Murder of Laci Peterson

Laci Denise Peterson (née Rocha; May 4, 1975 – December 24, 2002)^[1] was an American woman who was the subject of a highly publicized murder case after she disappeared while eight months pregnant with her first child. She was reportedly last seen alive on December 24, 2002. Her husband, Scott Peterson, was later convicted of murder in the first degree for her death, and in the second degree for the death of their prenatal son, Conner. Peterson is currently on death row at San Quentin State Prison.

Early life and marriage

Laci Denise Rocha was born in Modesto, California. Her parents, Dennis Robert Rocha and Sharon Ruth Anderson, met in high school and married shortly after graduation.^[2] Their first child, Brent Rocha, was born in 1971. Laci was their second child, born in 1975. Her parents separated after her first birthday. Dennis later remarried, and had another daughter, Amy.

Laci grew up visiting her father's dairy farm in Escalon, California,^[1] and she was a cheerleader in junior high and high school. After graduating from Thomas Downey High School, she attended California Polytechnic State University,^[3] where she majored in ornamental horticulture.^[4] While at Cal Poly, she met Scott Peterson at a small restaurant called Pacific Café in Morro Bay.^[3]

Scott and Laci got engaged in December 1996 and married on August 9, 1997, a few months before Laci's graduation. For the first two years or so of their marriage, they delayed trying to have children, but Laci began to express an interest in starting a family. In December 2000, Laci became serious about trying for a pregnancy. Becoming pregnant took longer than expected, and on the verge of scheduling fertility tests, Scott and Laci conceived naturally in May 2002.^{[5][6][7][8][9]}

Disappearance and discovery of the bodies

Apart from her husband Scott, the last two people known to have spoken to Laci before she disappeared were her half-sister, Amy Rocha, and her mother, Sharon. On the evening of December 23, 2002, Amy had cut Scott's hair, with Laci present. Later that evening, Sharon spoke with Laci on the telephone around 8:30 pm. Shortly after 10:15 am the following morning, a neighbor found the family dog, a golden retriever named McKenzie, running loose in the neighborhood, wearing a collar and a muddy leash. The neighbor then returned him to the yard.

Laci's 1996 Land Rover Discovery SE was in the driveway. Her purse, containing her keys and wallet, was on the table inside the house.

When Scott returned home from fishing that evening, he reportedly discovered Laci was not there. Some reports state he washed his clothes, ate some cold pizza, cleaned up the kitchen, and took a shower.^[10] Then, at roughly 5:20 pm, he called Sharon to ask if Laci was with her. When Sharon replied that she was not there, he said, "Laci's missing." Scott stated that when he left that morning, Laci was planning to buy groceries for their Christmas get-together and walk McKenzie in nearby East La Loma Park. Another report had Scott saying he last saw Laci mopping, and he had also told Sharon Rocha that Laci was curling her hair before he left for his fishing trip.

Laci's parents called the police at 6 pm. A search of the park and surrounding areas immediately ensued. Police, family members, friends, and neighbors searched widely on foot, in all-terrain vehicles, patrol cars, and sport utility vehicles, helicopters equipped with search lights and heat sensors, water rescue units, search dogs, and horseback teams. Law enforcement agencies from several counties became involved. Police suspected foul play, doubting that she would vanish on Christmas Eve without contacting anyone. At a press conference, detective Al Brocchini said, "That is completely out of character for her."

A $25,000 reward was offered, later increased to $250,000, and finally to $500,000 for any information leading to her safe return. Posters, blue and yellow ribbons, and fliers were circulated, and the original, basic version of LaciPeterson.com website was launched by the husband of one of her friends. Friends, family, and volunteers set up a command center at a nearby Red Lion Hotel to record developments and circulate information. Over 1,500 volunteers signed up to distribute information and to help search for her.^[11]

The initial search and later vigil were organized by the immediate family and friends. In the first two days, up to 900 people were involved in looking for her, before community officials or police directly participated in the search, and prior to significant media coverage.^[12]

On April 13, 2003, a couple walking their dog discovered the decomposing, but well-preserved, body of a late-term male fetus on the San Francisco Bay shore in Richmond's Point Isabel Regional Shoreline park, north of Berkeley.^[13] Although a judge sealed autopsy results, an anonymous Associated Press source revealed that 1.5 loops of nylon tape were found around the fetus' neck and a significant cut was on the fetus' body.^[14] One day later, the body of a recently pregnant woman, wearing cream-colored maternity pants and a maternity bra, washed to shore one mile away from where the baby's body was found. The exact cause of her death was impossible to determine as a result of decomposition; the body was decapitated, both forearms were missing, the right foot was severed, and the left leg from the knee down was missing. Tape was found around the outside of her clothing on her lower torso as well.^[15] Later reports from the medical examiner revealed that there were injuries, two cracked ribs, that happened at or near the time of death. DNA tests verified that they were the bodies of Laci and her son, Conner. Mother and fetus had not been separated by coffin birth, as had been speculated. Rather, Laci's upper torso had been emptied of internal organs, and that allowed the fetus to pass through a perforation in the top of the decomposing uterus.^[16] It is thought that the 1.5 loops of nylon tape became tangled around the fetus' neck after it came out of Laci's decomposing body. Forensic anthropologist Dr. Alison Galloway was brought in to examine the remains of Laci and Conner Peterson, and was an expert witness at the trial.^[17]

