Jodi Arias Retrial News Update: Prosecution Rests its Case After Key Witness Pounces

The prosecution in the Jodi Arias sentencing retrial rested its case on Thursday last week, signalling that the high profile trial is coming to an end. The entire trial is expected to last until the end of February or sometime in March.

The retrial is in the mitigation phase, or the sentencing phase. During the first phase, or the guilt stage, Arias was found guilty and convicted of first-degree murder on May 8, 2013 for the murder of her boyfriend Travis Alexander, a salesman, in his house in Mesa, C.A. on June 4, 2008. Alexander was stabbed 27 times, shot in the head, and his throat slit from ear to ear.

Arias pleaded self defense.

The retrial seeks to determine whether Arias will be sentenced to death or life in prison, or life with a chance of release after serving 25 years.

When Arias was found guilty in May 2014, the jurors failed to reach a unanimous decision as to her sentencing.

During the retrial, the members of the jury were allowed to see the text messages that Arias sent to Alexander after his death in an apparent effort to cover up her involvement in the murder.

A key witness of the prosecution, psychologist Janeen DeMarte, read these messages for the jury. In her testimony, DeMarte maintained that Arias was not mentally ill and that she could discern the difference between right and wrong at the time she committed the crime. DeMarte received a very rigorous cross-examination from defense attorney, Kirk Nurmi.

DeMarte initially gave a testimony contradicting the defense argument that Arias was a victim of emotional abuse by Alexander. DeMarte described Arias as an extremely jealous stalker with borderline personality disorder and a fixation on Alexander. Arias confronted the other women that Alexander dated, and she didn't let Alexander move on, DeMarte said.