Scott Peterson crime scene pics show house in total disarray after wife Laci disappeared – cops were alarmed by nursery

CRIME scene pictures from Scott and Laci Peterson’s home show a house in disarray after eight-month-pregnant Laci disappeared on Christmas Eve in 2002.

Police searched the home in Modesto, California , twice before arresting Scott for the murder of his wife and unborn child – and the second search revealed a chilling scene.

Rex

Stanislaus County District Attorney's Office

Stanislaus County District Attorney's Office

Stanislaus County District Attorney's Office

The home, which the Petersons had lived in for two years before Laci’s disappearance, was first searched on the night that Scott alerted cops that his wife was missing.

He came home from a mysterious fishing trip, showered, and ate a piece of pizza before reporting Laci’s disappearance.

Months later, Laci’s body washed up on the shore of the San Francisco Bay in April. Scott was convicted in the murders of her and their unborn son, Conner.

When cops arrived at the bungalow on December 24, 2002, they found a cozy home with a Christmas tree set up for the holidays.

A look at the nursery that the couple was preparing for Conner showed a room painted blue with a rocking chair set up for the expecting parents.

Detectives returned to the house weeks later with a second search warrant on the same day that they seized Scott’s newly bought pickup truck.

Scott hadn’t been named as a suspect in the case yet and he was cooperating in the search – but police were surprised to find how he had left the home.

Pictures from the February visit showed the house had become cluttered as the search for Laci continued.

The three-bedroom home had piles of clothes sitting in the nursery and trash placed around the house.

Chairs from Scott’s office had been rolled into the nursery and bedding was piled up on the rocking chair that previously sat ready for use.

Investigators were reportedly alarmed as they noted that the disorder didn’t reflect a husband or father who was ready for his family to return home.

Throughout the months-long search for Laci, Scott gave multiple public interviews where he begged his wife to come back.

In his interview with Diane Sawyer in January 2003, he said that he couldn’t bring himself to enter the nursery while Laci and Conner remained missing.

“Can’t go in there,” Scott said.

“That door is closed until there is someone to put in there.”

Scott Peterson case timeline

Laci Peterson, 27, vanished from her home in Modesto, California, on December 24, 2002. After a months-long search, her husband Scott was arrested for murder. Here are key developments in the case.

• December 24, 2002 : Eight-month-pregnant Laci disappears
• April 13, 2003: Laci’s body and the remains of her unborn son are found washed up on a San Francisco Bay beach
• April 18, 2003: Scott is arrested for murder in San Diego
• April 21, 2003: Scott is arraigned and charged with two felony counts of murder with premeditation and special circumstances
• June 1, 2004: Scott’s criminal trial begins
• November 12, 2004: Scott is found guilty of one count of first-degree murder and one count of second-degree murder
• December 13, 2004: Just shy of two years since Laci’s death, Scott is handed a death sentence
• July 5, 2012: Scott appeals his death sentence
• August 24, 2020: The California Supreme Court upholds Scott’s convictions but overturns his death sentence after finding bias in the jury’s death penalty decision
• September 22, 2021: Scott is re-sentenced to life without parole
• January 2024: The Los Angeles Innocence Project announces it is taking on Scott’s case
• March 12, 2024: Scott appears in court to schedule future hearings
• April 22, 2024: The district attorney’s office files its opposition to a motion from Peterson’s defense team for post-conviction DNA testing of evidence
• May 29, 2024: A judge rules a single piece of duct tape found on Laci’s pants at the time of her autopsy can be tested for DNA
• July 16, 2024: Scott’s defense asks for more than 600 pieces of evidence from the Modesto Police Department

However, the pictures of the house revealed that the door had not remained closed as Scott appeared to use it for storage.

EERIE INTERVIEW

Scott’s interview with Diane Sawyer raised other suspicions of the convicted killer as he gave shaky answers and seemed to be ill-prepared for the conversation.

At one point, he went on a tangent explaining why he understood people who thought that he was responsible for his wife’s disappearance.

Stanislaus County District Attorney's Office

Stanislaus County District Attorney's Office

Stanislaus County District Attorney's Office

“I know that suspicion has turned to me,” he told Sawyer.

“It turned to me because, one, I am her husband and that’s a natural thing and I have heard all the statistics on the news shows … who is responsible for her disappearance.”

After his lackluster attempt at explaining himself, he paused and said, “I forgot your question.”

SCOTT’S AFFAIR

The interview wasn’t the only reason that people were wary of Scott as it was revealed that he had been having an affair with his mistress Amber Frey in the months before Laci’s disappearance.

Amber, who didn’t know that her boyfriend was married, helped police during the investigation and in the end, testified against her former lover and helped to convict him of the murders.

Scott is now serving life in prison without parole at Mule Creek State Prison in Ione, California.

EVIDENCE PHOTO

Stanislaus County District Attorney's Office

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