Scott Lee Peterson (born October 24, 1972) is a former American fertilizer seller currently residing in a convict prison at San Quentin State Prison. In 2004, he was convicted of the first-degree murder of his pregnant wife, Laci Peterson, and second-degree murder of their unborn son Connor in Modesto, California.
In 2005, he was sentenced to death by lethal injection. His case is currently on appeal to the California Supreme Court.
Video Scott Peterson
Early life and marriage
Scott Lee Peterson was born October 24, 1972, at Sharp Coronado Hospital in San Diego, California, to Lee Arthur Peterson, an entrepreneur who owns a packing business, and Jacqueline "Jackie" Helen Latham, who owns a boutique in La Jolla called The Put On. Although Lee and Jackie have six children from a previous relationship, Scott is their only child together. As a child, he shares a bedroom with his stepbrother, John (Jackie's son from a previous relationship) in a two-bedroom family apartment in La Jolla.
Peterson began to play golf at an early age, the result of the time he spent with his father. At the age of 14, he can beat his father in the game. For a time, he dreamed of becoming a professional golfer like Phil Mickelson, his teammate at San Diego University College. At the end of high school, he is one of the best junior golfers in San Diego. In 1990, Peterson enrolled at Arizona State University (where Mickelson was also listed) on a partial golf scholarship. Mickelson will continue to be a very successful PGA golfer, with Lee Peterson then testifying that his son was discouraged by the considerable competition that Mickelson presented at Arizona State. Randall Mell from Fort Lauderdale, Florida Sun-Sentinel reported that Chip Couch, Arizona State's father Chris Couch, had told Mell that he had Peterson start the golf team after giving Chris hangover after a night of partying. Since Chris is the number 1 junior in the country, Chip does not want Peterson to threaten his son's future, and complains to the golf coach, who kicked Peterson off the team. Peterson moved to Cuesta College in San Luis Obispo, California, and later, California Polytechnic State University. He initially planned to major in international business, but turned his line of business into an agricultural business. The professor who taught Peterson described him as a model disciple. Agribusiness professor Jim Ahern commented, "I do not mind having a class full of Scott Petersons."
While at Cal Poly, Peterson works at a restaurant in Morro Bay called Pacific Cafà ©  ©. One of his colleagues will receive a visit from his neighbor named Laci Denise Rocha, who also attends Cal Poly as an ornamental horticulture department. When Peterson and his future wife first met in a restaurant in mid-1994, the Laci made the first move, sending him his phone number. Immediately after meeting her, the Laci told her mother that she had met the man she was going to marry. Peterson then calls the Drawers, and they start dating, their first date is a deep-sea fishing trip that keeps the Drunken seasaw. As Peterson's relationship with the Drawer became more serious, he set aside his dream of professional golf to focus on the business path. The couple dated for two years and eventually moved together. In 1997, after the Laci graduated, they married at Sycamore Mineral Springs Resort in the Valley of Avila in San Luis Obispo County. While Peterson finished his senior year, the Laci took a job at nearby Prunedale. Prosecutors have stated that around this time, Peterson was involved in the first of at least two marital affairs, although they have not revealed the name or details of this relationship.
Peterson graduated with BS in agricultural business in June 1998. After their graduation, Peterson and Laci opened a sports bar in San Luis Obispo called The Shack. Contrary to the Los Angeles Times story that reported that Peterson's parents lent him money to open an establishment, Peterson's parents firmly told the San Francisco Chronicle that they did not believe it was an investment the bad one. When the couple had trouble finding a technician to install the required ventilation at the restaurant, Peterson took the required certification course in Los Angeles to install it himself. Businesses were slow at first, but eventually picked up, especially on weekends. Petersons sold The Shack in 2000 when they moved to Laci village in Modesto to start a family. In October 2000 they bought a three-bedroom bungalow house, two bathrooms for $ 177,000 on Covena Avenue in an upscale neighborhood near La Loma Park.
The drawer immediately took a part-time job as a substitute teacher, and Peterson got a job with Tradecorp U.S.A., a newly established Spanish fertilizer subsidiary. According to Lee Peterson, the Spanish company is trying to establish a customer base in the US, and employs Peterson as their West Coast representative. Working on salaries plus commissions, he sells fertilizers, irrigation systems, chemical nutrients, and related products to large farms and flower farmers, especially in California, Arizona, and New Mexico. Peterson earns $ 5,000 a month before taxes. Laci's beloved people, including her mother and younger sister, reported that she worked energetically to be a perfect housewife, enjoying cooking and entertaining, and that she and her family welcomed the news in 2002 that she was pregnant. In November 2002, when Laci was seven months pregnant, Peterson was introduced by a friend to a Fresno massage therapist named Amber Frey. In a public statement later, Frey said Peterson told him he was single, and the two started a romantic relationship. The last time Peterson's parents had seen the Drawers for the three weekend days they'd spent together in Carmel the week before Christmas.
