Sumith Prasad
Netflix’s documentary series ‘American Murder: Laci Peterson’ chronicles the Modesto Police Department’s investigation into the disappearance and subsequent murder of Laci Peterson through the recollections of Jon Buehler and his partner Al Brocchini, the lead detectives in the case. Buehler was part of the investigation from start to end, playing a vital role in assisting the prime witness — Scott’s girlfriend, Amber Frey. As a dedicated police officer, he tried his best to efficiently investigate a case of nationwide notoriety that emotionally affected thousands, which undoubtedly highlights his legacy!
Jon Buehler Helped Bring the Truth Behind Laci Peterson’s Murder to Light
Jon Buehler joined the Modesto Police Department in 1978 as a line officer. For more than eleven years, he handled various types of patrol calls and several preliminary investigations. His experience as a motorcycle officer in traffic enforcement includes investigations into over 1400 collisions. The cop was promoted to detective in December 1989. He was part of the task force formed to investigate the murders of Carole Evon Sund and Silvina Pelosso, two victims of Cary Stayner, who is also known as the Yosemite Park Killer. When Laci Peterson went missing on December 24, 2002, Buehler joined Al Brocchini to investigate the disappearance.
Soon after the Modesto PD was informed about Laci’s disappearance, Buehler arrived at her house and met her husband, Scott Peterson. The detective was puzzled by the behavior of the victim’s partner as the latter didn’t “fire tons of questions” at the officers, which the former found unusual. “I suspected Scott when I first met him. Didn’t mean he did it, but I was a little bit thrown off by his calm, cool demeanor and his lack of questioning… he wasn’t, ‘Will you call me back? Can I have one of your cards? What are you guys doing now?’” Buehler told ABC News.
In addition, Buehler found Scott’s last message to Laci “scripted” and “phony.” He also couldn’t figure out why a man went fishing after finding the weather too cold for golfing. The investigation took a turn when a woman named Amber Frey came forward, claiming that she was Scott’s girlfriend. Buehler went to her house and subsequently assisted her in recording her phone conversations with Scott. “Her (Amber’s) recall was fantastic. It was almost like it was a script from a Hallmark TV show or something,” the detective told CBS News. When Laci’s decomposed dead body and Conner’s fetus were discovered, Buehler was one of the officers who revealed the news to Scott.
“We told Scott. [There was] very little reaction on Scott’s part. In my view, because he was the one who killed Laci, there’s no reason for him to have a lot of emotion because he knew what the results were gonna be,” Buehler said while appearing on A&E’s docuseries ‘The Murder of Laci Peterson.’ The detective was also involved in Scott’s arrest in San Diego. The officer testified against Scott during his murder trial, which was concluded with a guilty verdict.
Jon Buehler Retired as a Sergeant in 2010
After Scott Peterson’s trial, Jon Buehler served as a Modesto PD detective until May 2006. Upon sixteen years as a detective, which included twelve years investigating homicides and specializing in whodunnit cases, the cop was promoted to the position of sergeant. He was the direct supervisor of ten officers, and his duties included supervising the P.M. patrol shift in the operations division and serving as a commander during staffing. Between 2008 and 2009, he attended the Union Institute & University to garner a Bachelor of Science degree in Criminal Justice Management. Buehler’s nearly 32 years of service as a cop came to an end in July 2010 when he retired as a sergeant from the Modesto PD.
In October 2010, Buehler joined Kaplan College in Modesto as the director of the Criminal Justice program. For the next eight months, his duties at the institution ranged from supervising and evaluating twelve instructors to planning and scheduling courses. In July 2011, two months after leaving the college, he started serving as a law enforcement consultant, which remains his current occupation. As a court-recognized expert, he can shed light on various aspects of police work, such as shootings, crime scene processing, homicide investigations, and ballistics. Buehler is currently based in Longboat Key, Florida.
Over the years, Buehler has appeared in several media productions to discuss Laci Peterson’s disappearance and murder. Some of these projects include NBC’s ‘Dateline,’ ABC’s ‘20/20,’ Oxygen’s ‘Snapped,’ and CNN’s ‘How It Really Happened with Jesse L. Martin.’ While he maintains a regular presence in the media, the retired detective has chosen to keep his personal life, especially his relationships, private.
Jon Buehler Continues to Believe Scott Killed Laci
Since Scott’s arrest and subsequent conviction, he has maintained that he is innocent. However, Buehler does not believe him. “There’s nothing that has come out to change my view that Scott got a fair trial and that Scott is the one who killed Laci,” the former detective said while appearing on CBS’ ‘48 Hours’ in 2021. “How come nobody saw Laci get abducted? Nobody saw an abduction in broad daylight where a girl had a dog, and the dog would be barking, and [the] girl would be screaming. Tell me how that is going to happen because I don’t see it,” he added. He also dismissed Janey Peterson’s claim that Laci’s dead body was dumped after her brother-in-law revealed where he went for fishing.
In January 2024, the Los Angeles Innocence Project took over Scott’s case to investigate and prove his claim of innocence. The non-profit joined hands with his attorneys after they argued that Laci was killed by a burglar who broke into her neighbor’s house. Buehler dismissed this theory a few years ago. “There was a half-million-dollar reward leading to the return of Laci. To think that more than one person could be involved in this and they wouldn’t turn on each other for that amount of money, that’s another thing that kind of strains my imagination a little bit,” he said while appearing on ‘NewsNation Prime’ in 2021. More than two decades after Laci’s murder, Buehler continues to be relied on by the media fraternity as one of the prominent individuals who can provide detailed insights into the case.
Read More: Mike Belmessieri: Where is the Juror Now?
