By Daily Mail (U.S.) | Created at 2026-05-30 22:25:07 | Updated at 2026-06-07 11:50:36
1 week ago
Damning new evidence and never-before-heard witness testimony are set to reignite one of America’s most infamous murder cases - more than two decades after Scott Peterson was convicted of killing his pregnant wife, Laci, and their unborn son.
A two-part A&E documentary, Scott Peterson: The New Evidence, claims to uncover fresh scientific evidence and disturbing witness statements that Peterson’s legal team says could undermine the prosecution’s case.
Peterson, now 53, was found guilty in 2004 of first-degree murder for killing Laci, who was eight months pregnant when she vanished from the couple’s home in Modesto, California, on Christmas Eve 2002.
Peterson was also convicted of second-degree murder for the death of their unborn son, Conner.
Laci’s badly decomposed remains were discovered in San Francisco Bay in April 2003, near where the remains of Conner had washed ashore one day earlier.
The case became a national obsession after it emerged Peterson had been having an affair with massage therapist Amber Frey, who said she had no idea he was married and later worked with police to secretly record their phone calls.
The Daily Mail was given an exclusive preview of the A&E special after it debuted at CrimeCon in Las Vegas on Saturday.
The four-hour documentary, led by veteran defense attorney and ABC News legal consultant Chris Pixley, revisits the case through newly surfaced evidence and interviews with Peterson’s supporters, defense attorneys and experts who believe crucial details were missed, ignored or never fully explored.
The special features never-before-heard witness testimony, fetal biometric studies and tidal-pattern data that Peterson’s team says raise serious questions about when Laci died and where her body entered the water.
Scott Peterson's lawyers say they have damning new evidence and never-before-heard witness testimony are that cpould reignite one of America’s most infamous murder cases
‘I wouldn’t base a person’s freedom on one ultrasound measurement,’ one witness says in the documentary.
Experts in the series also point to tidal-modeling analysis that they say makes it highly unlikely Laci and Conner’s bodies were anchored in the location prosecutors alleged at trial.
Peterson’s former defense attorney Mark Geragos also appears in the documentary and asks: ‘If you believe you’ve got the right guy, why wouldn’t you test the evidence?’
Peterson has long maintained that Laci was still alive when he left their home on December 24, 2002, for a solo fishing trip, and that she may have been abducted while walking the couple’s dog.
His legal team has focused heavily on a burglary that took place across the street from the Petersons’ home around the time Laci disappeared.
Peterson unmutes his connection to address to Judge Elizabeth Hill during a status conference at San Mateo County Superior March 2024
A very pregnant Laci, who was weeks away from having her son, she named Connor before she disappeared
Attorneys have argued that Laci could have witnessed the break-in and been killed by someone connected to the burglary.
The Los Angeles Innocence Project has claimed that a witness allegedly overheard a conversation among the burglars about Laci seeing and confronting them.
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The organization has also pointed to a burned-out van that Peterson’s lawyers believe could be tied to the case. According to his team, the van allegedly contained a mattress with what appeared to be bloodstains.
The LA Innocence Project has claimed prosecutors suppressed evidence about the police investigation into the van fire at the time of Peterson’s trial.
Peterson was originally sentenced to death in 2005.
His death sentence was overturned in 2020, though his conviction remained intact, and he was resentenced in 2021 to life in prison without the possibility of parole.
He is currently serving his sentence at Mule Creek State Prison in Ione, California.
Amber Frey called Modesto police to disclose the affair she had with Peterson and later worked with prosecutors to record phone calls
One of the witnesses speaking out in the new A&E two part series 'Scott Peterson: The New Evidence'
Peterson's former Defense Attorney Mark Geragos
In April, a California judge rejected Peterson’s latest attempt to present new evidence in his fight for freedom, finding that the claims were procedurally barred or lacked merit.
His attorneys have said they plan to appeal.
Scott Peterson: The New Evidence Premieres July 16 at 9PM ET/PT & Friday, July 17 at 8PM ET/PT on A&E
