National News

ABC News(PHOENIX) -- Jodi Arias could become the third woman on Arizona's death row if she is sentenced to death on Wednesday for murdering her ex-boyfriend, Travis Alexander.

If condemned to death row, she would likely face a long sentence, since Arizona has not executed a woman since 1930.  But that long sentence would be marked by extreme isolation.

The jury that convicted Arias earlier this month is set to continue their deliberations on Wednesday over whether to give Arias life in prison or the death penalty.  They began deliberating at 6 p.m. ET on Tuesday.

Arias and her attorneys begged the jury to spare her life on Tuesday during Arias' allocution statement and the closing arguments, telling the jury that Arias would spend her life behind bars helping others and contributing to society.

But prosecutor Juan Martinez told the jury death is the only just punishment for the June 4, 2008 murder, in which Arias killed Alexander with 27 stab wounds, a slashed throat and a gunshot to the head.

Life on Arizona's death row would mean no contact with other inmates -- including her death row neighbors.  Her chance to talk to others would be few.  She would be allowed only two 10-minute phone calls per week.

Arias would be permitted visits, but there would be no physical contact with those visitors.  And her family is in California, which could make frequent visits difficult.

Her life at Arizona's state prison complex at Perryville, outside of Phoenix, would be largely confined to a 12 feet by 7 feet cell which is outfitted with a toilet, sink, bed and mattress, according to the Arizona Department of Corrections.  How she could furnish her cell is strictly limited: just two appliances, hygiene items, two books and writing materials.

Arias, 32, would be allowed outside of her cell to exercise for only two hours on three days a week, plus three showers per week, according to the department.  For the rest of her life, Arias would eat all her meals in that cell.

If the jury condemns her, Arias will join on death row Wendi Andriano, 43, who murdered her husband, and Shawna Forde, 46, who was convicted of killing a man and his daughter in an act of vigilante crime with a group of protesters angry over immigration.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

A website created to support Florida high school teen Kaitlyn Hunt is shown in this May 21, 2013 photo. (Lawrence Lai/ABC News)(SEBASTIAN, Fla.) -- A Florida high school senior was expelled from school and is facing felony charges for a sexual relationship she allegedly had with a fellow girls' basketball teammate who is three years younger.

Kaitlyn Hunt, a cheerleader and basketball player at Sebastian River High School, is facing two counts of felony lewd and lascivious conduct on a child ages 12 to 14 for her alleged relationship with a freshman classmate.

She has denied the charges, which were filed earlier this year in Indian River County.

The girls were 18 and 14 when they became sexually involved, according to an arrest affidavit by the county Sheriff's Department. The girls' basketball coach at the high school found out about the relationship, told the younger girl's mother, who also works as a coach, and kicked Hunt off the team, according to Hunt's family.

The younger girl's parents then contacted police, according to the Hunt family.

The police set up a phone sting operation in which the 14-year-old called Hunt and asked her details about their relationship, according to the affidavit. Police then arrested Hunt in February, based on the details the girls discussed on the phone, according to the document. She was charged and spent 24 hours in jail before posting bond.

Unfortunately your browser does not support IFrames.

The Sheriff's Department did not return calls for comment. The Florida State Attorney for the 19th Judicial District Office, which oversees Indian River County, has also not responded to a request for comment.

Hunt's family says the 14-year-old student's parents are angry that their daughter was in a same-sex relationship, and decided to go to police, according to Andrew Gay, Hunt's uncle and the family spokesman.

"Our understanding from the other family is the reason they initially pursued this case is because they're unhappy with their daughter being in a same-sex relationship," he said. "It would appear to be the case if Kate were a male this wouldn't be happening."

The freshman's parents also twice asked a judge to provide a court order banning Hunt from attending Sebastian River, but the petition was denied, Gay said. The school board then expelled Hunt from the school, and she has been attending an alternative high school, he added.

The Indian River School District declined to comment on the case except to say that it followed the district's student code of conduct in dealing with the situation.

The case has sparked outrage in the Indian River community and online, where petitions and a "Free Kate" Facebook page have gained more than 20,000 followers, which has fueled the recent interest.

