Laci Case Mired In Legal Issues

To this point, the double-murder case against Scott Peterson is focused more on legal procedures than whether he murdered his wife and unborn son.

A series of legal issues were scheduled for a hearing Monday in this bedroom community, including the choice of judge, possible sequestration of jurors and a potential delay because of another murder trial.

It is the first court appearance for Peterson since his trial was moved from his hometown of Modesto to this San Francisco bedroom community. The trial could take six months.

Peterson, 31, could face the death penalty if he's convicted of two counts of murder for the deaths of Laci Peterson and the couple's unborn child. In April, the remains of mother and child washed ashore along San Francisco Bay, two miles from the spot where Scott Peterson said he was fishing on Christmas Eve 2002, when his wife vanished.

Given the likely length of the case, California Supreme Court Chief Justice Ronald George appointed retired Alameda County Judge Alfred A. Delucchi to preside over the trial, but his selection remains a point of contention.

Another retired judge, Richard Arnason, was initially appointed to hear the case, but prosecutors exercised their right to challenge the selection and require another choice.

The prosecutors' challenge resulted in Delucchi's appointment, but Peterson lawyer Mark Geragos insists that prosecutors did not properly file their demands to remove Arnason, and Geragos has vowed to dispute the prosecution challenge.

Among the other motions expected to be discussed Monday are whether to sequester jurors and whether the trial should be postponed because Geragos is due in court in Los Angeles County on Tuesday for another murder trial.

Prosecutors had asked to start the Peterson trial Feb. 17. In his filing, Geragos did not suggest an alternate start date but asked to discuss the matter in court Monday.

Delucchi is also expected to address whether cameras will be allowed in the courtroom during the trial.