Scott Peterson’s Family Requests Transfer From San Quentin Prison Amid COVID-19 Outbreak

Scott Peterson‘s family is requesting he be transferred from the San Quentin State Prison, where he is currently serving out a life sentence for the 2002 murder of his wife, Laci Peterson, and their unborn child.

The Peterson family is worried for his health while behind bars as the San Quentin state prison is currently experiencing a COVID-19 outbreak, Scott’s lawyer, Cliff Gardner, told TMZ. According to the outlet, the facility had a surge in cases within the last month and up to two-thirds of the inmate population has been infected with the coronavirus. San Quentin is also the detention center in the California prison system that has reported the most infections and deaths.

Tom Hanks, Idris Elba and More Stars Bravely Open Up About Their Coronavirus Diagnoses

Gardner is hoping to relocate Peterson to a safer state prison if permitted under California law. But state prison officials told the outlet they have no plan to move Scott to another facility.

The news comes just five days after a California supreme court judge reversed Scott’s death sentence conviction. The judgment was announced on Monday, August 24, and a press release stated the former Modesto resident’s trial for the murder of wife Laci and their unborn son, Conner, was determined to have “a series of clear and significant errors” during juror selection. As a result of the new ruling, “people may retry the penalty phase if they so choose.” His conviction in the case is still being upheld.

But even if the sentence was reversed and could go to retrial, Beverly Hills legal analyst Jeffrey W. Steinberger told In Touch that it would be “unlikely” that Scott’s guilty verdict would be overturned.

Deal of the Day

Only $12! — (And No One Will Know They Aren’t Designer) View Deal

Scott’s sister, Anne Bird, spoke out about the new development in the case. “I’m against the death penalty, but I do think he’s exactly where he should be,” she said during an interview with the Today show on August 25. “I lost my sister-in-law Laci and my unborn nephew Conner, and I believe he should remain in prison for the rest of his life without parole.”

What Happened to Laci Peterson? Revisit the Heartbreaking Murder That Gripped America

Laci’s family is “devastated” after Scott’s penalty was overturned, an insider exclusively revealed to In Touch on August 26. This was not the “outcome” they wanted, but they are choosing to focus on “keeping [Laci’s] memory alive,” the insider added.

On Christmas Eve 2002, Laci went missing while she was eight months pregnant with the former couple’s first child. Her body was discovered four months later in 2003. She was only 27 years old at the time of her death. In 2004, Peterson was found guilty and convicted of first-degree murder with special circumstances, and second-degree murder for the couple’s fetus.