Jodi Arias Tweets Apology to Taxpayers for Expensive Retrial
As Jodi Arias gets set to go back to court, she is using her Twitter account to let the public know exactly how she feels about the situation. Taxpayers will be burdened with whatever legal costs she incurs.
"The State rejected my 3rd request for a plea to settle quietly and less expensively," Arias tweeted. "Off to retrial we go. Sorry, taxpayers."
Arias' lawyers apparently wanted to mediate a deal with prosecutors and Travis Alexander's family in the hope of avoiding the death penalty, but that did not happen. Arias remains behind bars, awaiting a new trial, which does not have a date on the calendar yet. Judge Sherry Stephens told reporters that the new trial could start as late as September.
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Arias also tweeted about her "fan following," which she promptly slammed.
"A few of my dedicated haters came all the way 2 court 2day just 2 glare at me. I'm flattered. Thought it was I who had nothing better 2 do," Arias noted.
It's an interesting statement given that Arias previously told the court that if she were given life behind bars, she would be a model inmate and help her fellow inmates with art classes and other activities. However, Arias has apparently been busy reading the classics such as "To Kill a Mockingbird," which she tweeted about and working on her own artwork.
Arias could need to keep herself busy until the fall, when Judge Stephens said a new jury could be convened to determine Arias' fate.
"It appears there are a number of issues that are unresolved," Stephens told attorneys, "so I am reluctant to set a firm trial date for the penalty phase retrial at this time. Parties should work toward beginning trial in late September. That is my intention."
Arias was found guilty of the first-degree murder of Travis Alexander, her former boyfriend. The guilty verdict will stand, but a new jury may be called to determine her sentence since the previous jury was unable to do so.
