Posted on 12/04/2003 6:07:55 AM PST by runningbear
Jan. 26 trial date set; DA to return truck, cash
Scott Peterson, left, with attorney Mark Geragos, pleaded not guilty to the murders of his wife and unborn son. BART AH YOU/THE BEE
Jackie Peterson, the defendant's mother, is accompanied by her sister-in-law Janey Peterson as they leave court. AL GOLUB/THE BEE
By JOHN COTÉ and GARTH STAPLEY
BEE STAFF WRITERS
Last Updated: December 4, 2003, 06:03:15 AM PST
Scott Peterson pleaded not guilty Wednesday to charges he murdered his pregnant wife and unborn son, and a judge scheduled a Jan. 26 jury trial.
"That's correct, your honor," Peterson told Stanislaus County Superior Court Judge Al Girolami. "I am innocent."
The 31-year-old former fertilizer salesman is accused of murdering his 27-year-old wife, Laci, and the couple's son, Conner. Prosecutors are seeking the death penalty.
Peterson previously pleaded not guilty, but faced a second arraignment after a judge ruled last month that there was enough evidence to go to trial.
The trial date, which could be pushed back, was penciled in during Wednesday's wide-ranging hearing in which prosecutors agreed to turn over $15,000 in cash seized during Peterson's arrest. Also, Girolami ordered Peterson's pickup -- confiscated Dec. 27 -- released to defense attorney Mark Geragos.
The judge kept in place his gag order and turned down a request by The Bee and other newspapers to unseal search, arrest and autopsy documents.
The timetable in the case now seems dictated by a defense effort to move the trial. Peterson's camp maintains that the Stanislaus County jury pool has been tainted by massive pretrial publicity.
"I think this is as close to a foregone conclusion as one can get," Geragos said, indicating that he has "voluminous exhibits" to support moving the trial. He is scheduled to file a change of venue motion Dec. 12.
Prosecutors will be ready if the trial starts Jan. 26, Chief Deputy District Attorney John Goold said outside court. But he acknowledged that court dates often are delayed.
"If they stick to that, we'll stick to it," Goold said.
If Girolami grants the defense motion to move the trial, logistics and planning would push the trial date back months, Goold said.
Prosecutors want to keep the trial in Modesto but would not oppose moving it if survey data from prosecution and defense jury experts indicate that an impartial jury cannot be seated in Stanislaus County, Goold said.
"There's no justice," he said, "in having a trial held somewhere it shouldn't be held."
Jury analyst expresses doubts
Jury expert Edward J. Bronson said it would be ......
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He sure knows how to 'spin' a story, doesn't he?
(((((my opinion here...I think this editor/journalist in SFGate should rethink what Scott Peterson spoke of his plea be corrected: "I am innocent"))))
Not guilty plea for Peterson Judge orders seized cash, truck returned
Henry K. Lee, Chronicle Staff Writer Thursday, December 4, 2003
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Modesto -- Scott Peterson pleaded not guilty Wednesday in the slayings of his pregnant wife, Laci, and their unborn son, while a judge ordered prosecutors to return Peterson's truck and $15,000 in cash seized during his arrest.
"That's correct, your honor, I am innocent," a thinner-looking Peterson, 31, responded when Judge Al Girolami of the Stanislaus Superior Court asked him whether he was entering a not guilty plea during the former fertilizer salesman's arraignment on two counts of murder.
Last month, Girolami ordered Peterson to stand trial after an 11-day preliminary hearing. He could face the death penalty if convicted of charges he killed his wife, drove his truck to the Berkeley Marina and dumped her body in San Francisco Bay.
Peterson could go to trial as early as Jan. 26 because he exercised his right Wednesday to a speedy trial. But the date could be delayed because the defense is seeking to try the case in another county.
Also Wednesday, Girolami ordered prosecutors to return Peterson's 2002 Ford F-150 truck, saying they could show photos of the truck or use a similar vehicle to display to a jury.
It's my belief the publicity is going to help Peterson since the jurors will now be more careful to make sure they look at all the evidence more closely. If there is even the slightest room for reasonable doubt he'll walk.
Looks like McAllister is out. I never did hear why Lee wasn't there.
Right, Geragos being a skilled lawyer should welcome it knowing his client is innocent and use the publicity to his advantage. The fact he's concerned about it... maybe he's afraid there is enough evidence to convict.
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