Scott Peterson Moved From Death Row To San Mateo County Jail
REDWOOD CITY (CBS SF/AP) -- Scott Peterson, whose death sentence for murder of his wife Laci and the couple's unborn child has been overturned, has been transferred from San Quentin's death row to San Mateo County jail to await a hearing next week on his resentencing.
UPDATE: Scott Peterson Resentenced To Life Without Parole; Laci's Mom: 'You Will Always Be Their Murderer'
While his death sentence was overturned on appeal, the high court left in place his murder conviction and now he faces life in prison without the possibility of parole. A hearing on that matter is set for Dec. 8.
Peterson, now 49, has spent more than 17 years on death row for the crime that capture the nation's attention. He was convicted in the San Mateo court after his trial was moved from Stanislaus County due to the massive pre-trial publicity that followed Laci's Christmas Eve 2002 disappearance and the massive search that followed.
Investigators say Peterson -- who was having an affair at the time -- took the bodies from their Modesto home and dumped them from his fishing boat into San Francisco Bay, where they surfaced months later.
The state's high court last year said that there was considerable circumstantial evidence incriminating Peterson in the slayings.
Judge Anne-Christine Massullo signed an order Nov. 23 to have Peterson transferred as soon as possible after Peterson's attorney Pat Harris filed papers saying he'd been having trouble communicating with his client at the prison.
Peterson continues to fight to have his conviction overturned based on allegations that a juror on his case was untruthful when she filled out a juror questionnaire. A hearing on the juror misconduct claim is scheduled in late February.
Massullo will have 90 days after the matter is submitted to decide whether Peterson gets a new trial. But first Peterson must be resentenced.
Family and friends of Laci were expected to give victim impact statements at the hearing and face him in person for the first time since he was sentenced to death,
The judge has issued an order allotting 16 seats in the courtroom for friends and family of Laci and 16 for Peterson's friends and family.