A Deadly Game (33 page)

In a later phone conversation, Scott told Amber that Laci's entire family believed he had killed Laci. Amber responded that his refusal to tell the truth about other things-such as their affair-had only hurt his case. He'd done nothing to prove his innocence, she told him. "There's nothing I can do," Scott countered. Amber replied that he could start by "cooperating with authorities," that he should "take the polygraph."

Scott insisted he'd been the only one telling the truth. "You're lying again."

Scott then agreed to a polygraph, on the condition that Amber accompany him. When she told him she'd meet him the following day, although Scott immediately backed off, telling her that he would take it in a few weeks.

The wiretaps on the suspect's cell phones continued to offer insights into Scott's situation. According to a transcript of one voice mail, Jackie Peterson offered some motherly advice.

"I wanted to talk to you about something," Jackie said, "I would [think] that you should deny, deny, deny. I was told that years ago by an attorney, and I think you should talk to Kirk and do that... I had to do that at the time. I'm sorry, but that's what I had to do and I really feel that that's right. Um, that you must deny these things, not to the press, not to anybody, but to your family. Because ... it will be talked about and it could leak and it's not good if there is any truth to your [unintelligible]. I'm not saying there is ..."

It is not known whether any attorney actually said that to Jackie Peterson, but as investigator Steven Jacobson commented about this transcript, "It appears by this message and by his very own words [that] Scott Peterson is following these instructions." To Jacobson, the message also reflected badly on Jackie: "I also believe by his mother not being specific by mentioning the affair alone, but by using the term 'deny anything,' his mother and father know more about what really happened to Laci."

Jackie's instructions would never be played for the jury, but I discussed them several times on my program. While in public Jackie always insisted on Scott's innocence, behind the scenes she was desperate to keep him quiet. From the second day of the investigation, Scott's parents were advising him not to take a polygraph. In all the recorded conversations among the three, Lee and Jackie were never heard to encourage him to participate in press conferences; nor did they ever ask him if he had anything to do with Laci's disappearance. To the contrary, the three were more likely to denigrate the cops, or debate whether Scott was in "good shape" legally. Only when the Amber story broke did Jackie agree that it was time for Scott to make a media push. In hindsight, this seemed more for her son's benefit than that of his missing wife.

Scott didn't return his mother's call right away, but he did respond to a message left by Sharon.

"Hello," Sharon said.

"Hi Mom, it's Scott."

"Where are you?"

"Trying to get this volunteer center to happen in Los Angeles," her son-in-law told her. "Can't believe they cancelled it."

"What do you mean you can't believe they cancelled it?" Sharon snapped.

"Why can't we have it? We need to keep her picture out there and the Volunteer Center in Modesto," Scott replied.

"When are you gonna give up the charade, Scott? When are you gonna call it quits and admit what you've done?"

"When I find my wife and child," Scott responded flatly.

"Well, you're the only one who knows where they are, so why don't you fill the rest of us in so we can go get them?"

"Mom, I didn't call you to ..." Scott said.

"Well, that's the reason I called you," Sharon retorted.

"Oh well... "Scott said.

"I want you to tell me where Laci is," Sharon spoke over Scott. "I'm tired of your lies. . . . I'm tired of your conniving, I'm tired of your manipulation. You know damn well they're not opening a stupid center down there, because you've embarrassed your family and everyone else. You have shamed this world, Scott. You have had people out looking for Laci and somebody else when you've known all along where she's been, so tell me where she is. I want her back."

"I know you won't believe that I want her back also . . . that's all I. . ."

"Oh, I'm sure you want her back too, yes, you're brokenhearted," Sharon continued. "I know that, Scott. So now, just be honest with me and tell me where she is."

"I can't listen to you tell me ..."

"And I can't listen to your fucking lies anymore . . . now get to the truth."

The connection went dead.

Sharon Rocha was already reeling from news of her son-in-law's dual life when Detective Grogan learned that Modesto's mayor, Carmen Sabatino, had told reporters that the Modesto Police Department did not believe Laci's body would be found. He then declared that the searches were being discontinued.

None of it was true, of course, and Grogan knew the mayor's comments would be upsetting to Laci's family. Anxious to set the record straight, the detective placed a call to the Rocha residence. When he didn't reach anyone, he paged Kim Peterson.

Detective Buehler was at headquarters when Kim phoned back. She told the investigator that she was at the Rochas' home, and asked him to come and assist her. Grogan and Buehler arrived to find a house full of people.

The detectives spoke with Sharon and Kim in a back bedroom.

Chief Wasden had already assured the Rochas that the mayor's announcement was incorrect, but Sharon had spent much of the day distraught over how Laci may have died.

"I explained to Sharon that based on Detective Buehler's experience and mine, coupled with the opinion of Sharon Hagan . . . and evidence obtained during the search warrant, it did not appear there was a violent or bloody crime scene in the home," Grogan wrote in his report. "I told Sharon that it was our opinion that Laci likely died after she went to bed that night and may not have awakened or been aware of what was occurring.

"Sharon's concern was that her daughter was placed in water alive with cement attached to her based on the story she had read in the National Enquirer. I told her that was a very unlikely scenario." Grogan noted. "Sharon Rocha seemed to find some comfort in the release of the information."

Later that evening, in a brainstorming session, Buehler and Grogan drafted two lists-one cataloging reasons Scott may have elected to dump Laci's body in a body of freshwater, the other noting reasons he might have chosen the San Francisco Bay. They hoped the exercise would help them determine where they should focus their efforts.

