Defense nearly done with case in Jodi Arias trial

Defense nearly done with case in Jodi Arias trial

PHOENIX (AP) — The defense is nearing the end of its case in the Jodi Arias murder trial that’s been going on in Phoenix for more than three months.

The prosecutor and defense have presented dueling portraits of her ex-boyfriend, Travis Alexander — that of a man who feared for his life and a manipulative liar who courted multiple women while claiming to be a virgin.

Both sides also have presented conflicting portraits of Arias, as the defense works to show she’s a domestic abuse victim who was forced to fight for her life while prosecutors say she was a scorned lover who planned his killing.

Arias claims self-defense but faces a potential death sentence if convicted of first-degree murder in Alexander’s 2008 killing.