Pictures are Worth a 1000 Lies: Jodi's Unbroken Finger

During the 2013 trial, Juan Martinez presented evidence which showed Jodi Arias lied about her deformed finger getting that way due to Travis breaking it on January 22st, 2008.   Juan Martinez provided a picture that was taken on May 15, 2008.  The picture did not show an obvious deformity.

In rebuttal, the defense team recreated the picture.  To many, it appeared that Jodi's finger could have been broken in the May 15th photograph. However,  a side-by-side comparison shows that Jodi is bending all of her fingers more in the recreation. It was necessary for Jodi to do this so the deformity would not stand out from the rest.  It allowed her to give the appearance her finger could have been broken in that May 15, 2008 photograph.

In March 2008, after her finger was allegedly broken,  Jodi Arias went on a road trip with Travis Alexander. She wrote about it in her journal. 

Jodi's journal, Thursday, March 5th
"I am truly excited about is our road trip, which is happening now for sure. We will be checking 3 more things, if not more, from the list of 1000 Places"
Jodi's journal, March 13, 2008 
"We arrived in Rosewell, NM and toured the Roswell museum."

"P.S. By the way,  I lied about my left ring finger being deformed in January, 2008"

Jodi's journal March 13, 2008
"Then we got to OKC.  We stopped at the temple, and looked around, took some photos. Then we drove to the OKC memorial site. It was profound.  I took some amazing pictures.  Then we went to the Sheraton and chilled there w/ everyone for several hours before heading to bed."

By the way, I lied about my deformed finger occurring in January 2008.

Dear Mr. Prosecutor,  you used the wrong photograph.

Jodi Arias' finger was not broken on January 22, 2008.  It was a lie she told to create medical evidence to support her claim of self-defense.  Travis did not physically abuse her, and he did not kick her.  Jodi needed to make others believe he did, so she used her finger that was deformed sometime after March 13th to corroborate her allegation.

Jodi Arias had no evidence to corroborate the deformity to her finger was the result of an untreated fracture.   The defense could have taken one simple and inexpensive step to provide that evidence: A $250 x-ray of her finger.  If Jodi were telling the truth,  an x-ray would have shown the finger was broken, and the break was several years old.   Jodi had everything to gain and nothing to loose if she was telling the truth.  Nonetheless,  there was no attempt made to obtain an x-ray of the allegedly broken finger.  It was because,  as the OKC photo shows, Jodi Arias' finger was not broken..

Jodi's finger was not damaged on January 22, 2008. If it is damaged, it occurred on June 4th, 2008. Her injury looks very similar to  the result of an untreated cut tendon.  It's highly probable Jodi injured her tendon on June 4th, resulting in an extensor tendon injury.

If Jodi's finger were broken from an impact injury on January 22, 2008, the injury would have been noticeable to those around her. Jodi stated her finger was splinted for a couple of days.  She worked as a waitress and would not have been able to do her job without anyone noticing her injury. A broken finger takes weeks to heal, and even longer if it is not properly splinted.  Jodi's injury would have interfered with her job and been noticeable to her coworkers until it healed.  According to Jodi, a couple of people at work noticed her injury. However, she was not able to produce even one witness to corroborate her story. On the other hand,  the state was able to produce two people who say Jodi only for a day and remembered band-aids to her fingers.

1. On June 5th,  Ryan Burns noticed a bandage on two of her fingers and asked her what happened. Ryan testified that Jodi Arias told him  she cut her fingers at a restaurant called Margaritaville. 
2. Leslie Udy saw Jodi on June 5th, and they went out to dinner. Jodi sat between Leslie Udy and Leslie's husband.  Lexile recalled her husband asking Jodi about an injury she had to her hand. Jodi stated she had broken a glass at work and cut her fingers.
3. During her interrogation, Jodi Arias initially told Detective Flores she cut her finger on June 4th when she broke a glass at Travis' house.
4. On July 16th,  Jodi Arias told Detective Flores her left ring finger was damaged on June 4th, 2008.  She claimed a female intruder cut her with a knife on her left ring finger.
5. During her pre-trial interview with Alyce LaViolette, Jodi Arias said she cut her fingers while slicing apples.
6. During her testimony, Jodi Arias claimed her finger was deformed because Travis Alexander kicked it on January 22, 2008.  Pictures show it was not injured on March 13th, 2008
7. During her testiomony, Jodi Arias claimed the injuries to her fingers were on her right ones and it was related to an incidence at her work, Casa Ramas. She said "It was not a glass breaking event, I jammed it on a metal ledge."

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Jodi Arias was not able to provide any evidence that corroborated her story Travis kicked her on January 22, 2008 and broke her finger.  However, the prosecution was able to provide evidence which contradicted Jodi's story. 

On January 24th,  despite her claim abuse occurred on January 21st,  Jodi Arias wrote in her journal that nothing noteworthy happened.  She also wrote about plans to go to the snow with her friends to take some pictures or to attend a dinner for new ward members at her Bishop's house.  The journal entry did not appear to be written by a woman who had a broken finger from abuse and wanted to hide it from everyone.  Taking pictures in the snow required the use of her hands and put them front and center for all to see.   She was willing to go because her finger was not broken on January 22, 2008.  And, Jodi Arias wrote nothing noteworthy happened because nothing had happened. 

Jodi alleged the trigger for Travis' rage which resulted in her broken finger was her inability to lend him money on January 22, 2008.  Once again,  the evidence indicated she was not telling the truth.  On January 22, 2008,  Travis Alexander was the one loaning money, not borrowing it. 

Text Messages 1-22-08

The prosecution had texts, journals, witnesses, the fact that Jodi told multiple stories, and photographs to show Jodi was lying about Travis breaking her finger.

Jodi had only her words to show she was telling the truth.  And, her words were lies