"Our family's perspective on this is that Kaitlyn made a poor choice, but this is something that could have been dealt with between families," Gay said. "But they refused to talk. They've been very aggressive. I understand feeling like you need to protect your child, but I don't understand ruining another child's life."

He said the 14-year-old has told police she was in the relationship voluntarily, but the girl's parents are pursuing the action. The younger student's identity has not been released by police or the Hunt family.

Gay said the family understands that the significant age difference between the girls led to the legal problems, but said it points to a wider, national problem of seniors in high school facing jail time for becoming involved with freshmen.

"Just because you turn eighteen doesn't mean you're the wisest person on earth," he said. "This happens all the time with males. It's a national tragedy that seniors in high school are going to jail for dating freshmen. If they shouldn't be intermingling with one another, then they shouldn't be in the same school."

Hunt has pleaded not guilty to the charges, but has been offered a plea deal by the prosecutor's office that she must decide whether to accept by Friday, according to Gay.

The prosecutor's office offered Hunt the chance to avoid jail time if she pleads guilty to felony child abuse, he said.

"She's hanging in there, but it's been rough," Gay said. "She's spent three years doing medical training in high school and had plans to start college and a nursing program.

"A felony convict can't become a nurse, so that would ruin her plan for her entire life."

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

ABC News(PHOENIX) -- In her final words to jurors Tuesday before they decide her punishment for murder, Jodi Arias clicked through a photo slideshow, quoted Dickens and used props as she begged them to spare her life for her family's sake.

Arias, 32, was convicted earlier this month of murdering her ex-boyfriend, Travis Alexander, in 2008. The prosecution has argued that the murder was particularly cruel and warrants the death penalty, noting that Arias stabbed Alexander, slashed his throat, and shot him in the head.

Arias' attorneys presented no witnesses to testify on her behalf this week in the "mitigating phase" of the trial, in which they asked the jury to sentence her with leniency.

The jury will begin deliberating Tuesday whether to sentence Arias to life in prison or the death penalty.

Dressed in all black and wearing glasses, Arias told the jury that, though she previously said to reporters and others that she would prefer the death penalty, she no longer felt that way.

"I have made statements that I would prefer death, but I lacked perspective," Arias told the jurors.

"To me, life in prison was the most unappealing outcome I could think of," she said. "I thought I'd rather die.

"But as I stand here now, I can't ask you to sentence me to death because of them," she added, pointing in the direction of her family.

"Either way, I'm going to spend rest of my life in prison," she said. "It will either be shortened or not. If it is shortened, the people that will be hurt the most will be my family. Please don't do that to them. I've already hurt them so much, and I want everyone's pain to stop."

Arias used most of her allocution statement to try to show the jury details of her life before the murder, clicking through a slideshow of photos from her childhood, family life and relationships with ex-boyfriends.

"When I was little, my mom took a lot of pictures of me. I was the first child," she said.

"Here I am with Bobby, in our dirty little house," she added. "We didn't have power or heat. In the winter we could see our breath. My parents didn't support this relationship. I'm reminded of that Charles Dickens quote, 'It was the best of times, it was the worst of times.'"

Unfortunately your browser does not support IFrames.

Arias attempted to convince the jury to send her to prison so she would have an opportunity to contribute to society. She said that since she has been under arrest, she has come up with ways to be useful in jail, such as donating her hair to Locks of Love and coming up with a plan for recycling at the local jail.

"If I'm allowed to live in prison, I will continue to donate for the rest of my life," Arias said, noting that she has donated her hair three times to the charity.

"If I get permission, I could start a recycling program for the huge loads of waste taken to the landfill," she added. "It could create new jobs and have a far-reaching impact on the planet."

Arias showed the jury her artwork, including paintings of Elvis and her niece, as part of her slideshow, and held up a t-shirt with the word "survivor" on it that she designed and is selling, noting that profits of the sale of the t-shirt are going to domestic violence victims.

"I'm supporting this cause because it's very, very important to me. Some people do not believe I'm a victim of domestic abuse but that's OK," she said. "I've never been to prison but I think I could find other ways to contribute there."

