In a dramatic turn of events, defendant Jodi Arias, once adamant that she should receive the death penalty for brutally killing Travis Alexander, pleaded with the jury that she instead should spend the rest of her life behind bars.
"Each time I said that [I wanted the death penalty] I meant it, but I lacked perspective," Arias testified. She indicated that her family, present in the courtroom at the time, was the reason for her change of heart: "I will spend the rest of my life in prison. It will either be shortened or not. If it is shortened [through the death penalty], the people who will be hurt is [sic] my family. I am asking please don't do that to them."
A former waitress and amateur artist, Arias said that if spared the death penalty, she would sell items such as clothing to help support those who were victims of domestic abuse. Speaking of her own recent relationship, she told the jury that she never meant to "malign" the likeness of Alexander, lamenting her testimony in previous court sessions that criticized life with him.
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Defense attorneys Jennifer Willmott and Kirk Nurmi indicated that Arias will be the only witness to testify in her defense.
The spotlight will soon be shifted to the jury, who will then decide whether Arias is sentenced to death or live out the rest of her days in an Arizona prison. Thus far, Arias said she would like to start a book club in her prison, where she reportedly has been asked to teach other inmates Spanish.
Watch Jodi Arias' testimony below:
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