By night's end, the freshwater list was ten entries long. The number of reasons Scott may have chosen the San Francisco Bay had reached forty-one. Among them:

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Peterson's statement to police that he was at the Berkeley Marina on Christmas Eve.

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The pay stub from the marina stamped with a time consistent with his statement.

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The cell site records showed Scott's location at the marina.

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The bloodhounds who tracked Laci's scent at the marina.

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Scott's two-day fishing license purchased on December 20 for December 23-24.

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Scott's "whistle" on the wiretap on January 11 as he listened to Sharon Rocha's voice mail that the object in the bay was anchor, not a body.

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Peterson's trips to the marina since December 24.

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Scott's research of the San Francisco Bay, including one map that showed how deep the currents are.

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Salt water in the boat; not fresh water.

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Scott calls home and leaves Laci messages as he's leaving the bay, saying he's going to be late.

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Purchased just $13 of gas in Livermore-not a significant amount for a truck but enough to establish his whereabouts.

Over the weekend, Scott reached out again to Brent. He told his brother-in-law that he was still out of town, but he wanted to let him know that the volunteer center in Los Angeles was poised to open. His statement was met with silence.

After a few seconds, Brent asked Scott if he'd ever read the definition of a sociopath.

A sociopath, he explained, is someone with mental illness who thinks they can get away with things. "It's you," Brent declared. "I think you need to come clean. You are not going to get away with it."

Scott laughed. "Brent, I didn't do it, man."

"You messed up, man, everything is leading to you. What did you do with my sister?"

"I didn't do anything."

"Tell us where she is at so we can bring her back," Brent begged.

Scott threatened to hang up, but Brent pressed on, accusing his brother-in-law of avoiding the family. He pointedly asked Scott why he wasn't cooperating with the investigation.

"I have," Scott said.

"So many things don't add up," Brent said. "Why didn't you take the lie detector test?"

Scott told Brent he only telephoned to tell him about the center opening up. "If you want to call me up to accuse me of these things, I'll take your calls, but hopefully you will find out these things are not true."

"It's gone too far," Brent said, telling Scott it was time to "clean it up."

Scott maintained that he was following the advice of his attorney.

"Since when did you start talking to attorneys?" Brent asked.

"You hire them because they know the right thing to do."

"If you loved Laci, you'd be out there talking for her, trying to get her back. Not looking for some damn attorney that's going to try and get you off," Brent snapped.

"I hope you see by my actions that I am trying to get her back. The media is against me."

But Brent had had enough. He was no longer looking for Laci, he said, because he believed that Scott "did it."

"That's a shame," Scott responded. "There will be people that will help me and we will be working toward that goal."

In their analysis of Scott's sentiments, though, the police agreed with Brent that Scott was just "hiding behind his attorney." As Steve Jacobson wrote, "Hiring a criminal defense attorney would perhaps be the last thing I would consider if my pregnant wife came up missing." He then set out the real reason that everything seemed to be going against Scott: "Like the police, the media is suspicious of Scott Peterson because of his alibi story and the amount of lies he tells.

"Scott has access to many other attorneys who are working out other matters with Laci and her immediate family (will and probate). Why Scott hired a criminal defense attorney, early on this investigation to 'defend' him has and will remain interesting."

Scott returned from his weekend in Southern California to find that his home had been burglarized. Dialing headquarters, he reported that he'd arrived home at 7:45 P.M. on Sunday, January 19, to find that some clothing and other personal items were missing. Although nothing of value had been taken, some food and alcohol had also been consumed.

Scott had not set the house alarm because of the way he'd secured the front gate. He had received a call from Kim McGregor about an hour before he arrived home that evening, advising him that she'd just been to the house to feed McKenzie. When she went into the backyard, she found the side door open. Nobody was home, so she closed it and left.

The police later determined that the entry had occurred through an unlocked gate. A small window was broken in the rear dining room door, and one or more individuals then reached inside, unlocked the door, and entered the house.

Police found the scene inside curious indeed. The thief or thieves had emptied a bottle of Jack Daniel's and opened some Christmas presents, along with stealing some property.

Police found the empty whiskey bottle on the floor near the bar in the dining room. According to Scott, it had been one-third full when he left for southern California. Several Christmas gifts were lying on the floor near the empty bottle, their wrapping paper ripped open. One of the gifts, a sweatshirt from Carmel intended for Ron Grantski, was gone. Another was left unwrapped on the dining room table, its colorful paper dumped in the kitchen garbage pail. Police noted that two of Scott's jackets had been taken from a coat rack near the door. It was clear that the suspect had spent some time in the couple's kitchen, drinking a Pepsi and eating a pear. Both items were left on the kitchen counter. Police found a used glass in the sink.

A search of the bedrooms was inconclusive; Scott couldn't be sure if anything had been taken from the closets, but it appeared that all Laci's jewelry was still there.

Later that week, Grogan learned that Scott's neighbor, Kim McGregor, had been identified as the person responsible for the burglary. Another neighbor on Covena, Amie Krigbaum, dialed 911 to report seeing a white female leaving the Peterson home with a handful of items around the time the burglary occurred. She told police she saw the woman place the objects in the trunk of a white Honda and drive off.

During an interview with McGregor at headquarters, she confessed to the burglary and told police she didn't know why she did it. Based on this, the police spent some time trying to identify or eliminate her as a suspect in Laci's disappearance. They found no indication that she even knew the Petersons before Laci