Sumith Prasad
Netflix’s ‘American Murder: Laci Peterson’ and A&E’s ‘Scott Peterson: The New Evidence’ delve into the double murder of Laci and Conner Peterson. Around two decades ago, the prosecution was able to convince a jury that Scott Peterson was responsible for the crime against his wife and his unborn son. However, the motive behind the murders is still disputed by him and his family members. Over the years, several people have emerged to propose alternate theories to support him, whereas numerous others still believe that he killed his wife while she was 8 months pregnant.
Scott Peterson Killed Laci and Conner to Avoid Divorce and Responsibilities
Scott Peterson’s motive behind killing Laci and Conner Peterson was proclaimed by the prosecution during his double-murder trial that took place in 2004. “He [Scott] didn’t want that dull married life. He did not want that baby. The reas on he killed Laci Peterson was because Conner was on the way,” said prosecutor Rick Distaso. The state also cited his affair with Amber Frey, indicating he wanted to start a new with her without having to go through a bitter divorce and custody hearings. As ‘American Murder: Laci Peterson’ reveals, he even promised his girlfriend he would take care of her and her child from a previous union. His statements seemed to support the prosecution’s explanations.
According to Al Brocchini, one of the lead investigators of the case, Scott told Amber Frey that “he was out of the country and would be able to be with her more exclusively” after the murders. The co-lead investigator, Jon Buehler, also believes that he committed the murders to escape from his responsibilities. “He [Scott] didn’t want to be a dad, didn’t want to pay child support, didn’t want to pay his spousal, and this is the way he thought about getting out of it,” Buehler said while appearing on Peacock’s ‘Face to Face with Scott Peterson.’
As per records, during Scott’s trial, Juror #1 Greg Beratlis became convinced that the defendant killed his pregnant wife and unborn chid, Laci and Conner, to gain “freedom.” He believed that the husband thought “divorce was [not] an option” for him. The defendant’s conversations with Amber, which were recorded by the Modesto PD and played during the trial, further made the jury believe that he was the murderer. Mike Belmessieri, #4 juror, concluded that Scott was a “chameleon” and “sociopath” after listening to his conversations with Amber.
Scott Peterson Maintains His Innocence Even Today
Scott has never confessed to killing Laci and Conner. In fact, he claims he is innocent even today, around two decades after he was convicted. He has also dismissed allegations that he killed them because of his extramarital affair with Amber. “That is so offensive and so disgusting,” he once said from California’s Mule Creek State Prison while appearing on ‘Face to Face with Scott Peterson’ in 2024. “I certainly regret cheating on Laci, absolutely. It was about a childish lack of self-esteem, selfish me traveling somewhere, lonely that night because I wasn’t at home.”
Scott didn’t testify during his 2004 trial, but he is now willing to share his side of the story to prove his innocence. “If I have a chance to show people what the truth is, and if they are willing to accept it, it would be the biggest thing that I can accomplish right now — because I didn’t kill my family,” he added.In the late 2000s, a woman with the pen name Donna Thomas alleged that Scott confessed to killing Laci to her while she visited him in San Quentin State Prison. The alleged confession is detailed in her book ‘I’m Sorry I Lied to You: The Confession of Scott Peterson.
“I was at the end of my rope… At the time, I couldn’t stand being around her anymore… I hated her by the time I killed her,” he allegedly told her, as per her book. Thomas also penned that he strangled Laci, tied four cement weights to her body, went to Berkeley Marina, and dropped her overboard from his boat. Furthermore, she claimed to have had many “romantic encounters” with him, including during and after his marriage to Laci. On the other hand, Janey Peterson, Scott’s sister-in-law, continues to fight for him with a theory that the burglars who broke into Laci’s neighbor’s house killed her.
To support the same, the convicted murderer’s legal team filed a signed exhibit from a person who claimed that the individual had heard a burglar talk about his accomplices killing Laci. Today, he is supported by the Los Angeles Innocence Project, a non-profit organization that wholly believes Scott’s conviction was the result of “tunnel vision” by officials and attorneys. The even filed a 700-page appeal for him in August 2025, detailing 14 claims to argue he deserves a retrial, but their motion was dismissed by a San Mateo County Superior Court judge in April 2026. Nevertheless, Scott, his lawyers, and the Los Anegeles Innocence Project continue to fight for what they believe to be justice.
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