There may be a rule that property that goes through probate cannot be inherited by the murderer, I don't know. I know there is a law that prevents murderers from receiving the life insurance. However, if there was a law that applied to inheritance, it would give a right to the next in line of inheritance to object to Scott's inheriting the probated property, such as the personal effects that belonged to both of them. The probate court would decide the issue, holding the matter in abeyance until the criminal trial was over, and then issue a ruling. Only THEN would someone other than Scott have a right to collect those items.
If Geragos wants to be a jerk, he can go after the Rochas for return of everything they took, and he should be able to get a court to issue an order that they do so. He ought also to consider filing a claim for damages against the police who let it happen in front of them. They failed to fulfill their duty to protect the private property of a citizen who has not yet been convicted of a crime.
THANK YOU! That is my understanding also.
What HAS happened here is that the actions of the Modesto Police Department and the Stanislaus County DA have made abundantly clear that the case must be granted a change of venue. By standing idly by while allowing the victim's family to invade the property of and take possessions currently belonging to the accused defendant, the police and DA have demonstrated the community is irretrievably tainted as far as a fair trial for Scott Peterson is concerned.
I suspect that the inflamatory nature of the deliberate leaks on the autopsy have now had their intended effect.