In what may have been the biggest win yet for the prosecution against an expert witness for Jodi Arias, the state got the psychotherapist to admit the defendant's ex-boyfriend Travis Alexander was "extremely afraid" of her.
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"Isn't it true that Mr. Alexander was extremely afraid of the defendant, Jodi Arais, based on her stalking behavior?" prosecuting attorney Juan Martinez asked Alyce LaViolette, a domestic abuse expert for the defense.
"He was afraid of her, yes," LaViolette acknowledged.
"Because of her stalking behavior, correct?" asked Martinez.
"Correct," said LaViolette.
Arias' lawyers are currently trying to establish her inherent need for self-defense against her ex-boyfriend Alexander through a series of paid expert witnesses. In an attempt to prove he fractured her mental state so badly that's she's suffering from post traumatic stress disorder and is a victim of domestic abuse, the defense is questioning psychotherapist LaViolette. The defense's assertion that Arias is the real victim here is the crux of its argument at this point in the trial. If they can convince the jury she was physically and mentally abused, she could beat the murder charge against her. Meanwhile, prosecuting attorney Juan Martinez is determined to prove Arias' premeditation to sustain a first-degree murder charge in Alexander's killing.
A 32-year-old photographer from California, Arias is charged with the grisly first-degree murder of her ex-boyfriend Alexander in June 2008, when she stabbed the 30-year-old man 27 times, primarily in the back, shot him in the face, slit his throat from ear to ear with so much force it almost decapitated him, and left his bloodied corpse crumpled over in the bathroom shower of his home - all in the course of 106 seconds. Arias' guilt is not up for debate - but her mental state at the time of the killing is. Arias' future depends on whether the jury believes she killed Alexander in self-defense, as she contends, or was actually a jilted lover exacting jealous revenge, as the prosecution argues.
LaViolette's recognition that Alexander was in fact afraid of Arias could be seen as the most detrmiental blow yet to the defense's expert in her eight days on the stand. But while LaViolette made the concession to Martinez, she eventually backtracked under further questioning to say she wasn't convinced Arias had been stalking Alexander. Her admission was also one of the only direct answers she would provide to the prosecution all day. LaViolette's consistently cagey, indirect responses to Martinez's questions once again drew admonishment from Judge Sherry Stephens, who told her to actually answer the questions she was asked.
Martinez focused the remainder of his cross-examination of LaViolette on flipping the defense's portrayal of Arias as the victim and Alexander as the perpetrator, trying to show that Arias constantly displayed behavior characteristic of a stalker. He drew attention to an instance when Arias spied on Alexander with another woman at his home after they had broken up and then later confronted him about it. Martinez also brought up an instant message Alexander had sent to a friend where he had described Arias as a stalker.
Martinez pointed to a passage in Arias' journal from Aug. 26, 2007. The state's attorney noted that the entry never once mentions Arias' illicit trip to Alexander's home.
"Isn't that an indication of a stalking state of mind?" asked Martinez.
The defense quickly objected to the question and LaViolette was not forced to provide an answer.
Martinez reminded LaViolette of a statement Alexander had made to Arias, where he said he was "nothing more to her than a dildo with a heartbeat."
"That's not a good thing, is it?" Martinez asked.
"No, it's not," answered LaViolette.
"In this case if we found there was stalking ... and psychological abuse ... and sexual humiliation and degradation ... it does appear that the person who was the perpetrator in this relationship was the defendant right?" Martinez asked.
"Not at all," LaViolette said.
The day ended on redirect with defense attorney Jennifer Wilmott plodding through another redundant cycle of restating LaViolette's professional credentials. Wilmott asked LaViolette to once again explain that just because Arias' testimony is not corroborated by anyone else or any evidence doesn't mean she's not a victim of domestic abuse. The defense closed out the day by asking LaViolette a series of questions aimed at proving Alexander could not have in fact been afraid of Arias, or thought she was stalking him.
Arias faces the death penalty if convicted. The trial resumes with defense attorney Willmott on redirect with LaViolette Thursday at 1:30 p.m. EST.