In 2004, a 12-member jury—backed by a horde of bloodthirsty Americans who had followed the trial day and night on television—found Scott Peterson guilty of murdering his wife, Laci, and their unborn son, Connor. Two decades later, the convicted killer is back in the court of public opinion with two new, contrasting docuseries aimed at re-arguing the case and swaying the streaming audience. But the projects have also arrived as new efforts are underway to overturn one of the most scrutinized convictions of the century.
Face to Face with Scott Peterson | Official trailer | Peacock Original
On August 14, Netflix released "American Murder: Laci Peterson," which unpacks the true crime story that shocked the country in the early 2000s when an eight-month-pregnant Laci disappeared on Christmas Eve 2002. For the next five months, Americans debated whether her husband, Scott, had anything to do with her disappearance, until the bodies of Laci and her baby (who was born posthumously) washed up in the lake where Scott had been boating the day she disappeared. He was subsequently tried and convicted of the murders in 2004. In its title alone, the series makes its point, making no attempt to hide its support for the convictions and its sympathy for Laci and Connor, to whom it is dedicated in the final frame.
Less than a week later, on August 20, Peacock debuted “Face to Face With Scott Peterson,” a three-episode series touted as the first prison interview with Scott, who is serving a life sentence without parole (he was previously sentenced to death before it was overturned). It’s been 21 years since Scott infamously spoke to the press in an attempt to defend himself against mounting allegations, a media blitz so disastrous that it only served to reinforce suspicions about him. Scott’s presence on Peacock’s series is at once robust and inconsequential, with investigative journalist and director Shareen Anderson conducting numerous interviews with him, 15 minutes at a time, via video call. He talks about Laci’s disappearance, the trial, and his internalized anxiety regarding what he calls overlooked evidence. But his sudden willingness to be so talkative has its own motive. The Los Angeles Innocence Project, which works to exonerate wrongfully convicted people, surprisingly announced earlier this year that it would be helping Scott Peterson with his efforts to push for DNA testing that they believe will exonerate him. In other words, he stands to benefit from any new light shed on the case.
Watching the two documentaries back-to-back, it’s hard not to feel like we’re stuck in a time machine, watching this case replayed with a defense, an prosecution, and a Greek chorus of talking heads. The Netflix documentary casts its key defense witnesses in Laci’s mother, Sharon Rocha, and several of her friends. Also featured is Amber Frey, the woman with whom Scott was having an affair at the time of Laci’s death. Frey, who seems to be living a relatively quiet life these days, became a tabloid sensation during the trial, as the public tried to figure out whether she was a knowing mistress or an innocent victim of Scott’s deceit. Ultimately, she was the witness who convinced the jury to convict, as jurors admit in both documents.