Maps Scott Peterson
Peterson Drawer Removal
On 24 December 2002, Peterson reported that his wife Drawer was missing from their Modesto home. She was seven and a half months pregnant at the time, with a due date of February 10, 2003. The couple plans to name the baby boy Connor. The exact date and cause of death The drawer is never determined. Peterson originally reported he was missing on Christmas Eve, and his story quickly attracted national media interest. Detective Modesto Jon Buehler and Allen Brocchini, principal investigator in the case, questioned Peterson on the day he reported the missing Drawer. Peterson stated that he had gone by boat at Marina Berkeley in Richmond for fishing, about 90 miles from their Modesto home. Detectives immediately launched the search, but were surprised by Peterson's behavior. Buehler then told ABC News that, "I suspected Scott when I first met him, not that he did it, but I was a little thrown by his cool, cool demeanor and lack of questions... he was not" Are you going to call me back? Can I have one of your cards? What are you doing now? "
Modesto Police did not immediately disclose to the public that Peterson was a suspect, largely because his family and friends Laci maintained their belief in his innocence for a month after his departure. The police treated the case as suspicious in the first few hours after the missing persons report was filed. Eventually, the police became increasingly suspicious because of inconsistencies in Peterson's story. On January 17, 2003, it was discovered that Peterson had been involved in many affairs, most recently with Frey. He approached the police about Peterson, whom he had just dated, after learning that he was actually married to a missing woman. At this point, the Laci family announced that they had withdrawn their support from Peterson, then expressed outrage that he had told Frey that he "lost his wife" on December 9, 2002 - fourteen days before he disappeared.
Frey agrees to let the police record the next telephone conversation with Peterson in the hope of making him confess. During the trial, an audio recording of the couple's conversations was played, and the transcript was published. The recording revealed that in the days after the Drawer disappeared, Peterson claimed to Frey that he had gone to Paris to celebrate the holiday, in part with his new friend Pasqual and FranÃÆ'§ois. In fact, he had made one of these phone calls while attending the New Year's Eve candle night for a Drawer in Modesto.
Recovery Remnants Drawer and Connor
On April 13, 2003, the remnants of late-baby boys were found at Richmond Point Point Regional Shoreline, north of the marina where Peterson bounced the day of the Drawer's disappearance. The next day, some of the female body lost hands, feet, and heads were found in the same area. It's identified as a Drawer, and the fetus is hers. An autopsy is done, but because the exact cause decomposition of death can not be determined. The medical examiner noted that he had suffered several broken ribs before his death; these injuries are not caused by his body being dragged along the rocks at the bay. The prosecutor suggested that he could be strangled or strangled in their home. The discovery of a corpse creates a greater sense of urgency for Brocchini and Buehler, who have installed trackers in Peterson's car. Knowing that he was in San Diego at the time, they were afraid he would escape across the border into Mexico. Brocchini commented in 2017, "I just thought, 'We gotta find Scott right now.He said he was there and that's where his body appeared? I mean, I'm sure it's planned, he's planning it... San Diego is pretty close to the border Mexico, Scott knows the area is pretty good, that's where his parents live, that's where he lives, so it's not like he has to get MapQuest to try and figure out how to get to Tijuana. "
The FBI and Modesto Police Department conducted Peterson's forensic search. The FBI also tested mitochondrial DNA in hair from pliers found in Peterson fishing boats that linked them to hair taken from a Laci hair brush. The authorities are also looking for pickup trucks, equipment boxes, warehouses, and Peterson boats. After Peterson was arrested, the police conducted further searches at bay in an effort to locate handmade concrete anchors that they believed burdened the Drawer's body while underwater; nothing found.
Capture
Peterson was arrested on April 18, 2003 near the La Jolla golf course. He claimed to be meeting his father and brother to play golf. Her natural dark brown hair was dyed blond, and her Mercedes-Benz was "too soft" with other items, including nearly $ 15,000 in cash, twelve Viagra tablets, survival kit, camping gear, some change of clothes, four phone, and hers. licensed driver, other than his own. Peterson's father explained that he used his brother's permission the day before to get San Diego rescue on the golf course, and that Peterson had stayed outside his car due to media attention. However, police fear these items are an indication that Peterson is planning to escape to Mexico, an idea that will be approved by prosecutors.
On April 21, 2003, Peterson was charged in Stanislaus County Court of Justice before Judge Nancy Ashley. He was charged with two counts of murder crimes with special premeditations and circumstances: the first level murder of the Drawers, and Connor's second murder. He pleaded not guilty.
Experiment
Prior to the indictment, Peterson was represented by Kirk McAllister, a veteran criminal defense lawyer from Modesto. Chief Deputy Public Defender Kent Faulkner was also assigned to the case. Peterson then pointed out that he can pay a private lawyer, Mark Geragos, who has done other high-level criminal work. On January 20, 2004, a judge converted a court site from Modesto to Redwood City, as Peterson was the victim of increased hostility in the Modesto area.
The Peterson Court began on 1 June 2004, and was followed by the media. The principal attorney is Rick Distaso. Geragos leads Peterson's defense. Prosecution witness Frey involves her own lawyer, Gloria Allred, to represent her. Allred was not bound by the silencing orders imposed on those involved in the trial. Although he argues that his client has no opinion about whether Peterson is guilty, Allred is openly sympathetic to the prosecutor. He often appeared on television news programs during the trial.
