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Day One: "DNA 101"
KGO TV ^ | Oct 29 2003

Posted on 10/30/2003 5:29:43 AM PST by runningbear

Day One: "DNA 101"

Day One: "DNA 101"
Peterson Hearing Resumes Thursday

(AP)

Oct. 29 (AP) — A hair found in a pair of pliers on the boat Scott Peterson took fishing the day his wife disappeared matched a genetic sample from Laci Peterson's mother, an FBI expert testified Wednesday, as prosecutors sought to have him tried in the murder of his wife and unborn son.

Major Players
Amber Frey's Impact
Laci, Conner Buried
Hearing To Remain Open
Satanic Evidence?
Talk About This Story
Full Coverage

For much of the day inside a packed courtroom, FBI lab supervisor Constance Fisher testified about the disputed method of DNA analysis she specializes in that can show a genetic match between a mother and child.

She testified that a one-inch strand of hair found on pliers in the boat did not match Scott Peterson, but did match a swab of DNA taken from the mouth of his mother-in-law, Sharon Rocha.

Defense lawyer Mark Geragos is challenging the admissibility of the testimony, saying the analysis was the subject of a "raging debate" in the scientific community and suggesting that the hair sample may have been contaminated or tampered with by law enforcement.

The technique has not been widely accepted in courts, and it was only ruled admissible once in a California state court, in the case of an accused murderer in San Diego.

With the exception of a brief mention of Laci Peterson's family at the start of the hearing, the 27-year-old substitute teacher's name was never uttered again during the daylong hearing in Stanislaus County Superior Court.

The hearing is expected to last into next week, after which Stanislaus County Superior Court Judge Al Girolami will decide if Peterson is tried on two counts of murder that could lead to the death penalty. ..........

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Peterson evidence set to be revealed

Peterson evidence set to be revealed
The public will hear at least some at the preliminary hearing.

By John Cote -- Modesto Bee

Published 2:15 a.m. PST Tuesday, October 28, 2003

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MODESTO -- The public's first real look at evidence against double-murder suspect Scott Peterson is expected Wednesday, when prosecutors begin laying out a legal case that has been under wraps for 10 months. "Everything will be a revelation to us," said Ruth Jones, a criminal law professor at McGeorge School of Law in Sacramento and a former prosecutor. "This case is unique in that sense."

Peterson's preliminary hearing, which likely will last five days, could demonstrate the strength of the prosecution's case and outline the possible trial. The hearing that begins Wednesday is to determine whether there is enough evidence to try Peterson in the deaths of his 27-year-old wife, Laci, and their unborn son, Conner. Prosecutors are seeking the death penalty.

It's unclear how much evidence the prosecution will unveil at the hearing, because it's relatively easy to have a defendant held for trial. For that reason, the defense rarely calls witnesses, protecting them from cross-examination.

But this case is different, legal observers said, pointing to widespread public scrutiny that has influenced legal tactics and might affect the trial.

"There are two battles going on here," said San Francisco Deputy District Attorney James Hammer. "The legal battle and the PR battle."

In the legal battle, attorneys are poised to spar over an array of evidence the defense wants kept out of court, including information from wiretaps, electronic tracking devices, DNA testing and scent-tracking dogs.

The judge also is to hear a defense argument that a potentially key piece of evidence -- a single hair found attached to a pair of needle-nose pliers in Peterson's boat -- likely was "altered" while in police possession.

Prosecutors contend that the hair simply broke inside an evidence bag.

The hair could be a critical piece of physical evidence linking Laci Peterson to the boat her husband said he took fishing on Christmas Eve, the day she was reported missing.

The defense's challenge of the evidence signals a wider tactic of trying to show that investigators acted improperly, echoing the O.J. Simpson murder trial, legal observers said. A jury acquitted the former football star in 1995 of killing his ex-wife and her friend.

"It's a very important strategy," said Professor George Bisharat, a criminal procedure specialist at Hastings College of the Law in San Francisco. "You really saw the potential impact in the sense that there was law enforcement wrongdoing in the O.J. Simpson case."

Like the Simpson case, the disappearance of Laci Peterson, a pretty substitute teacher with deep dimples and a captivating smile, has become staple fare for cable television, supermarket tabloids and newspapers on both coasts.

For months, hundreds of volunteers and law enforcement personnel scoured fields, reservoirs and waterways from the Sierra foothills to San Francisco Bay for Laci Peterson.

In April, passers-by discovered Laci Peterson's decomposed body and that of her son about a mile apart along the eastern shore of the bay, several miles from where Peterson said he had gone fishing.

He was arrested days later outside the ...........

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Timeline: Key Dates in the Laci Peterson Case

Timeline: Key Dates in the Laci Peterson Case

Wednesday, October 29, 2003

Key dates in the murder case of Laci Peterson:

Dec. 24, 2002: Laci Peterson, 8 months pregnant, is reported missing from her Modesto, Calif. home by husband, Scott Peterson. He says he came home from a fishing trip to Berkeley Marina and his wife was nowhere to be found.

Dec. 28: Authorities search water near Berkeley Marina for first time.

Dec. 31: Modesto police shift their focus in case to foul play. "We have not ruled out other possibilities," homicide detective Jon Buehler says.

Jan. 3, 2003: Modesto police ask public for help verifying whereabouts of Scott Peterson in days before Christmas. In Berkeley, police spend hours combing waters near marina.

Jan. 9: Sonar search in water near marina reveals object authorities think is a body. It turns out to be an anchor.

Jan. 14: Authorities and friends expand search to Southern California.

Jan. 17: Laci Peterson's family and friends hold news conference to demand Scott Peterson tell authorities everything he knows about the case.

Jan. 18: As suspicion of Scott Peterson grows, authorities investigate his whereabouts in connection with the disappearance of a San Luis Obispo woman in 1996, when Scott and Laci Peterson lived there. Authorities later determine he had nothing to do with the second missing woman.

Jan. 19: Scott Peterson brings search for missing wife to Los Angeles, where he and his family distribute fliers to volunteers at a hotel.

Jan. 23: Laci Peterson's family says Scott Peterson told authorities he had been involved with another woman.

Jan. 24: Amber Frey, a massage therapist from Fresno, comes forward and confirms she had an intimate romantic relationship with Scott Peterson.

Jan. 28: In a televised interview, Scott Peterson admits he had a relationship with Frey and says he told his wife about it. "It wasn't anything that would break us apart," he says.

Feb. 5:Laci Peterson's family steps up their criticism of Scott Peterson, saying he sold his pregnant wife's car and considered selling the couple's house.

Feb. 10: Laci Peterson's expected due date. "Everybody's aware of it," says Modesto police Sgt. Ron Cloward.

Feb. 17: Scott Peterson's mother, Jackie, tells The Associated Press her family believes kidnappers abducted Laci Peterson with intentions of holding her captive until she delivered the baby.

........

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DEVIL SUFFERS DISCRIMINATION

DEVIL SUFFERS DISCRIMINATION

Last Call

Lorin McLain
Staff Columnist
My folks take Halloween very seriously. Every year, in early October, they set out to convert their nice Walnut Hills home into a bastion of evil by adorning every room with dark lights, nightmarish knick-knacks, voodoo accessories and whatever it takes to make the devil feel at home. They bring the ghouls out of the basement and turn the lawn into a graveyard.

All of this culminates in a big bash that occurs on a Saturday night around Halloween. My sister won't come, though, because several members of her church "wouldn't agree with it." Really, she's just scared, but won't admit it. I'm willing to bet that it's not a matter of this particular demonization, I mean denomination not agreeing with these aspects of the holiday in question, but really they're just scared.

After centuries gone by, the devil still gets a bad shake. We may have come a long way from burning at the stake those under suspicion of his influence, but still when a puzzling situation arises where we have no logical conclusion, we must have the devil at hand to blame.

Take the Laci Peterson case, for instance. The preliminary hearing to determine if Scott Peterson will stand trial for the murder of his wife just started. Scott Peterson has been held without bail since authorities arrested him at the Mexican border with his hair bleached and $10,000 in cash.

The defense is trying to prevent prosecutors from being able to present certain evidence to the court, such as DNA analysis of hair clippings from Peterson's wife found on pliers in his boat and information gathered from wiretaps and global positioning systems. The defense has implied that the "real killers" are worshippers of the dark lord.

That's right, Peterson died at the hands of a satanic cult, according to this theory.

Clearly there must be real compelling evidence to support this claim. The defense is unable to indicate that there are bad people at large other than Peterson himself, but merely a "satanic cult." California murders often seem due to circumstances resulting from a "satanic cult."

The Son of Sam is an instance of incriminating the devil. Lucifer was blamed for the psycho that randomly went out and killed people that summer of seventy something. David Berkowitz wasn't in league with the devil, as many have assumed, because of satanic associations made with the case, that he was possessed by some evil power. He didn't say "the devil made me do it," but he was forced to kill by his "father," who he ........

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DNA debate opens first day


Scott Peterson, right, and defense attorney Mark Geragos listen as FBI DNA expert Constance Fisher testifies Wednesday before Judge Al Girolami. LAURIE McADAM/THE BEE

DNA debate opens first day

By GARTH STAPLEY and JOHN COTÉ

BEE STAFF WRITERS

Last Updated: October 30, 2003, 05:04:55 AM PST

Wiretaps secretly recording Scott Peterson's telephone conversations while he was under police surveillance will not be used in his double-murder preliminary hearing, prosecutors said Wednesday.

Nor will they present evidence from GPS tracking devices placed on his vehicles to monitor his movements, Senior Deputy District Attorney Rick Distaso said moments after the long-awaited hearing got under way in Stanislaus County Superior Court.

The defense, however, still wants to raise the issue that the wiretaps were improperly conducted.

The bulk of Wednesday's proceedings was dedicated to an FBI expert's detailed testimony about mitochondrial DNA testing.

An afternoon of technical cross- examination by defense attorney Mark Geragos was aimed at showing the mitochondrial DNA testing process was unreliable and the results should not be admissable in court.

Geragos also contends that police mishandled a single strand of hair found attached to pliers in Peterson's boat.

Mitochondrial DNA tests showed that the hair did not come from Peterson but could have come from his wife, Laci, according to the prosecution.

Peterson told police he took the boat on a fishing trip to San Francisco Bay on Dec. 24, and his wife was missing when he returned to Modesto that evening. She was almost eight months pregnant at the time.

Her body and that of her son, Conner, were found in April along the bay's eastern shore, several miles from where Peterson said he went fishing. Police arrested Peterson on April 18 in the San Diego area, where his family lives.

Peterson, 31, is charged with murdering his wife and their unborn son, and prosecutors are seeking the death penalty.

Prosecutors are presenting some of their evidence during the preliminary hearing, slated to last five days, and Judge Al Girolami will decide whether there is enough evidence to hold Peterson for trial.

Frey's lawyer can stay

At the outset of the hearing, Geragos asked Girolami to order attorney Gloria Allred out of the courtroom. Allred represents Amber Frey, who was Peterson's girlfriend when Laci Peterson disappeared.

Frey, 28, of Fresno has cooperated with authorities since she contacted police on Dec. 30. She said she did not know that Peterson was married when they began their relationship.

Girolami allowed Allred to stay but ordered her not to discuss any ..........

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Partial Court Transcript

Provided by the Modesto Bee.

(Excerpt) Read more at abclocal.go.com ...


TOPICS: Constitution/Conservatism; Crime/Corruption; Culture/Society; Extended News; Government; News/Current Events; US: California
KEYWORDS: avoidingchildsupport; baby; babyunborn; conner; deathpenaltytime; dontubelievemyalibi; getarope; ibefishing; laci; lacipeterson; smallbaby; smallchild; sonkiller; unborn; wifekiller
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To: clouda
Me too Clouda!! I was delighted that somebody challenged the creep on his continuous string of LIES!!
121 posted on 10/30/2003 3:38:37 PM PST by Canadian Outrage (All us Western Canuks belong South)
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To: Velveeta
Can't remember if they offered money or not. They were yelling on a bullhorn, and they were following him around like, What happened to Laci SCOTT??? How many lies are you gonna tell SCOTT????
122 posted on 10/30/2003 3:42:04 PM PST by Canadian Outrage (All us Western Canuks belong South)
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To: Canadian Outrage
They were offering $64,000.00.
123 posted on 10/30/2003 3:47:28 PM PST by clouda (terrisfight.org)
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To: Devil_Anse
Oh okay, it was her top that was floral print. In any event, she was NOT clothed in black pants and WHITE shirt as ALL the eyewitnesses claimed. And definitely they can play the clip of Dr. Lee saying way before her body was found that WHAT she had on would be extremely important in deciding the time of death. It would narrow it way down. No wonder poor Amy was in tears.
124 posted on 10/30/2003 3:50:15 PM PST by Canadian Outrage (All us Western Canuks belong South)
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To: clouda
Being the greedy creep he is, you would think IF he was INNOCENT he would have gone for that one. When I watched his interview clips recently with Diane Sawyer and Gloria Gomez, I firmly came to believe that he is a Pathological Liar. IOW he lies so much that he has great difficulty distinguishing been truth and lies.
125 posted on 10/30/2003 3:52:39 PM PST by Canadian Outrage (All us Western Canuks belong South)
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To: Canadian Outrage
I firmly came to believe that he is a Pathological Liar

He sure is. He can't keep any of his lies straight.

This is funny.


126 posted on 10/30/2003 3:57:52 PM PST by clouda (terrisfight.org)
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To: Sandylapper; Velveeta; RGSpincich; Canadian Outrage
Here's an interesting web site.

We've seen and read most of it before but this is put together quite well I think.

Click on the highlighted blue areas for more information.
Laci & Conner

AMY:I do remember what she had on. I don't know if they've -- I haven't heard -- I don't know if the police have found clothing. I'm not too sure of that, but I do know what she had on. She was wearing, like, a black-colored top with cream either flowers or polka dotson it. It was a maternity shirt. And like, cream-colored pants, a black coat, cream scarf.

