Case snapshot
Laci Peterson, eight months pregnant, disappeared from her Modesto, California home on December 24, 2002. Her husband Scott reported her missing that evening, claiming she’d gone for a walk with their dog while he was fishing at Berkeley Marina. Four months later, the decomposed remains of Laci and her unborn son washed ashore near where Scott said he’d been alone on the water.
The day she disappeared
Scott Peterson told police he last saw his wife around 9:30 a.m. on Christmas Eve. He said Laci planned to walk their golden retriever, then mop the kitchen floors. Scott claimed he drove 90 miles to Berkeley Marina to go fishing, an unusual choice for someone who’d never mentioned the spot to friends or family before that day.
When he returned home around 4:30 p.m., the house was empty. The dog was in the backyard, leash still attached. Laci’s car sat in the driveway. Her purse and phone remained inside.
Scott called Laci’s mother, Sharon Rocha, asking if she’d heard from her daughter. He’d already showered, eaten pizza, and washed his clothes. It was 5:17 p.m. when he finally reported his wife missing.
The search begins
Modesto police launched an immediate investigation. Volunteers flooded the neighborhood, plastering missing person flyers across the city. Laci’s face appeared on national news within days. She was 27, visibly pregnant, and had vanished without a trace during the holidays.
Scott appeared at vigils and press conferences, his demeanor striking investigators as oddly detached. He gave multiple television interviews, his affect flat even as he described his missing wife and unborn son they’d planned to name Conner.
Police executed search warrants on the Peterson home and vehicles. They found Scott had researched ocean currents and bought a fishing license two days before Laci disappeared. He’d paid cash for a 14-foot aluminum boat just weeks earlier, a purchase he never mentioned to his wife or her family.
The affair surfaces
On December 30, less than a week into the investigation, Amber Frey contacted Modesto police. She’d been dating Scott since November. He’d told her he was unmarried. When Laci’s face appeared on news broadcasts, Amber recognized the man she knew as her boyfriend.
Detectives asked Amber to continue contact with Scott while they recorded the conversations. Over the next two months, she captured dozens of calls. Scott told her he was in Paris for New Year’s Eve when he was actually at a candlelight vigil for Laci. He discussed travel plans and a future together while search teams dragged lakes and combed wooded areas for his pregnant wife.
When Amber finally confronted him about Laci, Scott admitted he’d been married but claimed he’d “lost” his wife. This was early January. Laci was still officially a missing person.
The bodies appear
On April 13, 2003, a couple walking their dog along the rocky shoreline of San Francisco Bay discovered the body of a late-term male fetus. The remains were badly decomposed, wrapped in nylon tape. The following day, a second body surfaced one mile away. It was an adult female, missing her head and limbs, wearing maternity pants.
DNA testing confirmed both bodies belonged to Laci and Conner Peterson. They’d washed up less than two miles from Berkeley Marina, where Scott claimed he’d been fishing alone on Christmas Eve.
Police arrested Scott Peterson on April 18 near the San Diego border. He’d dyed his hair blonde, grown a beard, and was carrying $15,000 in cash along with camping equipment and multiple credit cards belonging to family members. His car contained four cell phones, his brother’s ID, and viagra. Investigators believed he was preparing to flee to Mexico.
The trial and conviction
The trial began in June 2004, moved to San Mateo County due to intense pretrial publicity in Modesto. Prosecutors painted Scott as a man who wanted freedom from impending fatherhood and financial responsibility. They presented evidence of the boat purchase, fishing trip alibis that shifted across multiple tellings, and cement anchors Scott made in his warehouse days before Laci vanished.
The defense argued police rushed to judgment, fixating on Scott while ignoring other leads. They suggested Laci was kidnapped by someone who’d been burglarizing homes in the neighborhood. Defense attorneys pointed to witnesses who claimed they saw Laci walking her dog after Scott left for his fishing trip.
The prosecution’s case was entirely circumstantial. No murder weapon was recovered. No physical evidence directly linked Scott to his wife’s death. The cause of death couldn’t be determined due to decomposition.
But the timeline proved damning. Scott bought a boat and researched Berkeley Marina currents. He told Amber Frey he’d lost his wife before she actually disappeared. He lied repeatedly about his whereabouts and plans. And the bodies appeared exactly where he claimed to have been fishing on the day Laci vanished.
The jury deliberated seven days. On November 12, 2004, they convicted Scott Peterson of first-degree murder in Laci’s death and second-degree murder in Conner’s death. The same jury later recommended death, and the judge sentenced Scott to death row at San Quentin State Prison.
Appeals and ongoing questions
Scott Peterson has maintained his innocence for more than two decades. His legal team has filed multiple appeals, arguing juror misconduct, ineffective counsel, and media prejudice tainted the trial. In 2020, the California Supreme Court overturned the death sentence due to errors in jury selection, though the conviction itself stood. Scott was resentenced to life in prison without parole.
In 2024, the Los Angeles Innocence Project took on Scott’s case, requesting new DNA testing on evidence that wasn’t analyzed during the original investigation. They’ve pointed to a van fire near the Peterson home on December 26, 2002, and a burglary across the street that wasn’t thoroughly investigated. The Innocence Project argues these incidents may be connected to Laci’s disappearance.
A judge denied the DNA testing request in April 2025, ruling the evidence wouldn’t prove Scott’s innocence even if results differed from the prosecution’s theory. The Innocence Project continues to pursue post-conviction relief.
Laci’s family remains convinced of Scott’s guilt. Sharon Rocha has stated publicly that no amount of new testing will change what happened to her daughter and grandson. The case continues to generate questions about evidence evaluation, media influence on trials, and how circumstantial cases can result in life sentences when no definitive proof of murder exists.
Scott Peterson sits in prison, the trial that captivated millions now two decades in the past, while lawyers argue over DNA swabs and untested evidence. Laci and Conner remain gone, their deaths marked by absence of answers as much as by the conviction that followed.
Where to dive deeper
- Documentary: “The Murder of Laci Peterson” (A&E)
- Book: “Blood Brother: 33 Reasons My Brother Scott Peterson Is Guilty” by Anne Bird
- Podcast: “The Murder of Laci Peterson” (“Dateline NBC”)