Arias said that if she were sentenced to life in prison, she hoped to start a book club and help teach fellow inmates how to read.

"You've heard before I'm an artist. I'll never create another oil painting, but these are some of my paintings," she said.

Clicking through to the next slide, she added, "My family and I have a lot of memories. We won't be creating any more of these together."

She also referred to the family members of Alexander, who spoke last week to the jury during victim impact statements.

"I never meant to cause them so much pain," she said, pointing to Alexander's family.

The same jury that convicted Arias will decide her punishment.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

Lui Kit Wong-Pool/Getty Images(SALT LAKE CITY) -- Questions still surround the 2009 disappearance of Utah mother Susan Powell ever since the suicides of her husband, Josh Powell, and brother-in-law, Michael Powell, who authorities believe were "directly involved in her disappearance."

Although the brothers were considered persons of interest in her disappearance, there was never enough evidence to charge either one of them, said West Valley City Deputy Police Chief Mike Powell. The evidence against them was "circumstantial," he told ABC News.

Despite the scarcity of information to go on -- no crime scene, no body -- police said they were still working leads to find out what happened to Susan Powell.

"It's paramount that people understand that it's not a closed case," the deputy police chief told ABC News. "This is still an open investigation, and we will continue to pursue any information provided to us actively and with just as much vigor."

Some hope lies in Steven Powell, Susan Powell's father-in-law, who police believe might know something about her disappearance. Convicted on charges of voyeurism and child pornography, Steven Powell is currently in custody at Monroe Corrections Center in Monroe, Wash.

While Steven Powell was not directly involved in Susan's disappearance, the deputy police chief said, "we firmly believe that Steven knows something."

"Susan is still missing," he said. "If Steven Powell has any information or indication that he knows where or what may have happened, that would be important for us to have."

"Whether or not we're able to obtain that, therein lies the difficulty," he told ABC News.

Susan Powell, 28, was last seen in December 2009 at the Utah home she shared with her husband and their two young sons. Her husband told authorities that he had taken an impromptu midnight camping trip with the boys -- in the midst of a winter storm -- the night his wife vanished.

Josh Powell, 36, said that he returned home to find his wife gone and continued to state that his wife had left on her own.

Susan Powell's disappearance triggered a massive investigation that focused on her husband, who killed himself and his two sons in a fiery explosion at his home in Graham, Wash., in February 2012.

Authorities then turned their attention to her husband's brother, Michael Powell, 30, when they learned he had been made the heir to his brother's estate, which included the life insurance policies on Josh, his sons, and Susan that Josh had taken out.

Deputy Police Chief Powell said that while authorities looked at Michael Powell when Susan Powell was first reported missing, "there wasn't anything that jumped out initially" about him.

It wasn't until the summer of 2011, nearly two and a half years after Susan Powell had disappeared, that police learned that Michael Powell had a car in a salvage yard in Pendleton, Ore. He had allegedly driven from Utah to Oregon in July, but the car broke down outside the city, where it was towed and left in the yard.

"We began to look at Michael Powell much more closely at that point," the deputy police chief said.

Police brought cadaver dogs to the place where Michael Powell's car had been impounded. While the car had not been crushed, according to the deputy police chief, only the frame and the structure of the vehicle remained.

"The dogs did indicate the odor of human decomposition [in the car]," said Deputy Police Chief Powell. "We were able to extract a minimal amount of DNA from the trunk of that vehicle."

While investigators could not obtain "a full profile" from the sample, they concluded the DNA did not match the profile of Susan Powell. Still, it made authorities interested in her husband's brother.

As the investigation progressed, Powell said police found a significant amount of communication between Josh and Michael Powell that had been encrypted via the Internet.

In February, a year after his brother killed himself and his sons, Michael Powell committed suicide by jumping from a Minneapolis parking garage.

"We looked into him as completely and thoroughly as we possibly could," Deputy Police Chief Powell said. "I can tell you that he was involved in some capacity in the disappearance of Susan. There is a high probability that he had a direct involvement."

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio