Scott Peterson Today: Where Is the Convicted Killer Now?

Getty Scott Peterson.

Former fertilizer salesman Scott Peterson is today serving a life sentence in a state prison in California for the murders of his wife Laci Peterson and their unborn son.

According to State of California inmate records, Scott Lee Peterson, now 51, is incarcerated at Mule Creek State Prison. He was admitted to prison on March 17, 2005, the database says. The prison is located in Ione, California.

“The incarcerated person shown above is serving a sentence of life without the possibility of parole and is, therefore, not eligible for parole consideration at this time,” the website says.

According to a 2024 motion filed in court by the Los Angeles Innocence Project, which is seeking DNA testing in Peterson’s case, and maintains that he might be innocent, he has been spared the death penalty:

On November 12, 2004, a jury found Mr. Peterson guilty of first-degree murder with special circumstances; he was sentenced to death on March 16, 2005. On August 24, 2020, the California Supreme Court affirmed the conviction but vacated Mr. Peterson’s death sentence. Initially, the District Attorney’s Office of Stanislaus County indicated it would re-try the penalty phase and seek a second death sentence for Mr. Peterson. But after Mr. Peterson made an informal request for additional discovery, the prosecution announced it would not go forward with a second penalty phase trial and instead stipulate to a lesser sentence. On December 8, 2021, Mr. Peterson was resentenced to a term of life without the possibility of parole.

In 2022, the court denied Peterson’s claims of juror misconduct, according to the court filing.

Peterson is the subject of two new documentaries in 2024. The first, “American Murder,” is a three-part Netflix documentary that chronicles the investigation after Peterson’s pregnant wife, Laci, disappeared on Christmas Eve 2002.

Be forewarned that this article will contain spoilers for the documentary because it chronicles  real-life circumstances.

In the second documentary, “Face to Face With Scott Peterson,” on the Peacock Network, Peterson spoke out for the first time, denying that he murdered his pregnant wife. That documentary streams on August 20.

The case caused a media firestorm at the time, as Peterson joined search efforts but delayed speaking to the media. News that he was having a secret affair with another woman, Amber Frey, who didn’t know he was married, ignited the firestorm all the more.

Scott Peterson Says in the Peacock Documentary, ‘I Didn’t Kill My Family’

GettyConvicted murderer Scott Peterson.

The Peacock Network has released a trailer for its upcoming documentary.

According to People Magazine, Peterson says in the documentary, “I regret not testifying [at my trial], but if I have a chance to show people what the truth is, and if they are willing to accept it, it would be the biggest thing that I can accomplish right now — because I didn’t kill my family.”

He admitted to cheating on Laci, but he said he didn’t kill her: “That is so offensive and so disgusting,” he said about the accusations, People reported. “I certainly regret cheating on Laci, absolutely. It was about a childish lack of self-esteem, selfish me traveling somewhere, lonely that night because I wasn’t at home. Someone makes you feel good because they want to have sex with you.”

“It was a case that captivated the country. At 8 months pregnant, Laci Peterson went missing on Christmas Eve, 2002. As the investigation unfolded, her husband Scott was revealed to be a liar, a cheater, and ultimately a murderer,” the Peacock Network’s website says.

“The world’s media hung on every moment of the trial, and Scott was convicted and sentenced to death. Case closed. Or is it? For the first time since before his arrest in 2003, Scott speaks on camera in a series of intimate conversations revealing his side of the story with Director and Executive Producer Shareen Anderson, who has been investigating this case for over a decade,” the blurb says.

“While many still believe the jury got it right, Scott’s family and experts close to the case have spent over 20 years committed to uncovering inconsistencies in the evidence as well as finding new information around alternative theories surrounding Laci’s murder. And in a shocking twist on a murder the world thought was solved, the Los Angeles Innocence Project takes over Scott’s case in 2024,” the website adds.

In contrast, the Netflix documentary focuses on the perspectives of Laci’s family, friends, and Frey, as well as the suspicions of reporters and detectives involved in the case, although Peterson’s sister does appear and expresses her belief in his innocence.

The Innocence Project website confirms, “On January 18, 2024, the Los Angeles Innocence Project filed motions seeking DNA testing and post-conviction discovery on behalf of its client, Scott Peterson. Any and all inquiries about Mr. Peterson’s case should be directed to the Los Angeles Innocence Project, a non-profit organization wholly independent of the Innocence Project.”

The Los Angeles Innocence Project filed a motion in Peterson’s case in January 2024.

Scott Peterson Wants to Review Key Pieces of Evidence in the Case

GettyScott Peterson.

The court motion says that Peterson is seeking a number of pieces of evidence, including Laci’s missing watch, information about an “incendiary van fire,” the Medina burglary investigation reports, data related to Bay Searches, computer forensic evidence related to the time Peterson arrived at his home, scent dogs reports, and a specific tip.

The filing focuses in great depth on evidence relating to the burglary, which occurred at the home of the Petersons’ neighbors. For example, it says Peterson is seeking police reports or notes “documenting investigative steps taken in the investigation of the Medina burglary concerning eyewitnesses who reported to MPD that they saw a van and three men located on the street outside the Medinas’ home on December 24, 2002.”

The court filing also seeks information relating to accusations that Laci had seen one of the burglars.

The lawyers are also seeking information relating to a fire involving an orange van that contained a “mattress with apparent bloodstains,” less than a mile from the Petersons’ home, on December 25, 2002, the day after Laci Peterson went missing.

According to Oxygen, a judge denied the Innocence Project’s request for new DNA tests on multiple pieces of evidence but did allow testing to proceed on a piece of duct tape.