SCOTT'S DESCRIPTION OF LACI
Peterson is described as 5-foot-1, about 140 pounds, white, with shoulder- length brown hair and brown eyes. She has dimples on both cheeks and a tattoo of a sunflower on her ankle. She was last seen wearing a long-sleeved white shirt and black pants.

Here's a direct link to the clothing part if you don't want to go through the other link.
Inconsistent Clothing

127 posted on 10/30/2003 4:02:33 PM PST by Spunky (This little tag just keeps following me where ever I go.)
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To: Velveeta; All
Thanks Velveeta,for the link.I can't wait to read the latest info on Scott. :)
128 posted on 10/30/2003 4:03:56 PM PST by MaggieMay (A blank tag is a terrible thing to waste)
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To: Devil_Anse
No way! They might fade, but not lose their color. ;)
129 posted on 10/30/2003 4:09:31 PM PST by clouda (terrisfight.org)
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To: Spunky; All
Thanks for the links. Just heard the housecleaner will be first up tomorrow morning. Can't wait to find out if that kitchen floor is real ceramic tile or a vinyl look alike.
130 posted on 10/30/2003 4:17:51 PM PST by RGSpincich
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To: RGSpincich
Don't think it was an "update" per se, it was a conversation between Wendy Murphy and Catherine Crier, IIRC. I just didn't know whether Wendy was stating a fact, or presenting a theory, since I walked into the room kinda late.
131 posted on 10/30/2003 4:22:58 PM PST by Sandylapper
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To: Sandylapper
I have seen clips on TV of Laci when they found her body. Most of the clips showed her with a tarp covering the body but there is a clip I have seen a few times that when I saw I said to self..thats not a nude body it looked like a light colored night shirt?? but was covering the buttocks for sure. Just curious if anyone else saw this clip too
132 posted on 10/30/2003 4:30:16 PM PST by fiesti
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To: Canadian Outrage; All
It really would be WONDERFUL, CO, if that's the case! I just hope that prosecution has had the forethought to prepare Amy for a gruelling cross-exam, also. Somehow, I believe we've been so caught up in Amber and her testimony, (which I still am questioning), that we've lost sight of who really might be able to put nails in Scott's coffin. Could this be a prosecution strategy? Not a bad strategy, if you ask me. Throw up a smoke screen about his girl friend's testimony, then bring in a real smoking gun. Whadda ya think?
133 posted on 10/30/2003 4:32:27 PM PST by Sandylapper
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To: Spunky
Thanks, Spunky! Really good info!
134 posted on 10/30/2003 4:39:05 PM PST by Sandylapper
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To: Spunky; All
Thanks, Spunky! Going back to the LKL transcript of last night, I believe Nancy Grace was trying to take credit for putting MPD onto checking into what clothing might be missing. (Refer to Jackie_O's post #367 of yesterday's thread). Maybe NG was right to ask that question and lend a hand, even though MPD had indicated they didn't need any help from the public. She said the very next day, MPD went back into the Peterson's home and, bottom line, Amy came out crying. This could be very important, if you ask me. JMO
135 posted on 10/30/2003 4:49:42 PM PST by Sandylapper
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To: MaggieMay; Sandylapper
Okay, I'm back. I was at a retirement party for one of my co-workers, our HVAC guy. Had a great din, NY strip steak that could feed me and the kids twice!
I've been away from the TV so I need to catch up on everything.
Brother Nik is doing okay, fires done around him but air is lethal. He sent me a cute pic of Autum and Co-Co (niece and dog) wearing protective masks.
Yes Maggs, I guess Gloria answered all of our questions about the dress code...there isn't one!
136 posted on 10/30/2003 4:50:40 PM PST by Jackie-O
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To: Sandylapper
Sounds good to me Sandy. That would really be a sidewinder wouldn't it? LOL
137 posted on 10/30/2003 4:50:49 PM PST by Canadian Outrage (All us Western Canuks belong South)
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To: RGSpincich
ps: Excuse my blonde roots today. I think I called you Ray a couple of times!! Sheesh You are RG, You are RG, You are RG. I will finish my lines when I get home.!!
138 posted on 10/30/2003 4:53:18 PM PST by Canadian Outrage (All us Western Canuks belong South)
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To: Yaelle
OMG, am I going to have to break out the Depends again?? ROFLMAO!!!
139 posted on 10/30/2003 4:53:36 PM PST by Jackie-O
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To: clouda
ROFLMAO!!! SNORT!
140 posted on 10/30/2003 4:55:50 PM PST by Canadian Outrage (All us Western Canuks belong South)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 126 | View Replies]


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