first let's get back to the courthouse and to our own correspondent, diana alvear. the scene there? in the last 25 minutes the crowd has been growing by the second. >> reporter: absolutely. that crowd is growing by the second, getting a little bit more emotional as time ticks by. they know they're this much closer to hearing what joe ti arias's fate will be. i have friends inside the courthouse telling me dismissed juror number five was just escorted into the courtroom. if you recall three jurors were dismissed in total over that four month trial. all of them clearly still keen to find out what's going on and deeply invested in the outcome of this trial. travis alexander's sisters and the rest of his family are seated. jodi arias's mother and some of their family members are there as well. they've just let in the media. prosecutor juan martinez got a hero's welcome on his way into that courthouse. i spoke to one woman from texas yesterday who said the only reason she's here is because she loves the job he's done and she wants to tell him in person. that's how passio

>> diana alvear for us in arizona. i want to bring in jamie floyd.ked as a trial attorney. you've been following this closely. what do you make of the comings and goings expected for the closing arguments and the onus that lies on both sides? >> it's been an exhausting case. it's been a marathon of a case. to hold the attention of the jurors on both sides will be a key. usually prosecutors have a presumption of innocence. >> hopefully they'll hold the jury so none of them get evicted anymore. >> that's right. keep them in at all. but usually the presumption of innocence is with the defendant and prosecutors have the burden of proof. here we have self-defense, which essentially shifts the burden to the defendant. i agree with diana that really here it's a life and death issue. if they can save her life and get the death penalty off the table, that's a win for the defense. >> who has done a better job? the expert witnesses in this case, they've become mini celebrities of their own out of this. but how critical has their testimony been, and who's done a

let me go to diana alvear, she has been covering this story for us. u there. >> reporter: yes, as you said, there is a verdict in this case. they will read it at 4:30 eastern, 1:30 pacific. they could go with first degree murder, second degree murder, manslaughter, hung jury or she could be acquitted. >> this jury consists of eight men and four women and they've heard testimony from jodi arias personally in great detail. she describes her relationship with her boyfriend at the time as one that was violent. she claims she killed him in self-defense, diana. but this case has captivated so many people following trials in the courts and because of the jury. she stabbed him 22 times. cut his throat. shot him. went to his home to do all this and maintaines it was because she was the victim of do mest uk violence here. what are some of the reactions in and around there now that we know a verdict has come down? >> well, you know, i've been hanging out outside the courthouse this entire time and talking to spectators an find oing out what they have to say. i ca

diana alvear has our story. >> reporter: your little league uniform may bring back memories, but kobent's uniform could bring in millions. at least that's what his mother is hoping for. pamela bryant is planning to auction off the childhood possessions of her laker legend son. >> what's going on? >> one of his first jerseys kobe ever wore from when he grew up in italy, there's trophies from high school, jerseys, from when he played in philly. there's great stuff from the b nba, all-star jerseys. >> reporter: they estimate the stash could be worth up to $1.5 million. which begs the question -- can mom and dad simply sell off your stuff if it's left in their house for years? >> items that belong to children after they grow up still belong to that person. the parents don't get to take over a kid's stuff unless there's an agreement where the young person says that a parent, you can have it. >> reporter: well, according to court filings, that's exactly what pamela says kobe told her five years ago. his lawyers beg to differ. mr. bryant's personal property has ended up in the possession of

nbc's diana alvear is live outside the courthouse in phoenix. scinating to watch the woman who previously said that she wants to die now saying there's no reasons why i should live. >> reporter: exactly right, toure. this was not defiant jodi arias. this was pentitent jody air whereas. she begged the jury to spare her life, so she could spare anyone nr more pain. she finally admitted, this is the greatest mistake of my life, i can't believe i'm capable of this horrifying violence, saying she didn't kill spiders up until 2008. she talked about her artwork, how she would never get to be a mother. she tried to humanize to the jury, i'm not this horrible person. if you spare my life, i can contribute to society. that's how she described her turnaround to wanting the death penalty a couple years ago to now wanting her life spared. she said she could contribute in meaningful ways. let's listen to what she had to say. >> i made many public statements that i would prefer the death penalty to life in prison. each time i said that, though i meant it, i lac

