Homicide victims usually know killer

The Modesto Bee ^ | Posted: January 28, 2003 @ 04:50:10 AM PST | Patick Giblin

[runningbear]

Homicide victims usually know killer

Homicide victims usually know killer

By PATRICK GIBLIN
BEE STAFF WRITER

If Laci Peterson has been killed, statistics say she was likely slain by someone close to her.

Police still hold out hope for the pregnant, 27-year-old woman's safe return, but veteran investigators know that with each passing day since her disappearance on Christmas Eve, the chance diminishes.

"For much of our search, when we're looking in places under water, we're looking for a body," Modesto Police Chief Roy Wasden said earlier this month.

According to the California Department of Justice, more than 63 percent of the people who were arrested in California on homicide charges in 2001 knew their victims.

That's why detectives usually start investigating family members when they suspect a homicide has occurred, said Mike Van Winkle, spokesman for the department's Division of Law Enforcement.

"About three years ago, we had a female agent who didn't show up for work," he said. "The husband said she left in the morning, but our detectives took a look at him anyway. Pretty soon, he told us where to find the body."

It makes sense statistically why police are increasingly focusing on Laci Peterson's 30-year-old husband, Scott Peterson. According to the California homicide figures:

Approximately 46 percent of victims were related to the killer in some other way.

Nearly 7 percent of victims were killed by their spouses.

About 7 percent of the victims were killed by a parent or child.

About 4 percent of the killers had an "other" relationship with the victim. That could mean they were dating or roommates, for example.

About 36 percent of the victims did not know the person who killed them.

But just because Scott Peterson is the husband does not mean he's guilty of anything, Van Winkle cautioned.

Neither does the news that he had a romantic relationship with a Fresno woman he met in late November, a criminal justice expert said Monday.

Jeanette Sereno, a lawyer and assistant professor of sociology and criminal justice with California State University, Stanislaus, warned that Scott Peterson's reported liaison doesn't make him guilty of homicide.

"In fact, just because he (might be) a suspect doesn't automatically make him the defendant," she said.

According to several studies on marriage -- including a 1998 study by the Center for AIDS Prevention Studies at the University of California at San Francisco -- nearly one-fifth of spouses will have affairs during their marriages. Yet few end up in homicide.

Laci Peterson's case has another factor -- she's pregnant. Their son is due on Feb. 10.

According to a 2001 study by the American Medical Association, the leading cause of death for pregnant women is homicide. The study randomly looked at the cases of 247 pregnant women who died and found that 50 of them were murdered.

The other women died from heart problems, car accidents, previously unknown medical problems or complications from the pregnancy.

"Typically, pregnant women don't participate in risky activities such as hiking, mountain climbing or drinking in bars," Sereno said. "They are eating well and seeing their doctors, so their deaths normally would be something out of their control."

Bee staff writer Patrick Giblin can be reached at 578-2347 or pgiblin@modbee.com.

Posted: January 28, 2003 @ 04:50:10 AM PST

[clouda]

got=caught

[wimpycat]

If this ever comes to trial, the defense can't exclude this interview and it can be used against him, I'm thinking. He's screwed.

[texasbluebell]

Also, I am as pregnant as Laci, and I can tell you that if I were told back in December that my husband were having an affair, with the additional pregnancy hormones, I would have been a basket case, crying for hours, all my family would have known something was wrong, and that is normal for a pregnant woman (even for a not-pregnant woman, of course, but especially so for a hormonal woman about to give birth to his CHILD, feeling round and maybe unattractive, and hearing that hubby is out doing some slender chick).

He is such a liar as to defy belief.

Not to mention the fact that her mother said she spoke to Laci everyday and lived only 2 or 3 miles away. Wouldn't the mother have detected some hint or change in Laci's voice in early December that she was terribly upset about something?

And none of the friends or siblings knew anything about this. Wouldn't Laci have confided in someone?

[Arthalion]

I didn't realize that this thread existed, and originally posted this response in a dead thread elsewhere. Forgive me for duping this:

If Scott Peterson was looking to improve his image, this was pretty bad PR. As I've mentioned in previous threads, I went to high school with Laci, my sister lives just down the street from the Petersons, and I met Scott a couple days after Laci disappeared when I was assisting the search. Honestly, I've taken the accusations against him with a grain of salt, and given him the benefit of the doubt. He took out a life insurance policy on his wife? So did I when my wife became pregnant with my first child. He went fishing on Christmas Eve? I once got angry at my wife and went fishing on her birthday...men can be pricks sometimes, that doesn't make them murderers. He was the last one to see her alive? I'm the last one to see my wife every morning as I go to work. He had an affair? See the pricks and murderers comment.

But any doubts I had vanished this morning. I knew Laci Rocha...had a huge crush on her for a while in high school (she was a cheerleader, and I was a chess club geek, so it was strictly one sided), but I remember her being a very headstrong, outspoken girl who always got her way and let everyone know how she felt about something. As I sat there this morning and listened to Scott Peterson explain how he'd told Laci about the affair, and that she had not objected, only one word came to my mind: Bullshit!

Bullshit!
Bullshit!
Bullshit!
Bullshit!

