Did Scott Petersen really murder his wife and unborn son or was this a mass delusion bestowed on an unsuspecting public by an overly opinionated press?
According to Peterson, his wife, Laci, went out to walk the dog on December 24, 2002, and never returned. His story was verified by a neighbor, Vivian Mitchell, who stated that she saw Laci walking the dog shortly after 10 a.m. on the day she disappeared. (KTVU 2002). When Peterson arrived home after his fishing expedition, he found the dog in the backyard with the leash still connected to his collar.
An extensive search was conducted with no success. (KTVU2002).
Enter Amber Frye, the young mother and career masseuse who saw Scott on television and immediately recognized her lover of recent vintage. Scott had assured her that he was unmarried (CNN2001). Later, Amber Frye and her famous attorney were to play a well-lauded, but totally irrelevant role in the murder trial of Scott Peterson, as millions of people listened avidly to the transcripts of private phone calls between Amber Frye and the defendant.
Shortly thereafter, police obtained a warrant and arrested Scott Peterson. Months later, the bodies of Laci and her baby emerged from the water near the place where Peterson said he had been fishing. (CNN2001).
During the course of the trial, much faulty evidence was leaked to the press, and relayed to the public. Although the bogus leads were quickly discredited, the damage was done. In spite of a dismal dearth of direct evidence, Scott Peterson was convicted of murdering his wife and unborn son.
(CNN2004). As the case heads for appeal, it’s time to re-examine the arguments for, and against Scott Peterson’s guilt.
The Defense’s Argument
Motive
The prosecution never did prove a viable motive. There were vague suggestions that Scott Peterson was enamored with Amber Frye, and wanted out of his family responsibilities, so he could be with her, but this idea is lacking of even the most basic logic. Scott certainly would not be “freeing” himself by forming a serious alliance with Amber Frye, who already had one child and was pregnant with another. In all likelihood, Amber Frye was just a temporary diversion.
Another equally vague theory was posited that Scott Peterson was not ready to become a father; that he felt buckled by the weight of responsibility that was about to settle on him, and simply did away with the whole problem. This too, is absurd. Many first-time fathers are nervous and uncertain, but the trepidation flees as soon as they hold their child in their arms, and this would have been the outcome for Scott Peterson too, if events had been allowed to continue to their fruition.
The Investigation
It is incumbent upon police detectives to develop a plan of investigation. “The plan should provide an outline of the general direction the case is taking, the kinds of investigative methods to be used, and list of the resources needed to carry out and complete the investigation” (Class Notes).
The investigation into the disappearance and murder of Laci Peterson was biased, slipshod and disorganized. For example, the rumor mill had it that a pregnant woman was being held hostage in a house on the edge of the town proper. Supposedly, the police investigated and determined that the story was unfounded. How complete was that investigation? Given the fact that police officials were already eying Scott Peterson as their primary subject, they may not have felt the necessity of conducting a thorough search of the area. Are there any notes to document their activity? What witnesses were interviewed? Were any homes actually searched? Where are the notes in regard to this lead?
In another incident, Laci was allegedly seen by a clerk in a convenience store in Longview Washington. According to the witness, the woman was pregnant, claimed to have been kidnapped, and asked for help. This report too, was pronounced bogus, but once again, questions loom: Who was this woman? Who was this woman? Was she given help? Is there any documentation of an investigation into this incident?
There had also been several recent robberies reported in the neighborhood, and several residents reported seeing a suspicion brown van. (CNN2001). Did the authorities look into these events, make note and conduct thorough interviews of witnesses? If so, where are the notes and records of interviews?
Scott Peterson’s version of the sequence of events was derided loudly by the police, and strangely enough, even by the media. How did the media know? Were they there? There was a witness who corroborated Scott Peterson’s account of the events leading up to his wife’s disappearance, but Vivian Mitchell’s eye-witness testimony was peremptorily discounted; the police claimed it was “another pregnant woman” that passed by Vivian Mitchell’s window that morning. If so, who was it? Where is this pregnant phantom dog-walker? What is her name and why was she not called to testify at Scott Peterson’s trial? If Laci Petersen did not go out walking her dog that morning, why did McKenzie return without her?
Why was the media allowed to get so involved? The task of the media is to report the news, not to become part of it and certainly not to influence it. Also, who were all those people cheering outside of the courtroom when Petersen was convicted? Didn’t they have jobs to go to? Were they hired yeomen for the media?
“An investigator can try to prove the case or he can try to uncover the truth, but there is a difference between these two perspectives.” (Class Notes).
The investigators in this case were clearly biased. This is shown from the way the authorities zeroed in on Scott Peterson as their primary suspect from almost the very beginning. The facts were shaped to fit that conclusion, almost like a square wooden peg might be pared to fit into a round hole. Tunnel vision may have caused the police to miss important evidence, and may have even cost Laci Peterson her life. In addition, two of the investigators had admittedly been offered a movie deal. How would the outcome of the case affect this lucrative opportunity? Were the stakes so high that these detectives were willing to configure circumstantial evidence to fit Scott Peterson?
The Crime Scene
“Accurate documentation of the crime scene is essential. Processing a crime scene systematically includes confirming the boundaries, securing the area; making sketches, making observations, and taking notes and photographs to make a record of the scene, searching the boundaries of the area for evidence, collecting, processing and preserving evidence, and obtaining statements from witnesses, if any.”(Class Notes).
It is difficult to process a crime scene systematically and efficiently when you don’t know where it is! In the Scott Peterson case, several locations, such as the home, warehouse, and boat were discussed as possible crime scenes. Whereas in some cases there can be two or even three locations, there is always a primary crime scene. In this particular case, the investigators seemed to have grave difficulty in identifying a specific place where the crime may have been committed. They finally settled on the Peterson’s home, but the exact location within the home remains an ambiguous and murky mystery. (NBC2004).
