail.
The defense hoped to call Arias' friend Patricia Womack to testify on her behalf, but defense counsel Kirk Nurmi told the court on Monday that the woman received threats, thus she did not not testify.