The Laci Rocha I knew would have beat the crap out of him with blunt objects, screamed at the top of her lungs for hours, and then thrown him out of the house. And that was the normal Laci, not the eight months pregnant, emotionally unstable Laci that Scott would have faced. When she was pregnant, my wife would get mad at me for looking at another woman...I can only imagine what Laci would have done if Scott had told her he was having an affair. And she didn't tell her MOTHER? Yeah right, from what I understand, her family was very close, and coupling that with her outspokenness, I just cannot believe that Laci wouldn't have mentioned it. Or her friends? This was a 27 year old woman who had friends so close that they kicked out their husbands and had sleepovers from time to time...and she didn't tell any of them? I REALLY doubt that.And about that point, my wife realized something and spoke up. It's obvious he is lying...I could tell, she could tell, Diane Sawyer could tell, and everybody watching the show could tell that he was lying through his teeth to try and improve his image and cover his a**. So, she pointed out, why would he make such a baldfaced lie if he knew that there was a chance Laci could come home and call him on it? The answer, of course, is that he wouldn't. There is no way Scott Peterson would have gone on national television and told such a blatantly obvious baldface lie unless he was 100% sure that Laci isn't coming home. And how would he know that?

Unless he did it.

[Devil_Anse]

Thanks very much for the info. I'm glad I can get the rundown, in spite of having missed the program!

"Violence towards women is unapproachable" What the heck does THAT mean?

And...OMIGOSH! You mean he really IS saying that he goes to walk the dog in the park as "a way to experience her now"?? I though Clouda was KIDDING! That statement is ludicrous, in my mind. Especially in light of the oft-played footage of him running along with the dog, looking fit as a fiddle!

If my spouse had most likely been abducted and killed while walking the dog in the park, the LAST thing I'd want to do (a mere month afterward) would be to go to the same park and walk the dog. Oh--I know! He goes there to search for her still! Yeah, that's it--never give up, Scott! Always faithful, always hopeful that at last you'll find her!

True, his saying on national TV that "he never loved Frey" does not sound like he's trying to stay on her good side out of fear of what she may tell about him. Maybe he just couldn't resist getting in a swipe at Amber, after having the bad experience of seeing her on TV telling on him.

I notice he deplores "violence towards women." What about violence towards one's wife, in particular? His sanctimonious statement against "violence towards women" sound like an assurance to all those honeys and babes out there, "don't worry, I'm safe to date!" Okay, I'm going a little overboard on that one, I guess.

Despite the couple's problems, there was "no anger or cruelty" expressed btw him and Laci. Sorry, but that doesn't sound like a very good relationship to me. "I was angry with my friend, I told my wrath, My wrath did end. I was angry with my foe, I told it not, My wrath did grow." Cruelty? Well, of course there shouldn't be cruelty between a husband and a wife. Um, Scott.....? Cheating is cruelty!

[Space Wrangler]

I agree with your analysis, but even if SP trips up real bad, anything short of a confession will mean nothing. Real physical evidence is what LE needs, and maybe they have it. I also agree with your time frame. Body-less murder arrests almost always take months or years to happen. I think the one thing we can count on and that's that there is no smoking gun. If they can build a case, it will be grueling and tedious work to do so. Scott can get on TV and lie like a dog and it won't mean squat in making an arrest until there is ample physical evidence to charge him with the crime.

[Joe Hadenuf]

Homicide victims usually know killer

And many homicides are never solved. This may very well be one of those cases, as it slowly fades into the back pages...

[texasbluebell]

If SP did in fact tell her, and all of a sudden she realized what a creep she was married to, I wonder if she would "disappear" to protect her baby from him and may have seen that as her only alternative.

There's no way she'd put her parents and siblings through this. I just don't see it.

[wimpycat]

Compared to Scott Peterson's interview, Gary Condit came out of his interview smelling like a rose.

[Space Wrangler]

Great info! Please stick around! It would be nice to have some insights from someone who actually knew Laci like yourself.

[Velveeta]

As I sat there this morning and listened to Scott Peterson explain how he'd told Laci about the affair, and that she had not objected, only one word came to my mind: Bullshit!

Well put, thanks for your perspective.

[jdontom]

Yes keep talking Scott. I am sure LE is eating this up.

Excellent Point...........

Wouldn't Laci have talked to her Doctor about how she was feeling? Would an affair by her husband be something that might upset a pregenecy?

[texasbluebell]

For all we know she might have wanted to wait on the sexual part of the relationship.... A young single mother must have been the perfect target for him. Vulnerable, looking for a loving relationship, perhaps a future committment.

Remember too, he was the one pushing her to make it an "exclusive" relationship. Only a few weeks after meeting her.

[Devil_Anse]

ROFL!!!

[Yaelle]

Beautiful post. You said it all.

Without the advantage of knowing Laci, but with years of experience with women friends and a masters in psych under my belt, I would ASSUME the wife would be hugely upset at Scott's "news."

The below is quoted from your post because it bears repeating.

There is no way Scott Peterson would have gone on national television and told such a blatantly obvious baldface lie unless he was 100% sure that Laci isn't coming home. And how would he know that?

Unless he did it.

[Yaelle]

"Violence towards women is unapproachable" What the heck does THAT mean?

Especially when said with eyes closed.

[BonneBlue]

Laci's mom in earlier interviews said that Laci was happy and excited about the impending arrival of the baby. You can see the happiness in her photos. She seemed to be glowing.

[wimpycat]

Great post. Thanks for the inside info. Your characterization of Laci and her temperament sounds like the stereotypical Latin temper. I have a sister-in-law like this, and she's the type that if anything is bothering her, you know it pretty quickly...(actually, everyone including the neighbors knows it pretty quickly.) She doesn't bottle things up inside.

[Freedom2specul8]

"As I've mentioned in previous threads, I went to high school with Laci, my sister lives just down the street from the Petersons, "

I did a quick search of your posting history (just wanted to see what else you had to say about this case) I found the posts about your sister living nearby, and that you knew the area very very well..but I couldn't find info about where it says you knew her. Could you find the post about you knowing laci for us please? Thanks! (PS: I have no doubts..I just wanted to read it)

[landerwy]

Yes, and why did he keep that information from her family until after they were shown pictures? And does he think she wouldn't have told one of her family members? What a lie!