Physical Evidence
“Physical evidence is important because, unlike testimonial evidence, it can stand alone to establish the guilt of a person in a court of law. For example, a defendant cannot usually be convicted on the basis of an uncorroborated confession, as there must be either direct or circumstantial evidence that raises an inference of the truth of the essential facts of the confession.”(Class Notes).
There was no direct physical evidence. No blood evidence was found at any of the three locations. (CNN2004). There were no eyewitnesses, no murder weapon, and no forensic evidence, presented at trial to link Peterson to this crime. (CNN2004).
Documentary Evidence
“Investigators often have to consult many different sources to gather documentary evidence on a case. Documentary sources of information can include any sort of paper or electronic sources, such as criminal and DMV histories, financial documents, old case files, court files, court testimony, transcripts, mail covers, trash pulls, medical or psychological records, licenses, corporate indices, telephone or utility records, information about the crime scene, interviews with victims, witnesses, complainants, suspects, the crime scene, and document archives. The internet and internet-based archival services offer investigators a huge array of archival sources of information.” (Class Notes).
Prosecutors maintain that a single hair found in the teeth of a pair of pliers in Peterson’s boat is not his and could be his wife’s. (CNN2001). The hair obviously could have belonged to anyone.
Conclusion
“After months of trial in the Scott Peterson case, the prosecution has shown no motive, no eyewitnesses, no murder weapon, no blood, no reliable cause of death and no solid forensic evidence linking Peterson to the murders of his wife and child. Nevertheless, Scott Peterson was convicted and sentenced to death” (CNN2004).
Scott Peterson his case because a team of carefully selected “personalities,” obsessed by the case and riding high on their ratings, they kept up a barrage of criticisms, innuendos, and thinly veiled accusations against Scott during the trial and shouted down anyone who disagreed. The media flexed its muscles in a show its power, whipped the public into a frenzy, and convicted an innocent man
.
Prosecutor’s Argument:
Scott Peterson killed his wife in their home by either strangling or suffocating her. The next morning, he transported Laci’s body in his truck, first to a warehouse, then to his fishing boat. He put his wife’s body in the boat and traveled to the San Francisco Bay where he threw her remains into the water. It was an act of God, a feat of divine retribution when the bodies of Laci and Connor emerged at almost the exact spot where Scott Peterson claimed to have been fishing the day his wife disappeared. Scott Peterson is guilty.
The Motive
Peterson was in love with Amber Frye, and wanted out of his family responsibilities, so he could be with her. To some, this may seem to be a trivial motive for homicide, but a look at history reveals that people sometimes take very drastic steps in the name of love. The reasons for murder are never logical, and the state does not have to prove the logic behind motive, just the motive itself.
The Investigation
“It is incumbent upon police detectives to develop a plan of investigation. The plan should provide an outline of the general direction the case is taking, the kinds of investigative methods to be used, and list of the resources needed to carry out and complete the investigation.” (Class Notes).
Allegations that the investigation was “biased, slipshod and disorganized.” are simply the result of rhetorical posturing by the defense. The investigation into the disappearance and murder of Laci Peterson was as well planned as possible under the circumstances, and it was certainly not skewed or biased in any way. To refute the defense’s arguments:
The Crime Scene
“Processing a crime scene systematically includes confirming the boundaries, securing the area; making sketches, making observations, and taking notes and photographs to make a record of the scene, searching the boundaries of the area for evidence, collecting, processing and preserving evidence, and obtaining statements from witnesses, if any.”(Class Notes).
The Evidence
“Investigators have to go to many sources to collect as many of the pieces as possible in order to put them together to form the finished “picture” of the crime, such as victims, witnesses, complainants, suspects, the crime scene, and document archives.” (Class Notes).
Physical Evidence
“Physical evidence is important because, unlike testimonial evidence, it can stand alone to establish the guilt of a person in a court of law. For example, a defendant cannot usually be convicted on the basis of an uncorroborated confession, as there must be either direct or circumstantial evidence that raises an inference of the truth of the essential facts of the confession.”(Class Notes).
In regard to the Peterson case, we were unable to find direct evidence. Peterson cleaned up the crime scene (s), and there was no blood evidence found at the Peterson home, in the warehouse, or in Scott’s boat (NBC2004). However, we were able to gather much documentary and human evidence.
Documentary Evidence
“Documentary sources of information include “any sort of paper or electronic sources, such as criminal and DMV histories, financial documents, old case files, court files, court testimony, transcripts, mail covers, trash pulls, medical or psychological records, licenses, corporate indices, telephone or utility records, or other archival information. The internet and internet-based archival services afford investigators with a wide array of archival sources of information.” (Class Notes).
The following is a brief overview of the salient evidence presented in court:
Conclusion
Scott Peterson has been convicted of killing his wife and his unborn child. The evidence supports that outcome, and the conviction must stand.
Bibliography
Works Cited:
American Heritage Dictionary (2000). [On line]. Accessed
December 10, 2005 from: http://education.yahoo.com/reference/dictionary/
‘Peterson Search goes High-Tech” (2002). KTVU.COM [On line]. Accessed
December 10, 2005 from http://www.ktvu.com/news/1928425/detail.html
“No Blood Evidence in Peterson House” (2004). NBC 4 TV News [On line]. Accessed
December 8, 2005 from http://www.nbc4.tv/news/2274121/detail.html.
“Scott Peterson Guilty of Murder” (2004).CNN.COM [On line]. Accessed December 8,
2005 from http:// www.cnn.com/2004/LAW/11/12/peterson.verdict.
“Transcripts” (2001).CNN.COM [On line]. Accessed December 10, 2005 from
http://edition.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0411/12/acd.01.html.
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