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Born: 24-Oct-1972
Birthplace: San Diego, CA

Gender: Male
Religion: Roman Catholic
Race or Ethnicity: White
Sexual orientation: Straight
Occupation: Criminal

Nationality: United States
Executive summary: Murdered pregnant wife Laci

Scott Peterson's father worked for a trucking company, and later owned a packaging business. His mother owned a tiny boutique in Modesto, California, called "The Put On". She brought Scott to work with her when he was an infant, and ran the shop while he played or squealed in his crib behind the counter. As a boy, Peterson was rarely in any trouble, and acquaintances describe him as "quiet and polite". In elementary school he was a crossing guard. In high school he did odd jobs at a golf course, and lettered on his Catholic high school's golf team.

He was working as a waiter in a San Luis Obispo café, and attending Cal-Poly, when he met his future wife, then Laci Rocha. Peterson was promptly smitten with the brunette, and they moved in together, then married in 1997. Very pregnant, Laci was last seen alive on Christmas Eve in 2002. Her decomposed body and the corpse of her fetus were later found in San Francisco Bay, about 90 miles from the Petersons' home.

Peterson initially denied having anything to do with his wife's abduction, claiming he had been away on a fishing trip, alone. He later admitted that he had been having an affair with a masseuse from the nearby city of Fresno. Peterson claimed that he and his wife had been trying to repair their relationship, until her disappearance and death.

In January 2004, a survey was conducted as part of a criminology class at California State University, to determine whether Peterson could get a fair trial in Modesto. The survey was cited by the judge in announcing his decision to move the trial to a more distant location. It was later revealed, however, that the survey had been largely faked, with many of the criminology students simply making up answers instead of conducting the required interviews with area residents. Criminology, of course, is a degree that often forms the foundation for successful careers in law enforcement.

Father: Lee Peterson (retired, owned a packaging firm in San Diego)
Mother: Jacqueline Peterson
Brother: John Peterson (half-brother, b. circa 1966)
Sister: Susan Peterson (half-sister, b. circa 1960)
Brother: Mark Peterson (half-brother, b. circa 1962)
Brother: Joe Peterson (half-brother, b. circa 1963)
Wife: Laci Peterson (m. 9-Aug-1997, pregnant at the time of her death)
Mistress: Amber Frey (masseuse, affair while Laci was pregnant)

High School: University of San Diego High School (1990)
University: Arizona State University (dropped out)
University: Cuesta College, San Luis Obispo, CA (transferred to Cal-Poly)
University: BA Agricultural Business, Cal Poly San Luis Obispo (1997)

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Police who searched the Peterson home Dec. 24 found two mops and a bucket outside the couple's front door. Peterson said Laci was using the mops and bucket to clean the floor that morning when he left and he had moved them outside when he arrived home that afternoon. Prosecutors' question Laci's ability to mop when she was eight months' pregnant, and the couple's housekeeper said she had mopped the house the day before.

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The Petersons' housekeeper said she left these dirty rags in
the washer when she left on the afternoon of Dec. 23. When
police arrived the next day, the rags were unwashed on
top of the washer, the clothes Peterson wore fishing were
in the washer, and the hamper in the couple's bedroom was full.

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The first police officers who arrived at the Peterson home on Christmas Eve said there were no signs of foul play, but a few things, including this rug, did arouse their suspicion. The rag rug was originally scrunched up "like an accordion" against a door leading out to the couple's vehicles. When one officer pointed out the rug to Peterson, he said the cat and dog had probably been playing. He then straightened it out with his foot, leaving it in the position that police later photographed it in.

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The Petersons had prepared this nursery for their son, Conner, who was due in February. The theme of the room was nautical, a fact the defense says underscores Scott's lifelong love of fishing and the ocean.

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A curling iron rests on the counter in Laci's bathroom. Scott told his mother-in-law that she was curling her hair as he left the house on Christmas Eve morning for a fishing trip.

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When police arrived on Dec. 24, a phonebook lay open on the kitchen counter. Scott told police he was planning to call hospitals in search of his missing wife.

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This is the Peterson's living room with a view toward the laundry room. Stacey Boyers, a friend of the couple,
said she saw Scott vacuuming in front of the washer and dryer on Dec. 25, about 24 hours after his wife vanished.

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Two policemen testified that they were walking down this hall from the couple's bedroom to their living room when one of them asked Peterson what type of fish he was trying to catch on the bay. According to both officers, he had no answer.

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The bed in the couple's master bedroom was neatly made when police arrived. One of the officers rested Laci's purse on the corner of the bed as he inspected her belongings.