| Prosecutors attack fishing alibi Partial Story by GARTH STAPLEY, JOHN COTÉ and KTVU Tuesday, July 27, 2004 Prosecutors in Scott Peterson's murder trial went fishing Monday for answers to questions including how and where someone would catch sturgeon and striped bass in San Francisco Bay. Prosecutors maintain they've caught Peterson in a lie -- that he wasn't fishing alone for sturgeon and striped bass in San Francisco Bay the day Laci Peterson was reported missing. They allege Peterson used the story as a cover to dump her body on Christmas Eve, 2002. To make their point, prosecutors called a professional fisherman to testify that Peterson's choice of gear didn't suggest he actually wanted to catch the specific fish he told authorities he was after. The Commercial fisherman led the jury through a presentation of how, when and where in the bay to fish for sturgeon and striped bass. His conclusion: Scott Peterson had the wrong gear, his homemade cement anchor wouldn't have held his boat against the bay's currents, and he was in the wrong spot to catch sturgeon the day his pregnant wife, Laci was reported missing. During cross-examination, however, defense lawyers got Cuanang to concede it wasn't unusual that an amateur angler such as Peterson might make a trip without preparing like a professional. Angelo Cuanang, an author and commercial fisherman, acknowledged that recreational anglers simply enjoy time outdoors. Many others catch fish without regard to experts' recommendations, Cuanang said. Prosecutors contend Peterson murdered his wife and their unborn son, Conner, on or just before Dec. 24, 2002, and dumped her body in San Francisco Bay. The 31- year-old agricultural products salesman could receive the death penalty if convicted. The remains of mother and child were found separately four months later, less than two miles from where Peterson said he fished. Peterson's attorneys say his wife was abducted while walking the couple's dog. Cuanang, wearing a shirt with a sportfishing logo, has co-authored many articles and three fishing books, including one on catching sturgeon, which can weigh several hundred pounds. He said the poles and fishing line found in Scott Peterson's boat were too light for sturgeon. One was more suited for bass or freshwater fish like trout; another had no handle and was "not functional," Cuanang said. Peterson told a detective he is "not a bait fisherman," used lures that day and trolled from his newly purchased boat. Unopened lures recovered by police from Peterson's pickup would have done no good if used, Cuanang said. That's because sturgeon feed on the bay's muddy bottom and prefer live bait, usually shrimp, the expert testified. Lures, on the other hand, imitate movements of small fish in open water. "If your bait is off the bottom, you're not going to catch any sturgeon," he testified. Wrong anchor for sturgeon Peterson's bucktail lure could be used to catch smaller striped bass in the summer, but would be useless in the winter when bass also bottom-feed, Cuanang said. Another jigger lure with Peterson's gear primarily is used near deep-ocean reefs at least 20 miles west of the Golden Gate Bridge, he said. Also, trolling for sturgeon -- which can snag the fish's body as a hook moves through the water -- is illegal in California, Cuanang said. Because sturgeon are sensitive, anglers must anchor their boats as motionless as possible, Cuanang said. He prefers an anchor with a claw that digs into mud. Peterson's small, smooth- bottomed homemade anchor could not keep a boat still in the bay's current or tidal motion, he said. And, Cuanang, of South San Francisco, said he wouldn't fish for sturgeon in the Brooks Island-area, where Peterson said he fished after launching from the Berkeley Marina. He noted more fertile spots to the north and south. "Would you say this rod is rigged up for sturgeon fishing?" prosecutor Rick Distaso asked, holding up Peterson's rod. "No," Cuanang replied, adding that both the rod and tackle box were outfitted for fresh water fishing. Cuanang, who has written fishing guides, then testified the type of anchor Scott brought -- a small 5-10 pound concrete weight shaped like a bucket -- wouldn't work at that time of year, when currents require a clawed anchor to avoid drifting. Prosecutors allege Peterson crafted five cement anchors to sink his wife's body after killing her in their Modesto home and driving to Berkeley. Authorities recovered one anchor from Peterson's small boat, but found no others during extensive bay searches. Peterson's defense team has portrayed him as "an avid fisherman since he was 3 years old" to counter skepticism about a husband leaving his almost 8-month pregnant wife the day before Christmas. His attorneys shifted approaches Monday morning, suggesting Peterson used lures, had less-than-ideal rods and used wrong tactics because he wasn't the expert Cuanang is. Under cross-examination by defense attorney Pat Harris, Cuanang acknowledged that recreational fishermen regularly venture out without specialized equipment. A prime motivation, Harris asked, is "relaxing, getting on the water whether you catch anything or not?" Cuanang agreed. Harris pointed out Cuanang's testimony outlined the ideal way to land a sturgeon -- but that his suggestions were far from requirements. "People have been catching sturgeon in numerous ways for many, many years?" Harris prodded. "Yes," responded Cuanang, who later agreed with Harris that a small cement anchor would have created enough drag that Peterson's boat could have effectively been trolling for striped bass. Cuanang said people using far inferior gear and methods nearly drove sturgeon to extinction near the turn of the last century. Harris pointed out that Cuanang was a professional -- and that occasional anglers such as Peterson might not know the optimal techniques and gear, much less what they might expect to catch. Harris later tried to force Cuanang to acknowledge that he had fished for sturgeon using an artificial lure. "I have never caught one with a lure before," Cuanang responded. While some experienced sturgeon fishermen have scoffed at Peterson's relatively small, 14-foot aluminum boat, Cuanang acknowledged a picture in his book of him and two other men landing a sturgeon in a 13-footer. The species can grow to 1,300 pounds. But Johnson, the commentator, said Harris might have gone too far when he asked the expert about releasing large fish back into the bay. While Peterson's defenders say dumping a 153-pound body attached to concrete weights might capsize a relatively small boat, Cuanang said he has released fish more than 6 feet long without a problem. "You just keep pushing them and eventually there's enough body weight (over the side of the boat) and they slide right in," he said. But the veteran fisherman also testified that he would go fishing "at the drop of a dime" and would want to quickly break in a new boat. Peterson told police a major reason for going to the bay that day was to try out a boat he had purchased two weeks before. Cuanang also acknowledged that he has fished in Tulloch Lake near Jamestown -- driving farther than Peterson did on that fateful day. Authorities have scorned Peterson's alibi because he passed numerous lakes and rivers on the way to what he said was his maiden launch. Investigators found a printout from Peterson's warehouse computer indicating sturgeon were running in the bay just before his wife disappeared. The document also referred to "Suisun bass" and "San Pablo leopard sharks." HOME INDEX LACI SCOTT TRIAL ALIBI-WITNESS LIST |
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