Jodi Arias Trial Update Today: The defense of Jodi Arias has cost more than $2 million and will continue to grow. The next phase of the Jodi Arias trial begins on March 17.

According to officials, Jodi Arias' legal bills have gone over $2 million. Jodi's defense is being paid for by Arizona taxpayers. As the new penalty phase of Arias trial begins in March, expenses will continue to climb.

Jodi Arias was convicted of murdering her ex-boyfriend Travis Alexander in May. The jury was deadlocked in the penalty phase as to whether to sentence Arias to death or life in prison. Prosecutors decided to continue to seek the death penalty. The second phase of the Jodi Arias trial will begin with the selection of a new jury that prosecutors hope will be able to impose the death penalty.  If the jury of the second Jodi Arias penalty phase is deadlocked on the death penalty again, it would be up to the judge to sentence Arias to life in prison or life with the possibility of parole after 25 years.

Jodi Arias has been held in jail in Maricopa County while hearings continue and her legal bills grow. Maricopa County spokeswoman Cari Gerchick told The Associated Press that the county has paid nearly $2.2 million for Jodi Arias' court-appointed attorneys as well as expert witnesses and other costs associated with Arias' defense.

Maricopa County Attorney Bill Montgomery has not given a tally of how much it has cost to prosecute the Jodi Arias case. Montgomery has cited a court order that attorneys not discuss Arias-related matters.

Jodi Arias admitted that killed Travis Alexander in 2008 at his home in the suburbs of Phoenix. Arias claimed that she attacked him in self-defense. Travis Alexander was stabbed 27 times, his throat was slit and he was shot in the forehead. Prosecutors claim the murder was premeditated and that Arias was in a jealous rage because Alexander wanted break up their relationship.

Jodi Arias' lawyers asked judge Sherry Stephens to vacate the jury's ruling that the murder was "especially cruel." This is the classification that allowed the prosecution to argue for the death penalty. Jodi Arias' lawyers argued that "especially cruel" is too broad of a term for jurors who aren't legal experts to fairly judge what makes one killing more cruel than another. Arizona law defines "cruel manner" in terms of the victim's pain and suffering. It didn't take into the mitigating factors of the crime, like Arias' age or the "unusual and substantial duress" she was suffering. The filing challenged a 2002 U.S. Supreme Court decision that ruled defendants have the right for jurors to determine the aggravating factors that qualify them for the death penalty.