It was a crime that would haunt the town of Modesto, California for years to come and a case that would capture the attention of the nation. The Christmas Eve disappearance of Laci Peterson was shocking, but what happened next, even more so.
When Peterson went missing on Christmas Eve 2002, photos of her were immediately plastered on the news, on fliers, and on media broadcasts of all kinds. They showed a happy, smiling young woman and soon-to-be mother, an additional factor that would have caused any loving husband to be concerned. The problem was – he wasn’t.
Laci’s husband Scott Peterson seemed almost nonchalant about the whole situation. He rarely gave interviews, half-heartedly hung posters, and was seen chatting on his cell phone during a candlelight vigil for his missing wife and unborn son. Suspicion was immediately aroused and when his extramarital affair with Amber Frey was revealed, things took an even more sinister turn with the case.
What happened to Laci Peterson?
Scott’s story of a solo Christmas Eve fishing trip, leaving his 8-month pregnant wife home alone, had always struck investigators as strange, yet as additional details developed it took on a more sinister feel. They began to suspect the fishing trip was a cover for disposing of the body of his deceased wife. Later discoveries would add validity to this theory and ultimately Peterson, was convicted of her and her unborn child’s murder on Nov. 12, 2004. He was sentenced to death.
Following his conviction, however, an appeal process began that resulted in a Supreme Court decision holding up his conviction, but overturning the death penalty sentencing. He was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole and is currently located in Mule Prison in Sacramento, California.
Since his conviction LA Innocence Project has taken up his case. According to an article in People, Peterson’s attorneys feel some evidence was not properly presented or investigated and this oversight could lead to his exoneration. They feel he is in “good legal hands” with the Innocence Project, claiming that many people do not truly understand the intricacies of the case. The outcome of the nonprofit’s involvement remains to be seen.
Was she ever found?
Despite Scott’s conviction, many wonder if Laci or baby Conner were ever actually found.
In April of 2003, on the San Francisco Bay shore, the body of a full-term infant was discovered, the remains would be determined to be those of baby Conner. Only one day later and one mile away, the body of a recently pregnant woman was also found. These were the remains Laci Peterson. Due to the level of decomposition of her body, her cause of death could never fully be determined. The autopsy was able to shed little light on the cause of death of either Laci or her child, although it was felt that the child most likely died in utero. It was a tragic end to a very promising life and future.
Laci’s death also shone a tragic light on a legal loophole present in the system, where often unborn children are not counted as individual people and their deaths cannot, therefore, be prosecuted. As a result, the Unborn Victims of Violence Act, also known as “Laci and Conner’s Law” was brought. The Federal legislation would allow an unborn child’s death caused by violence, to be prosecuted.