The penalty phase of the Jodi Arias retrial started on Tuesday as prosecutors presented a graphic photo of murder victim Travis Alexander to make the case that the convicted boyfriend killer should be put to death.

Arias, 34, was convicted of the first-degree murder of her Alexander, her ex-boyfriend, in May 2013. According to medical examiners, Arias stabbed him 27 times, primarily in the back, torso and heart in his Phoenix home in 2008. She also slit Alexander's throat from ear to ear, nearly decapitating him, and shot him in the face before she dragged his bloodied corpse to the shower.

Although the aspiring photographer was found guilty in the case, the jurors failed to reach a unanimous decision on her sentencing. As a result, she the retrial will determine whether she should be sentenced to death, life in prison or life with a chance of release after serving 25 years.

Prosecutor Juan Martinez displayed a photo of Alexander's lifeless body during his opening arguments, saying, "This is how much she loved him," reports ABC News.

He ended his opening statement telling the jurors that "The only just punishment in this case is death."

However, Arias' defense attorney Kirk Nurmi described his client as a "troubled, mentally ill young woman" and argued that she shouldn't be executed because she suffers from post traumatic stress disorder and Borderline Personality Disorder.

"It is up to you to write the final chapter of this story," said Nurmi to the jury, which consists of 12 women and six men, including six alternates.

Nurmi also spent an ample amount of time warning the jury that here will be graphic evidence including autopsy photos, sexually explicit photos, and transcriptions of the X-rated text messages that Arias exchanged with Alexander in the months leading up to his murder.

He went on to emphasize that Arias had no prior criminal history and was allegedly a victim of physical and emotional abuse by her parents, in addition to her former lover.