. >> nbc's diana alvear is in phoenix. reaction was like when the judge declared the mistrial. this has gone on and on and on and on. >> reporter: i was inside that courtroom and i can tell you it was utter shock on all parts when we heard that it was a hung jury. i immediately looked at the jurors and i could see that many of them were very emotional. their eyes were looking downward. one either mouthed to the prosecutor, i'm sorry. you could see it had taken a toll on them having to make a decision and they just couldn't get there. in the end they were split 8-4. i looked at jodi arias. she seemed stunned that there was no decision in her trial. even the judge needed a moment to compose herself when she addressed the jury. she said i know this was so difficult for you and that i understand it was a difficult decision. travis alexander's family, i can't imagine what they're going through right now. i know they were crying. they left the courtroom almost immediately. if you were wondering why jodi arias's family was not th

nbc's diana alvear is outside the phoenix courthouse. diana, what do you got? >> things have ramped up outside the courthouse. people have rushed over to the courthouse steps. the media getting their cameras ready but the jurors themselves left the building. they are at lunch and some of the colleagues inside tell me they were relaxed. one woman looking to be brushing away tears. we don't know what kind of a verdict we have. there is one charge they were deliberating, trying to decide whether jodi arias committed first degree murd per. they do have other options. secondary murder, manslaughter, hung jury or they could end up saying not guilty. at this point we don't know what on their mind. we will find out in just a short while but everybody around here just feels heightened teng right now. remember, it's been a really long time. travis alexander died in june of 2008 will. and now, today, in just an hour, we are going to be hearing jodi arias's fate. >> all right. diana alvear, thank so you much. i will now bring in two former prosecutors and defense attorneys

diana alvear, nbc news. >>> israel is rushing to beef up its defenses on its northern border in case syria after carrying out two air strikes against that country this weekend. a senior israeli official says the air strikes targeted precision-guided missiles israel believes syria was shipping to hezbollah militants in lebanon. syria and iran have hinted of possible retribution for the recent attacks. damascus is calling the air strikes a flagrant violation of international law. in a letter sent to the u.n. says the attacks give direct military support to terrorist groups fighting the government. >>> the uncle of the boston bombing suspect who died is now trying to arrange for his nephew's burial. and many people are not happy about his plans. nbc's francis is cohas more. >> reporter: amidst a crowd of protesters, the uncle of accused bombing suspect tamerlan tsarnaev came to claim his nephew's body. >> well, to take care of his body, to wash him and to shroud him, to prepare his body. >> reporter: his uncle rejected calls for tamerlan's body to be sent back to russia or buried at sea

diana alvear will explain what went down in the last hour. >> reporter: a lot happened very quickly in of minutes and this is what happened. a childhood friend of jodi arias was supposed to take the stand on her behalf to serve as a character witness and how arias had an abusive childhood and that the jurors should think about sparing her life. she felt that she'd been intimidated and she felt there were threats on her life and she felt conflict about it. this is something that she told nbc news directly. she said she felt there was a lot of good in jodi arias to be saved and she felt terrible that someone's life had been taken and she was speaking about travis alexander. she decided she couldn't go through with it and the defense decided to launch a motion in the penalty phase and they asked to withdraw from the case entirely and that was denied. then they said we're not going to call any witnesses and court was adjourned and what does this mean for jodi arias to take the stand? we still expect her to take the stand tomorrow and she may be speak about her art work and trying to show t

nbc's diana alvear, thanks so much, diana. >>> and we'll be right back to clear the air. new way. for seeing what cash is coming in and going out... so you can understand every angle of your cash flow- last week, this month, and even next year. for seeing your business's cash flow like never before, introducing cash flow insight powered by pnc cfo. a suite of online tools that lets you turn insight into action. gives you 1% cash back on all purchases, plus a 50% annual bonus. and everyone but her... no. no! no. ...likes 50% more cash. but i don't give up easy... do you want 50% more cash? yes! yes?! ♪ [ male announcer ] the capital one cash rewards card gives you 1% cash back on every purchase, plus a 50% annual bonus on the cash you earn. it's the card for people who like more cash. ♪ what's in your wallet? why? and we've hit the why phase... and i have a massive heart attack right in my driveway. the doctor put me on a bayer aspirin regimen. [ male announcer ] be sure to talk to your doctor before you begin an aspirin regimen. go talk to your doctor. you're not indestru

diana alvear is on the ground. what's happening there now, diana? >> reporter: well, ari, as you can tell, the winds have picked up considerably. it's very hot. we're approaching the 90s today. that's the exact combination the firefighters did not want in battling this massive powerhouse fire. let me take you back to yesterday afternoon when it started. it began to pick up very quickly and burned so many hundreds of acres by the night, that this entire area was orange. the air was just choked with embers, ashes, and smoke. it was really tough to breathe. you needed your air mask just to walk around here when the smoke was blazing. at this point, as you mentioned, we know 1,500 acres have burned. at least one structure was consumed. a lot of those mandatory evacuations, the residents, a lot of them, decided they wanted to stay. in fact, i spoke to many residents here who said this is their home, that they felt compelled to stay here and hose down the property and take care of their homes. they said they just felt better seeing the efforts of firefigh

. >> joining me now, diana alvear. we saw cheering outside the courtroom. that was the day arias was convicted. will's been a lot of time and space until this date, the penalty phase. what's the latest? >> thomas, i can tell you that things just got a little bit worse for jodi arias. one of her friends that was set to testify on the stand today about her character has decided not to. we're expected to hear from an ex-boyfriend of hers, who already testified during the trial, darrell breuer. he'll be a character witness. and we made hear from arias. we're told we may hear about her artwork. it's believed she will get the death penalty. >> after hearing she wanted to die sooner rather than later, is there speculation or any word of what we expect her to say today? obviously the jurors have had an opportunity most likely they've heard what she had to say in that interview given the time and space between the penalty phase. >> well, you know, that's the interesting thing about it, thomas. they were supposed to stay away from the media until this is over. it's v

we bring in diana alvear who has been following all the action. >> reporter: right until the very end was a trial full of twists and turns. we were not expecting that yesterday. everybody thought a decision had been received. when we found out it was a hung jury, shock on everybody's faces. i immediately looked at the jury box and i could see the jurors were very emotional. a couple were crying and one mouthed to the prosecutor, i'm sorry. and then i look at the travis alexander family. many sobbing, of course. they quickly left the courtroom. jodi arias herself seemed stunned. if you were wondering why her family was not there in the courtroom we found out there you an exclusive statement from her mom, they didn't even know that a decision had been reached. she said she was very disappointed. she said they should have been told. she said this whole thing has taken a toll on them emotionally and financially and she said they will stand by jodi through the next phase of the trial. what is next? they will only retry the penalty phase of the trial. that means they have to find a new jury

nbc's diana alvear is outside the courtroom. >> reporter: you're right. they adjourned for the day. the short court session was jam-packed. the defense made a motion for a mistrial of the penalty phase after seeing that one of their character beenes had been intimidated to the point where she didn't want to take the stand in defense of jodi arias. that was denied by the judge and then they made a move to withdraw from the case, the defense attorneys and the judge denied that motion and then they said okay. we're not going call any witnesses in the defense portion of the proceeding and then they took a short recess and now they learned the court has adjourned. what does it mean for jodi arias taking the stand in her own defens defense. she would prefer the death penalty over life in prin. there was talk she was going present her art work. at this point that's not going to happen today. court is supposed to go back into session tomorrow, but i've said this before, we've learned to expect anything in this case and anything happened today. >> absolutely. so there was a delay, diana, at

