need to know
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Scott Peterson convicted of killing wife Laci Peterson and unborn son in 2004
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His parents, Jackie and Lee, stand by their son and insist he is innocent
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Jackie died in 2013 and Lee in 2024
More than 20 years have passed since Scott Peterson was charged with murdering his wife, Laci Peterson, but his family continues to insist he is innocent.
On Christmas Eve 2002, Laci, who was pregnant with her and Scott’s first child, was reported missing from her home in Modesto, California. Four months later, her remains were found in San Francisco Bay along with those of the couple’s unborn son, whom they had planned to name Connor.
Scott was subsequently arrested and charged with the first-degree murder of his wife and the second-degree murder of his son. It was revealed that Scott was having an affair with a woman named Amber Frey.
Scott’s parents, Lee and Jackie Peterson, met the couple four days before Lucky disappeared. “We all put our hands on [Laci’s] “Scott was trying to find us a baby so we could feel it kick in,” Jackie recalled in a July 2004 interview with Barbara Walters. She added that Scott and Lucky were “ecstatic” to be parents.
Lee and Jackie supported their son throughout the trial, including Scott’s eventual conviction. They also believed in his innocence until his death in 2013 and 2024. Several surviving members of Scott’s family are still working to clear his name, and in 2024, his case was taken over by the Los Angeles Innocence Project.
Here’s everything you need to know about what happened to Scott Peterson’s parents after Laci Peterson’s death.
In 1972, Lee and Jackie welcomed Scott
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Scott Peterson’s parents, Jackie Peterson and Lee Peterson, leave the San Mateo County Courthouse
On October 24, 1972, Lee and Jackie welcomed their only child, Scott. The couple had married the previous year and raised Scott in San Diego.
Lee worked for a trucking company before starting his own shipping and packaging business, and Jackie owned a clothing boutique called The Put On in La Jolla.
In an interview in 2004 SF GateIn “Lee and Jackie,” Lee and Jackie describe Scott as the “perfect” son growing up, noting that he never got into trouble and enjoyed golfing, fishing, and the Boy Scouts.
“We would tell him, ‘You’re a lucky man.’ He’s never been injured,” Lee told the outlet. “He’s like Mr. Perfect.”
Lee and Jackie have a large blended family
Monica David Poole/Getty
Jackie Peterson, right, mother of convicted murderer Scott Peterson, and her sister Susan Caudillo leave San Mateo Superior Court for lunch
In addition to Scott, Lee and Jackie both have children from previous relationships. Lee had three children from his first marriage, daughter Susan and sons Joe and Mark, while Jackie had a son named John.
Jackie also had two children who she gave up for adoption and reconnected with their families a few years later.
in their interview SF Gatethe couple compared their family dynamic to the Brady Bunch.
Jackie’s father is murdered
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Scott Peterson’s mother, Jackie Peterson (right), holds hands with her daughter-in-law, Jenny Peterson, as Scott’s father, Lee Peterson, walks behind them
When Jackie was just 2 years old, her father, John Latham, was reportedly attacked and killed outside a tire store in San Diego. SF Gate.
Soon after his death, Jackie’s mother struggled to care for her and her siblings. At the age of five, Jackie was sent to what she described as an orphanage, where she was raised by Catholic nuns.
Jackie recounted her traumatic childhood while testifying during the penalty phase of Scott’s trial.
Lee and Jackie met Laci four days before she disappeared
Modesto Police Department/ZUMA Press/Shutterstock
Laci Peterson and Scott Peterson
In an interview with Walters in July 2004, Scott’s parents revealed that they had met him and Laci in the days before her disappearance and claimed that everything seemed to be fine between the couple.
Jackie added that Scott was “so excited” to become a father and that he and Lucky had been trying to conceive for three years. She also recalled the moment she discovered Lucky was missing.
“The phone rang and I answered it. Scott was sobbing on the phone and all I could hear was ‘Lachy’ and ‘Missy,'” Jackie told Walters. “I thought she was having a miscarriage and my heart sank…and then he told me she was missing.”
Of their marriage, Jackie claimed: “They supported each other every step of the way… They were totally dedicated to each other.”
Lee and Jackie testify during Scott’s death sentence
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Scott Peterson’s parents, Jackie Peterson (center) and Lee Peterson (right), arrive at San Mateo Superior Court for the penalty phase
Both Lee and Jackie testified during the penalty phase of Scott’s trial in 2004, urging the jury to spare him the death penalty.
“He was an outstanding young man and he was my son,” Jackie said during her testimony, according to CBS News. “I know he wasn’t perfect… but he was truly a loving, caring, nurturing, kind, gentle man.”
She continued: “I really feel like if you took Scott away from us – they were like a family, Lucky, Connor and Scott – that whole family would be wiped off the face of the earth.”
During his testimony, Lee reportedly called Scott his “best friend” and said he helped bring their family “closer together.” SF Gate. Scott’s half-sister Susan also testified, noting that she was worried about her parents’ health.
“I see the pain on their faces every day,” she said of Lee and Jackie. “I can’t imagine it being worse than putting him to death. We’re together, we’re strong, we support him 100 percent, but I don’t think my parents would survive it if he was gone.”
Scott was ultimately sentenced to death. However, a few years later in 2020, the California Supreme Court overturned his death sentence, citing significant errors in jury selection during the initial trial. The following year, he was sentenced to life in prison.
Jackie died in 2013
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Scott Peterson’s mother, Jackie Peterson, enters the courtroom in San Mateo County Superior Court for the Scott Peterson double murder trial
Jackie died of cancer in 2013. She has suffered from respiratory problems for years and was on an oxygen tank during Scott’s trial.
Lee reportedly took Jackie home from the hospital to care for her in her final days.
Lee died in 2024
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Lee Peterson, father of convicted murderer Scott Peterson, leaves San Mateo Superior Court
On November 9, 2024, Janey Peterson, Scott’s sister-in-law, shared the news of Lee’s death on Facebook. “Last week we said a tender goodbye to my father-in-law. Rest in peace dad,” she wrote alongside a photo of Lee holding his great-grandson.
Jenny, who is married to Scott’s half-brother Joe, has been actively working to clear Scott’s name, even becoming a lawyer to help with the case.
“Evidence that Lucky was alive after the day he left has been completely ignored,” she said in a 2021 appearance. today. “Furthermore, there is no evidence that he had anything to do with what happened to Lucky.”
“We don’t have justice,” Jenny added. “This crime remains unsolved.”
Read the original article on People
