SAN FRANCISCO (KRON) — The Los Angeles Innocence Project said a new year-long investigation uncovered evidence and witness statements that undermine the case against convicted murderer Scott Peterson.

LAIP filed a petition for a writ of habeas corpus Friday in the California Court of Appeal seeking to overturn Peterson’s conviction.

“The Los Angeles Innocence Project advocates for truth and justice, no matter who the defendant may be or how controversial the case,” said John Sonego, LAIP’s board president. “Our organization has a team of professionals and experts who follow extensive screening protocols prior to choosing a client. We decided that this case deserved a second look, because of issues related to ‘confirmation bias’ and potential Brady violations committed by the Modesto Police and Stanislaus County District Attorney’s Office that we believe led to Peterson’s wrongful conviction.”

The petition includes a 126-page declaration written by Peterson detailing his recollection of the events around the death of his wife and unborn child in Modesto.

Peterson, 52, was convicted by a San Mateo County jury in November 2004 for the murders of his pregnant wife, Laci, and their unborn child, Conner. He was sentenced to death in 2005. In December 2021, he was resentenced to life without the possibility of parole. At his resentencing hearing, Laci’s family members told Peterson that he is an “evil,” “sociopathic,” and remorseless killer who deserves to die.

LAIP took on the notorious Peterson case in November 2023.

LAIP attorneys wrote in their petition, “This new evidence undermines the prosecution’s entire circumstantial case against Petitioner, and shows that the jury relied on false evidence, including false scientific evidence, to convict him.” His attorneys alleged that “critical exculpatory evidence was suppressed and destroyed” by prosecutors before he went on trial in 2004.

“The case against (Peterson) was entirely circumstantial,” the petition continues. “No direct, physical or forensic evidence was found supporting any part of the prosecution’s theory.”

The Los Angeles Innocent Project said new evidence includes:

• The new modeling showing that the bodies of Laci and Conner could not have migrated from the area where Peterson went fishing in the San Francisco Bay to where they washed up on shore. Rather, their bodies were most likely placed in the waters off the Albany Bulb, a peninsula that is accessible by car and foot.
• New sworn statements by eyewitnesses who reported seeing Laci walking the dog in the neighborhood after Peterson left their home to go fishing on December 24, 2002. Police allegedly “ignored” these witnesses.
• An analysis by a certified forensic document examiner who analyzed handwritten notes from the Petersons’ home with information from two marine supply stores about the cost of anchors that appear to be consistent with Laci’s handwriting. This could disprove the prosecution’s theory at trial that Scott had secretly purchased the boat as part of his plan to dump Laci’s body in the San Francisco Bay.
• New evidence showing a Modesto home across the street from the Petersons’ was burglarized on December 24, the same day Laci was reported missing, and not two days later on December 26, as the jury was told.  

Peterson was injured at Mule Creek State Prison in March, prison officials said. The inmate allegedly got into the heated confrontation with another inmate while he was playing pickleball in the yard, TMZ reported. The confrontation reportedly turned into a physical fight.