Scott Peterson's death sentence overturned: Murdered wife Laci's family 'in pain again' over yet another trial
The news of Scott Peterson's death penalty being overturned earlier this week dealt a serious blow to his murdered wife's family. "The family is in pain again," a source close to Laci Peterson's family told People. "It’s not even so much that’s he’s getting off death row for the time being, but now there will be another trial and they’re going to have to sit through it and possibly testify."
47-year-old Peterson was convicted of two counts of first-degree murder in the 2002 deaths of his wife Laci and their unborn son, Conner. In 2005, he was sentenced to death for the same.
After years of appeals to reverse the death penalty, the California Supreme Court heard Peterson's appeal and gave a ruling on Monday. In its ruling, the court said Peterson's guilty verdict would stay in place but he would be granted a new sentencing trial. "Peterson contends his trial was flawed for multiple reasons, beginning with the unusual amount of pretrial publicity that surrounded the case," the court noted. "We reject Peterson’s claim that he received an unfair trial as to guilt and thus affirm his convictions for murder."
However, the court added that the trial judge in Peterson's case had "made a series of clear and significant errors in jury selection that, under the long-standing United States Supreme Court precedent, undermined Peterson’s right to an impartial jury at the penalty phase."
Under state law, prosecutors are can choose to try Peterson again for the death penalty.
Laci was eight months pregnant when she went missing from her Modesto residence on Christmas Eve of 2002. After authorities found her body in the San Francisco Bay in 2003, Peterson claimed his wife was killed as she was walking their dog while he had left for a "solo fishing trip" that fateful morning.
But Peterson's dark secrets became unraveled as the case moved forward, including a months-long affair with a woman named Amber Frey – a single mother who was unaware Peterson was married when she began a romantic relationship with him.
When Frey came across a headline about Laci's December 24 disappearance, she realized Scott had lied to her. The distraught mom immediately contacted the authorities and offered her full cooperation. She eventually ended up recording almost thirty hours of phone calls with her then-boyfriend without his knowledge.
In April 2003, authorities found two maimed and decaying bodies in a marshy area of the San Francisco Bay shore – one of an adult woman and the other a baby. Forensic tests would later confirm they were, in fact, Laci and her unborn son. Scott was apprehended shortly after in San Diego, where authorities found him with dyed blonde hair, a beard, his brother’s ID, four cell phones, and $10,000 in cash. Investigators said they were forced to assume he was planning to cross the border over to Mexico.
In November 2004, Scott was found guilty of first-degree murder in his wife's death and second-degree murder in the death of his unborn son, later identified as Conner. He was sentenced to death the following month. Over the years, Scott continued to claim innocence and put forth multiple appeals to reverse the death penalty.
Now that Scott's death sentence has been overturned, Laci's family is still trying to process the new development. "The old wounds are being reopened yet again," the family source told People. "There is no end to the pain that Scott Peterson has put this family through."