Peterson's defense lawyers base their case on the lack of direct evidence and downplay the importance of indirect evidence. They suggest that the remnants of the fetus are fairly mature babies and theorize that someone kidnapped the Drawer, held her until she gave birth, and then threw the two bodies at bay. The medical prosecutors argued that the infant was not in full condition and died at the same time as his mother. Geragos suggests that the Satanic sect abducted the pregnant woman. He claims Peterson is a "cad" for an affair in the Laci, but not a murderer.
Frances Gorman's jury was removed and replaced at the beginning of the trial by mistake. Judge and lawyer jury Gregory Jackson then requested his own removal during jury consideration, most likely because fellow jurors wanted to replace him as a foreman. Geragos told reporters that Jackson had mentioned the threat he received when he asked to be removed from the jury. Jackson was replaced by an alternative.
Evidence
A single strand of hair is the only known forensic evidence identified. The thread, which is thought to belong to the Drawer, was found in a pair of pliers in Peterson's boat.
Presented as evidence of prosecution during the trial was the fact that Peterson changed his appearance and purchased a vehicle using his mother's name to avoid being acknowledged by the press. He added two porn television channels to his cable service just days after his wife disappeared. The prosecutor stated that this meant he knew he was not going home. Peterson expressed interest in selling the house he shared with the Laci, and sold his Land Rover.
Rick Cheng, a hydrologist with the US Geological Survey and an expert witness on the tides of the San Francisco Bay, testified as a witness to the prosecution. During cross examination, Cheng admitted that his findings were "possible, not appropriate". The tidal system is quite chaotic, and it can not develop the proper model of body disposal and travel. As the trial progressed, prosecutors opened discussions about Peterson's affair with Frey and the contents of their recorded phone calls.
The defense argued that a prostitute accused of stealing a check from Peterson's mailbox might have killed the Drawer, but Modesto police detective Mike Hermosa did not indicate that the woman had been a suspect in his departure. Attorney Dave Harris noted that the check was stolen after he disappeared, which meant the woman was not involved in his departure.
Dr. Charles March is expected to be an important witness to the defense, which, according to the San Francisco Chronicle, may justify Peterson's sole disclosure by showing that the Drawer's fetus dies a week after the prosecutor claims. Under cross-examination, March admitted basing his find on anecdote from one of his Laci friends that he had taken a home pregnancy test on June 9, 2002. When the prosecutor pointed out that no medical records were hanging on June 9, March became confused. and confused standing up and asking the prosecutor to cut it "some leeway", damaging his credibility. Summing up this key defense witness, Stan Goldman, a professor of criminal law at Loyola Law School in Los Angeles said, "There is a moment of the day that reminds me of Chernobyl." According to one newspaper account of a March testimony, "at the end of their testimony on Thursday, legal analysts and the jury closed their notebooks, rolled their eyes, and pouted when they thought nobody was looking".
Motives
Prosecutors filed Peterson's affair with Frey and financial matters as the motive for the killing. The prosecutor alleges that he killed the Drawer because of the increasing debt and the desire to be single again.
Verdict and punishment
On 12 November 2004, a jury sentenced Peterson to two counts of murder: first-degree murder in special circumstances for murdering the Drawer, and second-degree murder for killing the fetus he carried. The trial penalty phase begins on November 30, and ends on December 13, when the jury handed down the death penalty. On March 16 Judge Alfred A. Delucchi followed the jury's verdict, condemning Peterson with a deadly injection and ordering him to pay $ 10,000 for the Laci funeral fee, calling the Criminal murderer "cruel, uncaring, heartless, and heartless."
In a later press appearance, jurors stated that they felt that Peterson's attitude - especially the lack of emotion and phone calls to Frey in the days after the Drawer's loss - indicated that he was at fault. They based their verdict on the "hundreds of little puzzles" from the indirect evidence revealed during the trial, from the location of the Drawer's body to the myriad of lies his husband told him after he disappeared. "The jury decided the death penalty because they felt that Peterson betrayed his responsibility for protecting his wife and son.
On October 21, 2005, a judge ruled that the proceeds of a $ 250,000 life insurance policy Peterson took on the Drawers would be given to the Laci mother, reaffirmed by the Fifth District Court of Appeals Court on October 21, 2005. Peterson filed an automatic appeal in the California High Court on July 5, 2012.
Peterson arrived at San Quentin State Prison at dawn on Wednesday, March 17, 2005. He reportedly had not slept the night before, was too "jazzed" to sleep. He joins more than 700 other inmates at his only death facility in California, while his case is an automatic appeal to the California Supreme Court in San Francisco.
Appeal
Cliff Gardner, Peterson's lawyer, stated that the publicity surrounding the trial, the verdict of false evidence, and other mistakes deprives Peterson of a fair trial. On July 6, 2012, Gardner filed 423 pages of appeal from Peterson's sentence. The State Prosecutor's Office submitted their brief response on January 26, 2015. The defense appealed for a brief State response in July 2015, claiming that a certified dog that detected the Laci's aroma at Berkeley Marina had failed two-thirds of tests under similar conditions.
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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