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Jodi Arias' retrial will decide between life penalty or death sentence

Arias' lawyer to jury: "It is up to you to write the final chapter of this story."

By JC Sevcik
Jodi Arias reacts as she hears the verdict of guilty of first degree murder after a four month trial in Phoenix, Arizona, May 8, 2013. Arias was convicted of murdering her lover Travis Alexander in Tempe, Arizona in June of 2008. Retrial of the penalty phase of Arias' case began Tuesday to decide whether she'll face the death penalty of life in prison. (File/UPI/ Rob Schumacher)
Jodi Arias reacts as she hears the verdict of guilty of first degree murder after a four month trial in Phoenix, Arizona, May 8, 2013. Arias was convicted of murdering her lover Travis Alexander in Tempe, Arizona in June of 2008. Retrial of the penalty phase of Arias' case began Tuesday to decide whether she'll face the death penalty of life in prison. (File/UPI/ Rob Schumacher) | License Photo

PHOENIX, Oct. 21 (UPI) -- The Maricopa County Superior Court in Arizona was packed as Jodi Arias is back in court this week facing sentencing for her murder conviction, and a new jury will decide whether the 34-year-old will face life-imprisonment or the death penalty for the first-degree murder of her ex-boyfriend, then-30-year-old Travis Alexander.

The jury who convicted Arias last year failed to reach a consensus when it came time to decide how to sentence her for Alexander's gruesome 2008 murder -- he was stabbed 29 times, shot in the face, and had his throat slit ear-to-ear.

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A death penalty requires a unanimous vote, and the previous jury voted 8-4 in favor of the death sentence.

If the current jury votes unanimously in favor of the death penalty, Arias will be sentenced to die by lethal injection.

If during the retrial a unanimous vote for the death penalty is not reached, Arias will face either life without parole or a life sentence with eligibility for parole after a quarter century.

During her initial trial, Arias' legal team argued emotional and physical abuse by Alexander was the antecedent to Arias' crime, claiming she was in a "fog" when she snapped and killed him.

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Prosecutors argued Arias was obsessed with Alexander and snapped when he tried to break up with her.

In the opening moments of the retrial Tuesday, prosecutors showed a graphic photo of Alexander's slit throat, saying, "This is how much she loved him."

Defense attorney Kirk Nurmi argued Arias shouldn't be put to death because she's a "troubled, mentally ill young woman" who's been diagnosed with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder and Borderline Personality Disorder.

"It is up to you to write the final chapter of this story," said Nurmi, emphasizing Arias' as a victim of abuse with no prior criminal history.

Over the next three to six weeks, the jurors will hear arguments for and against sentencing Arias to death before deliberating. The retrial could take up to two months.

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