California Supreme Court overturns Scott Peterson's death penalty sentence

[alp227]

Source: Modesto Bee

The California Supreme Court has rejected Scott Peterson’s claim that he received an unfair trial and affirmed his convictions for the murder of his wife, Laci, and their unborn son, Conner, in a case that brought international notoriety to Modesto.

But the court, in a unanimous opinion published Monday, said that because of errors by the trial judge during jury selection, Peterson’s right to an impartial jury during the trial’s penalty phase was undermined. It was during the penalty phase that jurors decided on death for Peterson.

Prosecutors can retry the penalty phase if they wish to seek a death sentence. If they don’t, then Peterson’s punishment becomes life in prison, according to his attorney.

The Supreme Court agreed with Peterson’s attorney that the trial judge had wrongly excluded potential jurors simply because they stated they were opposed to the death penalty without determining whether they could put their beliefs aside and follow the law.

Read more: https://www.modbee.com/news/article245160275.html

[Tom Yossarian Joad]

1. I'm against the death penalty so this does not strike me as a poor decision.

I would suspect that living with such a heinous memory might be worse than a simple end.

[mdbl]

4. Someone that has the ability to commit that type of crime

rarely has trouble living with themselves.

[marble falls]

2. So give him life. Stop wasting money on the death penalty.

[LisaL]

3. California was never going to execute him anyway.

NT

[BigmanPigman]

5. Local news said his wife's family should decide

if they really want to go through another trial. I can see how they would want to skip the emotional upheaval after all they have been through. Personally, I think he should have done to him what he did to his wife's dead body...weighted down with cement tied around his neck and limbs and dropped into the ocean.