| Peterson Searchers Return To Richmond May 16, 2003 A Contra Costa County police boat equipped with side-scan sonar was trolling the waters off Richmond Friday, searching for further evidence in the murder case of Laci Peterson and her unborn son, Conner. Other boats from several different police agencies gathered Friday morning at the U.S. Coast Guard station on Yerba Buena Island for what appeared to be a massive search effort. The bodies of the missing Modesto woman and her child were found washed up on the shore of a Richmond regional waterfront park. "It's unknown whether we'll finish today or if we'll go beyond," said Sgt. Doug Pittman of the Marin County Sheriff's Office, which has 11 divers involved in the search. He declined to say if divers were looking for anything in particular. "All I can say is, I know the Modesto Police Department has certain objectives that they want to accomplish with this search," he said. The Coast Guard provided security around the diving area, according to the agency's station in San Francisco. Meanwhile, a reliable source has told KTVU Channel 2 that Peterson's remains were missing her head, hands, feet and some internal organs when recovered. However, the source would not speculate on whether the missing parts were the result of the natural decay of the body or from dismemberment. There was a broadcast report circulating Friday Laci may have fallen victim to a satanic cult. Speaking On Friday's Mornings On 2, Benny Del Re -- the head of the Santa Clara County Crime Lab -- downplayed the report, saying such a conclusion would be extremely difficult without intricate knowledge of the autopsy report. Fox News quoted a source from Scott Peterson's defense team, as saying the condition of the woman's body was "horrendous" and awful, awful, awful." Peterson, who has told investigators he was on a day fishing trip at the nearby Berkeley Marina on Christmas Eve when Laci disappeared, has been charged with two counts of capital murder in the case. The comments came just hours after a Stanislaus County Superior Court judge sealed the autopsy records. The autopsies were completed sooner than expected, but it wasn't clear if a cause of death had been determined in the homicides. Jimmy Lee, a spokesman for the Contra Costa sheriff would not comment, but has said in the past that the cause of death may never be known. Meanwhile, the Modesto Bee in its Thursday edition reported that Scott Peterson's defense team had identified one or more "credible suspects" in the case. But the attorneys would not say who the suspects are, or what their theory is regarding the disappearance of Laci Peterson from her Modesto home. However, a source close to the defense told the paper that the evidence was pointing away from two men arrested for burglarizing a house across the street from the Peterson's Modesto home. The paper also reported that a source close to the investigation told reporters that two Berkeley city employees who were working at the Berkeley marina on Dec. 24 may be witnesses in the case. Police reports indicate the two employees saw someone who matched Scott's description back a boat into a pylon at the Berkeley Marina on Dec. 24, the source said. When the employees went to assist the man, he refused help. Peterson, 30, was being held without bail on two counts of murder and could face the death penalty if convicted. He has pleaded innocent. He was arrested last month after the decomposed remains of his wife and the son they planned to name Conner were found on the shore of San Francisco Bay. Police have not revealed how they believe Laci Peterson, a 27-year-old substitute teacher, was killed or any of the evidence they compiled against her husband, a fertilizer salesman. Prosecutors and defense lawyers asked to seal the autopsy and Judge Al Girolami agreed. The autopsy report could be unsealed at a May 27 hearing in which news organizations are seeking the release of other court documents, including search warrants and police reports. About a dozen court records, including a wiretap and an affidavit supporting an arrest warrant, have been sealed. Judge Seals Autopsy Reports In Peterson Case SEARCHES OF BAY HOME INDEX LACI SCOTT TRIAL AMBER AUTOPSY INDEX WIRETAPS EVIDENCE & NEWS ALIBI-WITNESS LIST INCONSISTENT STATEMENTS |
| LACI & CONNER PRAY FOR JUSTICE |
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