Who is Scott Peterson and how long has he been in prison for?
SCOTT Peterson was convicted of murdering his wife and unborn child in 2002, a crime for which he was given the death penalty.
Recently, Peterson’s death penalty conviction was overturned – although he is still considered guilty.
Who is Scott Peterson?
Scott Peterson, 47, has been on death row since November 12, 2004 for the murder of his wife and unborn child. He has continually maintained that he is innocent. Recently, he won a bid to overturn his death penalty sentence – although the court has ruled that he is still guilty.
Why was he arrested and charged?
Peterson was charged with murdering his wife and his unborn child, and dumping their bodies in the San Francisco bay. He was arrested after his girlfriend Amber Frey talked to the police.
He had told Frey that his wife had died when they started dating – a month before the murders took place, according to the Associated Press.
Who was his wife?
Laci Peterson, wife of Scott Peterson, was a Modesto schoolteacher eight months pregnant with Scott’s child, Connor. Prosecutors asserted that Peterson had killed them on Christmas Eve, 2002, by suffocating Laci. Their bodies were found in the San Francisco Bay months later.
Did Scott have an affair?
Peterson had started a relationship with Amber Frey, a Fresno massage therapist, a month BEFORE the slaying, and had told her that his wife was dead. This eventually proved to be his undoing, when Frey confessed.
When will he be executed?
A death penalty sentencing is still not off the table for the killer. However, Stanislaus County District Attorney Birgit Fladager has not yet confirmed that this will be pursued.
Why was his execution overturned?
Peterson’s lawyer Cliff Gardner filed a 423 page document contesting the ruling, according to KPIX. He had a myriad of complaints, including that the trial had received too much publicity, investigators didn’t prove “how, where or when,” the murder took place, and that investigators did not have sufficient evidence to back the theory that Laci was suffocated.
Although the complaint did not successfully convince the justices to overturn the guilty sentence, they did agree with one point, unanimously – jurors who were personally against the death penalty but who were willing to enforce it were dismissed.
“While a court may dismiss a prospective juror as unqualified to sit on a capital case if the juror’s views on capital punishment would substantially impair his or her ability to follow the law, a juror may not be dismissed merely because he or she has expressed opposition to the death penalty as a general matter,” the justices said.