Arias Jury In Tears During Testimony From Victim’s Family

The Jodi Arias jury was in tears as they listened to the family of Travis Alexander talk about how his murder tore them apart.

Arias was convicted last week of killing her former boyfriend in 2008 in a fit of jealous rage. She and Alexander had dated in the past, but he left her to begin dating other women.

Arias returned to his home to reunite with Alexander, spending the day having sex with him before killing him as he got out of the shower. He was stabbed and slashed multiple times.

Now that she has been convicted, Jodi Arias must wait to find out if the jury chooses life in prison or the death penalty for the 2008 murder. During the sentencing phase, jurors have heard from members of Alexander’s family devastated by his killing.

His younger brother, Steven Alexander, recalled the phone call from his sister where he learned Travis was dead.

“She told me, ‘Steven, Travis is dead,'” he said, trying to hold back tears. “I thought I was dreaming.”

Steven added, “The nature of my brother’s murder has had a major impact on me. It’s even invaded my dreams. I’ve had nightmares about somebody coming after me with a knife, then going after my wife and my daughter.

“I don’t want these nightmares anymore. I don’t want to see my brother’s murderer anymore.”

Samantha Alexander remembered her brother Travis as “the glue in our family.”

“Travis was our strength, our beacon of hope, our motivation,” she told jurors as she struggled to maintain her composure. “Our lives will never be the same. … We would give anything to have him back.”

Prosecutor Jan Martinez also painted a grisly picture of Alexander’s murder for jurors. He said that Travis was likely alive for two minutes while Arias stabbed and slashed him, a painful and terrifying death.

“We can imagine the absolute terror as he’s sitting there, defenseless. As he’s seated the knife comes toward him, is hitting him. That is extreme emotional anguish, mental anguish, to watch the blade come up to him. And he can see, and hear, and breathe, and smell, and he knows exactly what is going on,” Martinez said.

“Travis Alexander, on June 4, 2008, suffered enough for two lifetimes,” he said.

It wasn’t just the Arias jury in tears during the testimony. Several times Jodi herself wiped away tears as she looked away from jurors.