Convicted killer Scott Peterson was back in Redwood City court via Zoom video Tuesday for a hearing connected to his bid for a new murder trial. Ian Cull reports.
Convicted killer Scott Peterson was back in Redwood City, California, court via Zoom video Tuesday for a hearing connected to his bid for a new murder trial.
It has been nearly 20 years since Peterson was convicted of murdering his pregnant wife Laci and their unborn son Connor. Peterson told investigators he left home to go fishing in Berkeley the morning of Christmas Eve 2002, the day Laci disappeared.
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The remains of Laci and Connor surfaced months later on the shores of Berkeley.
Peterson last appeared in court via Zoom in March with his new lawyers from the L.A. Innocence Project. They are making a case that there is enough new evidence to grant Peterson a retrial.
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Peterson's legal team wants a judge to review evidence that wasn't presented to the court 20 years ago. The evidence is linked to a robbery that occurred near the Peterson home in Modesto around the time Laci disappeared.
Peterson's lawyers say Modesto police withheld evidence and disregarded the robbery too quickly.
During Tuesday's proceedings, the judge was expected to rule on a motion to seal set forth by Peterson’s defense attorneys from the L.A. Innocence Project. But they ended up withdrawing the motion.
Both parties essentially agreed to keep a particular letter with names of potential witnesses redacted, as it is.
In a previous hearing, the defense originally put forth the motion to protect the identity of witnesses who want to remain anonymous for fear of retaliation. Prosecutors made the case that those identities are already redacted and a quarter of names and addresses have already been made public at some point.
Another focal point is a burned out van and a stained mattress that were found the day after Laci disappeared. Peterson’s lawyers have asked a judge to order DNA testing on the items. A hearing related to that evidence will take place May 29.
Prosecutors have argued against certain requests in the three motions made by Peterson’s attorneys, saying they were taken up on initial appeal and litigated in the original trial.
Peterson has maintained his innocence throughout his conviction and imprisonment and has made multiple attempts to get his case retried, none of them successful.