Investigation and trial

From the start, Scott was reluctant to talk to the press. At one point, he stormed out of a family press conference when reporters asked if the police considered him a suspect. Laci's brother, Brent Rocha, initially defended him, claiming that he was too distraught to make public statements about her, and added that did not mean he was involved in her disappearance. "No way", Rocha said. "Absolutely not." Although later, Rocha would recall Scott's use of the word "missing" seemed very frequent. Rocha says, looking back, he felt uneasy that Scott started using that word so soon. Laci's family maintained Scott's innocence, and volunteers said that he joined their efforts at the command center every day. Police delivered a major blow to the family when they uncovered pictures showing Scott with another woman. They also found that he was with her during a time that Laci thought he was on a business trip (the dates on the pictures revealed this). After this information came out, Laci's family withdrew their support of Scott.^[18]

It was later revealed that Scott had numerous extramarital affairs, one of which Laci knew about.^[19] The most recent was with a massage therapist named Amber Frey, a single mother from nearby Fresno. The affair began after he met a woman, Shawn Sibley, on October 24, 2002, at a trade convention where he represented his company, TradeCorp. He told her he was single and "looking". He joked that he should put "Horny Bastard" on his name tag to help him meet women. Though Sibley was attached, she thought he would be a good match for Amber Frey, a friend of hers. Sibley gave Frey's contact information to Scott, and he called her on November 19, and met her the next day. After a month-long, whirlwind romance, she informed police of their relationship shortly after discovering he was a person of interest in Laci's disappearance on the local news,^[20] and agreed to phone him while police recorded their conversation. She informed police he told her on December 9, two weeks before Laci's disappearance, he was a widower, and it would be the first Christmas without his wife.^[21]

Scott was arrested on April 18, 2003,^[22] near a La Jolla golf course.^[23] He claimed to be meeting his father and brother for a game of golf.^[24] His naturally dark brown hair had been dyed blond,^[25] and his Mercedes was "overstuffed" with miscellaneous items, including nearly $15,000 in cash, 12 Viagra tablets, survival gear,^[26] camping equipment,^[24][27] several changes of clothes, four cell phones,^[27] and two driver's licenses, his and his brother's.^[25][27] Scott's father, Lee Peterson, explained that Scott had used his brother's license the day before to get a San Diego resident discount at the golf course, and that Scott had been living out of his car because of the media attention.^[27] Police and prosecutors, however, saw these items as an indication that Peterson had planned to flee to Mexico.^[27][28]

On April 21, 2003, Scott was arraigned in Stanislaus County Superior Court before Judge Nancy Ashley. He was charged with two felony counts of murder with premeditation and special circumstances. He pled not guilty. Judge Al Girolami of Stanislaus County Superior Court moved his trial to San Mateo County because so many people in Stanislaus had made up their minds about Peterson's guilt.^[29] His trial began on June 1, 2004. On November 12, 2004, Scott Peterson was convicted of first degree murder for Laci's death and second degree murder for Conner's death.^[30] Judge Alfred A. Delucchi sentenced Scott to death, calling the murder of Laci "cruel, uncaring, heartless, and callous".^[31]

Aftermath

The death of Laci and her fetal son led to the United States Congress passing the Unborn Victims of Violence Act, which is also known as Laci and Conner's Law. On April 1, 2004, Sharon Rocha and her boyfriend, Ron Grantski, were in attendance at the White House when President George W. Bush signed the bill into law.^[32][33] The law recognizes unborn children as legal victims if injured or killed upon a listed crime of violence.

Late in 2005, a Stanislaus County, California, judge ruled that Scott was not entitled to collect on Laci's $250,000 life insurance policy, having been convicted of her murder. Under California state law, criminals may not profit from insurance policies. On December 19, 2005, the money was given to Sharon as the executor of her estate.^[34] The California Court of Appeal (Fifth District) later affirmed the trial court's decision on October 31, 2007.^[35]

In 2006, Sharon wrote For Laci: A Mother's Story of Love, Loss, and Justice, a biography and memoir about the life and death of Laci. All proceeds are used to fund the Laci and Conner Search and Rescue Fund, which she had founded. On January 29, 2006, it was listed at No. 1 on The New York Times Non-Fiction Best Seller list.^[36]

Media

External video

Dateline Sneak Preview: The Laci Peterson Story: A Dateline Investigation

The weekly NBC news magazine series Dateline released a two-hour special, The Laci Peterson Story: A Dateline Investigation, delivering a comprehensive review of the Laci Peterson case. The special reported on newly discovered interrogation footage of Scott Peterson. Interviews with prosecutor Birgit Fladager, Peterson's former mistress Amber Frey, and Laci's mother Sharon Rocha are covered; the special originally aired on April 21, 2017.^[37][38]

References

External links

• The Modesto Bee - The Peterson case
• Laci: A Mother's Story of Love, Loss, and Justice Book by Sharon Rocha (December 2005)
• Phone Transcript: Peterson and Frey, 6 January 2003 - Court TV