Overview
- A two-part A&E documentary that aired July 16 and 17 presented new witness accounts and forensic leads and renewed public scrutiny of Scott Peterson’s 2004 murder conviction.
- The Los Angeles Innocence Project has taken on Peterson’s case and argues a burned van found near the Peterson home contained a bloody mattress that was not properly tested for DNA.
- Attorney Mark Geragos, who appears in the film, said he would fund DNA testing of the mattress and that he may provide legal help to press for a new hearing or appeal.
- A San Mateo County judge denied LAIP’s petition for an evidentiary hearing in April, finding the asserted claims were not new or material, and prosecutors and Laci Peterson’s family reject the documentary’s conclusions.
- Legal experts say whether the case reopens will turn on narrow rules about what counts as new, admissible and material evidence and on whether a court will allow further testing or live testimony.