this is what she said to our colleague, diana alvear, take a look. >> was it guilt or remorse -- >> thatly, guilt, remorse, just, i completely f-ed up my life and hurt a lot of people in the process and i think i'll be doing everyone a favor. >> two questions, first of all, what is the motivation? what do we think the motivation might have been? and are those interviews now fair -- >> well, the prosecutor -- and probably they will try to make a deal, like why don't you give her life in prison, which is what they did with the kermit gosnell case, and waive the right to appeal and just get it over with is what they are doing. >> and save the taxpayers a ton of money. let's go to michael jackson -- >> he didn't say let's moon walk. >> jackson's mother wants them to find the concert promoter, aeg, did not properly investigate dr. conrad murray, who of course was found guilty in 2009. this month, an e-mail described jackson as "the freak "that happened on the same day he signed the multi-million dollar agreement. she said it showed the disdain, how do we think the jury may see that? >> i am w

nbc's diana alvear has the latest from phoenix. >> reporter: andrea, good morning.onsidered all of the facts and circumstances that the defendant should be sentenced, no unanimous agreement, signed foreperson. >> reporter: a hung jury. it was too much for victim travis alexander's family, arias herself appeared stunned, even judge sherry stevens seemed to need a moment to process what happened. >> this was not your typical trial. you were asked to perform very difficult responsibilities. >> now the focus turns to the difficulty of choosing a new jury to sentence arias. >> how do you get a jury of your peers who wasn't told that for all these five months and every day on the front page of the paper was jodi arias. >> reporter: and the headlines won't be going away any time soon, a tough reality for alexander's loved ones. >> losing him was tough the first time. going through this all over again has been incredibly challenging. >> reporter: and if you were wondering why jodi arias' family was not in the courtroom, we know why thanks to an exclusive statement from her

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we'll begin in phoenix with diana alvear. good morning to you. >> reporter: good morning.s the judge explained to the jurors, all murders are considered cruel by definition, but did travis alexander suffer during his 2008 death at the hands of jodi arias? >> we the jury, duly impaneled find that the the aggravating factor, especially cruel has been proven. >> reporter: the jury took three hours to decide that the way jodi arias killed her boyfriend, travis alexander fit the court's definition. arias was convicted may 8th of premeditated murder. >> as to count one, first-degree murder, guilty. >> reporter: after the verdict, she told a local station she prefers a death sentence to life in prison. >> i believe death is the ultimate freedom. so i'd rather just have my freedom as soon as i can get it. >> reporter: arias stabbed alexandre 27 times, slashed his throat, and after he was already dead, shot him. >> she made sure that she killed him by stabbing him over and over and over again. >> reporter: prosecutor juan martinez called on a medical examiner to convince the jury a

alvear. here, she is waiting to hear the decision, which might come down soon. and she is talking with you, dianaveryone want to know how she does such a quick about face. a couple weeks ago after the death sententhe the jury verdict, she wanted a death sentence. >> if it was self-defense, why commit suicide? >> well, it wasn't so much that -- yeah, i was defend mig self but that doesn't mean i wasn't despairing and i felt like my whole life was over -- >> was it guilt, remorse? >> that was certainly an element. guilt, remorse, just -- i've completely f'd up my life and i would be doing everyone a favor and that is how i would help everyone back then. >> if it was self-defense, why was it so violent? did she have to stab him so many times? did she have to slit his throat? and she said she couldn't remember what happened that night. i said within what is an appropriate punishment? here is her answer. >> it is probable the jury will sentence you tomorrow. what do you deserve? >> i can't really comment on that. what i receive will be what i deserve. i believe. >> so you will be at peace with the dea