Peterson, Scott - Sentenced to Death for Killin...

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Scott Peterson Sentenced to Death for Killing Pregnant Wife

By DEAN E. MURPHY  -    March 17, 2005

REDWOOD CITY, Calif., March 16 - The court hearing on Wednesday in the case of Scott Peterson was called so that he could be formally sentenced here in the killing of his pregnant wife, Laci.

But the sentence of death, which was imposed by Judge Alfred A. Delucchi on the recommendation of a jury, seemed almost a footnote to the emotional exchanges in the courtroom between Ms. Peterson's family and Mr. Peterson.

"You are going to burn in hell for this, you are," Ms. Peterson's father, Dennis Rocha, yelled when the judge gave him an opportunity to address Mr. Peterson. "Your life is done."

In a trial heavy with sadness and feelings of betrayal, it was perhaps the saddest day of all, as hearts were bared, emotions vented, long-festering questions posed and even some civility abandoned.

It was the first time since Mr. Peterson was found guilty last November in the killings of Laci Peterson and her fetus that her loved ones spoke directly and openly to him about the crime. Unlike their previous statements during the trial, no oaths were given, and no lawyers interrupted with questions or objections.

One by one, with scribbled and typed notes clenched in their fists, they stood at a lectern placed a few yards from Mr. Peterson and vented their rage at the man they said they had once loved.

Some used vulgar phrases in addressing Mr. Peterson, while others berated him with shouts and finger pointing. Ms. Peterson's brother Brent Rocha said he had bought a gun and had intended to kill Mr. Peterson long ago but decided he would rather watch him "sweat it out and not take the easy way out."

In a wrenching display toward the end of the hearing, Ms. Peterson's mother, Sharon Rocha, assumed the roles of her daughter and the grandchild that was never born, pleading aloud in a trembling voice for "Daddy" not to kill "Mommy and me."

"Daddy, why are you killing us?" Ms. Rocha said, weeping as she spoke on behalf of the 8-month-old fetus, which was to be named Conner. "I know you will love me."

Though there was plenty of crying throughout the courtroom, Mr. Peterson, 32, sat stoically through most of it, only occasionally whispering to one of his lawyers, Mark Geragos, and at one point faintly shaking his head in disagreement when Ms. Rocha accused him of plotting for weeks before the murders.

"Yes, you did!" Ms. Rocha shot back.

Several jurors from Mr. Peterson's trial who returned to the courtroom on Wednesday said Mr. Peterson's demeanor was reminiscent of the trial. The prosecution had portrayed his unflinching behavior as the cool calculation of a killer.

"Scott came in with a great big smile on his face, laughing, it was just another day in paradise for Scott, another day that he had to go through the motions," said one juror, Mike Belmessieri. "Scott had no emotion on his face. Scott was being Scott."

Some members of Mr. Peterson's family, sitting in the rows directly behind him, became agitated at the accusations by Ms. Peterson's relatives, with his father, Lee Peterson, shouting, "You're a liar!" when Brent Rocha was speaking.

The judge warned Lee Peterson to be quiet, and a short time later, he left the courtroom and did not return. Scott Peterson's mother, Jackie, soon followed and also did not return. Judge Delucchi turned down a request by Mr. Geragos to allow the Petersons to speak, saying it was not their daughter who had been killed.

The judge later offered Scott Peterson the opportunity to make a statement. Mr. Peterson huddled with his lawyers for a brief moment, after which Mr. Geragos said he declined.

During the trial, the prosecution argued that Mr. Peterson, a fertilizer salesman from Modesto, Calif., killed his wife so that he could carry on a relationship with another woman, Amber Frey. Laci Peterson, 27, was reported missing from their home on Dec. 24, 2002, and her body and that of her fetus were found four months later in San Francisco Bay.

Mr. Peterson has maintained his innocence, and on Wednesday, his lawyers unsuccessfully petitioned Judge Delucchi for a new trial. Mr. Peterson, who was ordered to pay $10,000 restitution for funeral expenses, will soon be transferred from the county jail here to death row at San Quentin State Prison. Under California law, his case will automatically be appealed to the State Supreme Court.

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/03/17/national/17peterson.html?_r=1&ref=scottpeterson