Getty/California Department of Corrections Amber Frey/Scott Peterson
Amber Frey found herself thrust into the media spotlight after news leaked she was in a relationship with Scott Peterson, who was eventually convicted of murdering his pregnant wife, Laci Peterson.
Frey made the most of the attention. Today, she is a published author. She also works as a massage therapist. Frey has two children in 2021.
Peterson’s death sentence in the killing of Laci Peterson was overturned Monday, August 24, 2020, by the California Supreme Court, according to Fox News. Scott Peterson’s conviction still stands, but the court determined that the trial judge “made a series of clear and significant errors in jury selection that, under long-standing United States Supreme Court precedent, undermined Peterson’s right to an impartial jury at the penalty phase.” Peterson will be granted a new sentencing.
Frey was key in the murder trial of Scott Peterson, and secretly recorded phone calls with him. An appeal filed in his case, which you can read here, details their relationship. She said in 2021 she is prepared to take the stand again, according to KPIX.
Amber and Scott met on a blind date in 2002. She was looking for a serious relationship after a series of failed relationships. She had a young daughter at the time, according to her biography for her book, Witness: For the Prosecution of Scott Peterson.
ABC 20/20 is revisiting the high-profile case with interviews with Scott Peterson himself and with Amber Frey. The new episode, “One Last Chance,” airs at 9 p.m. Eastern time Friday, May 14, 2021.
Here’s what you need to know:
Frey Is Willing to Testify Against Scott Peterson a Second Time if He Is Granted a New Trial, & She Said ‘The Truth Is the Truth
Famed Attorney @GloriaAllred tells @MikeGalanosHLN that Scott Peterson’s mistress, Amber Frey, is willing to testify again if a judge rules that Peterson should get a new trial.
Peterson’s unknowing mistress, Amber Frey, is prepared to take the stand again if Scott Peterson is granted a new trial, attorney Gloria Allred told KPIX in April 2021. Peterson was having an affair with Frey, but she testified he claimed he was single. When she learned his wife was missing, she called Modesto police to help them in their investigation.
“Amber has said the truth is the truth,” Allred told the news station. “So if, as, is when the court decides to grant habeas corpus petition to Scott Peterson and decided there should be a new trial — in otherwise not only on the death penalty phase but essentially the case in chief. The guilt phase. She’s willing to testify and she will testify.”
“Is she looking forward to it? No,” she continued. “Nobody is looking forward to being a witness to a high-profile case, but she will do it. And she knows it’s important to the cause of justice.”
Others who could testify in the case include a person who reported seeing Peterson alive after December 24, 2002, when prosecutors postulated Laci Peterson was already dead. Another person said he threatened Laci Peterson when she confronted him about burglarizing a nearby home, according to the appeal filed in his case.
Amber Frey Reported Her Affair With Scott Peterson Six Days After Laci Peterson’s Disappearance
SAN QUENTIN, CA – MARCH 17: In this handout image provided by the California Department of Corrections, convicted murderer Scott Peterson poses for a mug shot March 17, 2005 in San Quentin, California. Judge Alfred A. Delucchi sentenced Peterson to death March 16 for murdering his wife, Laci Peterson, and their unborn child. (Photo by California Department of Corrections via Getty Images)
An appeal filed in Scott Peterson’s murder case expounds on his relationship with Amber Frey. She told the Modesto Police Department on December 30, 2002 she was having an affair with Scott Peterson, six days after Laci Peterson’s disappearance. The two had a short-lived relationship. Their first phone conversation was in November 2002, and they met on November 20. They saw each other again December 2, and Peterson met her infant daughter, Ayiana. They spent the night together and saw each other again the following evening. He told her he had never been married and did not have children.
They saw each other again on December 9, and Peterson admitted he had been married but “lost” his wife.
“Scott had also told Shawn Sibley — a woman he had met through work and who introduced him to Amber — that he had ‘lost’ his soul mate,” the appeal said.
They saw each other again December 11 to attend a birthday party together, and again December 14. That was the last time they saw each other.
“She had spoken with him by telephone since, including on the night of a candlelight vigil in honor of Laci. During one of his earlier calls, Scott told her that he would be in Maine for Christmas and then in Europe for the New Year,” the appeal said.
Frey contacted police and Peterson’s family to tell them about the affair. After that, she recorded all her conversations with Peterson, according to the appeal.
Amber Frey Wrote a Book About Scott Peterson & the Murder Case
GettyREDWOOD CITY, CA – MARCH 17: Convicted murderer Scott Peterson is escorted by two San Mateo County Sheriff deputies as he is walked from the jail to an awaiting van March 17, 2005 in Redwood City, California. Scott Peterson was transported to San Quentin Prison death row after he was formally sentenced to death for the murder or his wife Laci and their unborn son. (Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)
Amber Frey wrote a book about her brush with infamy. The book, Witness: For the Prosecution of Scott Peterson, was published in 2005. It discusses their relationship and quick connection. He did not tell her he was married initially.
“Soon enough, however, Amber began to suspect that Scott Peterson might not be the man he claimed to be,” the book’s summary said. “On December 9, he broke down in tears and told her that he had been married, but had “lost” his wife. This was weeks before Laci Peterson, eight months pregnant at the time, was even reported missing. Scott Peterson hadn’t lost her, but clearly he was planning to.”
Frey became heavily involved in the investigation. She contacted Modesto Police Department and agreed to secretly record conversations with Scott Peterson.
“Amber launched an investigation of her own. The moment she was able to confirm her worst suspicions, she contacted the Modesto Police Department, in northern California, and offered to do whatever she could to help. She began secretly taping her conversations with Scott, pressing him for information but never letting on that she had heard the news of Laci’s disappearance. Those conversations became the basis for the prosecution’s case against Scott Peterson for the murder of his wife and unborn child,” the summary said. “Amber’s whole world was turned upside down in the process. She lost her privacy, as every detail of her life was scrutinized by the media, who couldn’t seem to get enough of this tragic, heart-wrenching story. But she soldiered on, looking deep inside herself and drawing strength from her faith.”
Amber Frey Was Married & Had a Child But Later Divorced
‘I would do it all over again’: Amber Frey reflects on Scott Peterson trial http://t.co/LQXGl1p86N http://t.co/Gbx4FHXu2P
After Amber Frey’s relationship with Scott Peterson, she went on to have a child and get married, according to ThoughtCo. When her relationship with Peterson ended, she started a relationship with her longtime friend, Dr. David Markovich, in early 2003. The couple had a child together, Justin Dean. In 2006, Frey was married to Robert Hernandez, who is a member of law enforcement in Fresno, California. They were divorced in 2008.
Frey also has a daughter by a previous relationship named Ayiana. Ayiana was a baby when she met Scott Peterson on a blind date in 2002, according to her description of her book, Witness: For the Prosecution of Scott Peterson.
“Amber Frey’s life was full of blessings: an exciting new business, a beautiful home, and most of all, her infant daughter, Ayiana,” the description said. “But Amber had been through some unhappy relationships, and she longed for a true and loving partner. In November 2002, she went on a blind date with Scott Peterson. He was handsome, charming, thoughtful, and romantic. Best of all, he was single and ready to settle down . . . or so he said.”
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