Exclusive: Innocence Project takes up case of notorious killer Scott Peterson

ByAlex Stone and Dan Noyes ABCNews logo
Thursday, January 18, 2024
TIMELINE: How the Laci Peterson case unfolded
Laci Peterson, who was 8 months pregnant, went missing from her Modesto home in 2002.

SAN FRANCISCO -- The LA Innocence Project has taken up the notorious case of convicted wife killer Scott Peterson in new court filings, ABC News has learned exclusively. The group is seeking new evidence from the original trial.

Laci Peterson, who was 27 years old and eight months pregnant, disappeared on Christmas Eve in 2002. Her body was found in San Francisco Bay in April 2003.

Scott Peterson, 51, was arrested and charged with first-degree murder in the death of his wife and second-degree murder in the death of their unborn son. He was convicted in 2004 and sentenced to death in 2005. He was later sentenced to life in prison without parole.

Peterson, who pleaded not guilty, and his legal team have maintained his innocence and claimed he received an unfair trial based on possible jury misconduct. His lawyers have previously claimed that a woman, known as Juror 7, had not disclosed involvement in other legal proceedings.

In 2020, the California Supreme Court overturned Scott Peterson's death sentence, citing that his jury was improperly screened for bias against the death penalty, according to court documents.

He was resentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole in December 2021 and moved off death row in October 2022.

In December 2022, Superior Court Judge Anne-Christine Massullo denied Scott Peterson "relief" in his appeal based on stealth juror accusations.

This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.