Judical Council Reveals Peterson Venue Choices

SAN FRANCISCO -- The Judicial Council of California announced Tuesday that the Scott Peterson capital murder trial can be moved to Alameda, Santa Clara, San Mateo or Orange counties.

The ruling came down after those courts informed the Judicial Council that they were able to accommodate the change of venue without undue burden. The three Northern California counties were the preference of Stanislaus County Superior Court judge Al Girolami, who will announce where the trial will be moved to at a hearing scheduled for Jan. 20.

Santa Clara County Superior Court officials said Tuesday they were preparing for the possibility that the highly publicized trial may be moved from Modesto to Silicon Valley.

Officials believe the best place to hold the high-profile case would be at the courthouse on Homestead Road in downtown Santa Clara. The courtroom currently occupied by Judge Robert Baines seats 71 people in the audience and the courthouse has ample parking, according to Superior Court spokeswoman Debra Hodges.

Currently the courtroom is hosting a lengthy civil trial brought by former IBM employees against the computer giant. That trial is expected to conclude in March. If the Peterson trial begins before the IBM trial concludes the preliminary stages of the trial would most likely be heard at the Hall of Justice in San Jose, according to Hodges.

If San Mateo the final destination, an empty high school in San Bruno would likely be the trial's location.

"It's all set up," said Bob Arnold, associate superintendent of the San Mateo Union High School District. "It's been used for trials on a number of occasions. It has everything, a judge's chambers, a lawyers' area, everything."

Alameda County Assistant District Attorney James Anderson told the Oakland Tribune that Stanislaus County has sent people to Oakland for death penalty trials before; in one such case, four gang members were convicted of murder and two of them later were sentenced to death.

But Anderson said there may be some logistical problems because four capital trials were already in progress or soon will be underway in Alameda County......

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Four California counties have said they can take on the Scott Peterson double-murder trial without undue burden: Santa Clara, Alameda, San Mateo and Orange, according to a court statement released Tuesday.

Stanislaus County Judge Al Girolami, who ruled last week that Peterson's trial must be moved from Modesto, will decide the location Tuesday after the prosecution and defense make their cases for the best locale.

Peterson, 31, is accused of killing his pregnant wife, Laci Peterson, and their unborn son in December 2002. The case generated so much publicity and public outcry that Girolami ruled Peterson would have a better chance of a fair trial if it was moved out of Modesto.

Girolami said last week that Santa Clara County was his top choice, followed by San Mateo and Alameda counties. Girolami said he wants the trial within driving distance of Modesto.

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Peterson judge favors Santa Clara County for trial ALAMEDA, SAN MATEO AND ORANGE COUNTIES ALSO POSSIBILITIES

Four California counties surveyed by the state have said they can take on the Scott Peterson double-murder trial without undue burden: Santa Clara, Alameda, San Mateo and Orange, according to a court statement released today.

Stanislaus County Judge Al Girolami, who ruled last week that Peterson's trial must be moved from Modesto, will decide the final location on Tuesday after the prosecution and defense make their cases that day for their favorite locale.

Peterson, 31, is accused of murdering his pregnant wife, Laci, and their unborn son in December 2003. The case generated so much publicity and public outcry, Girolami ruled that Peterson would have a better chance of a fair trial if it was moved out of Modesto.

Girolami told both sides last week that Santa Clara County was his top choice, followed by San Mateo and Alameda. Orange County is an unlikely venue because Girolami already rebuked a bid from Peterson's lawyer to move the trial to Los Angeles. Girolami said he wants the trial within driving distance of Modesto.

The Judicial Council of California, made up of California judges, surveyed a number of counties to determine ......

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SACRAMENTO - Lawmakers want to tighten guidelines for reimbursing counties for high-profile murder cases after a proposed subsidy for the Scott Peterson case triggered questions about exploding costs.

By 2005, the state will have spent almost $100 million from a fund giving prosecutors from smaller and medium-size counties virtually unlimited resources to put away some of the state's most infamous serial killers and murderers.

With the state's financial crunch, lawmakers are taking a tougher look at the rarely scrutinized program.

The program was established in 1961 and grew rapidly in the '90s, when lawmakers began carving out pieces of the budget to pay for certain murder cases, maneuvering around cost-control rules.

But the pipeline might be drying up as Modesto-area legislators work on a guaranteed subsidy for the Modesto Police Department and the Stanislaus County District Attorney's Office to cover costs of the Peterson case.

"There are too many questions with the way the existing system works," said Assembly Appropriations Committee Chairman Darryl Steinberg, D-Sacramento. He stopped an effort last year to subsidize the Peterson case and has called for a review of the program.

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Lawyers for Scott Peterson will attempt to persuade a Stanislaus County judge Wednesday that an order holding the accused killer on murder charges was wrongfully issued.

In their request to set aside the preliminary hearing order, defense attorneys are expected to argue that Modesto police botched their investigation of the disappearance and slaying of Peterson's wife, Laci Peterson.

Los Angeles attorney Mark Geragos said in a motion filed Dec. 22 that police and prosecutors ignored evidence exonerating Peterson of two murder counts. He called prosecutor's presentation of evidence at a November preliminary hearing a "shabby showing."

The procedure, known as a 995 motion, attacks the legitimacy of the holding order, which Judge Al Girolami issued Nov. 18 after deciding there was enough evidence to show that Peterson probably committed the crimes for which he was accused. The standard to hold someone for trial after a preliminary hearing is far lower than guilt beyond a reasonable doubt, which is required for a conviction.

Stanislaus County Judge Marie Silveira has been assigned to hear the request. If the motion is denied, the case moves forward as scheduled. If Silveira grants the motion, Peterson could be released from jail, an unlikely prospect. Prosecutors would then most likely file the charges again.

Prosecutors also could ask Silveira to send the case back to Girolami for further testimony or hear witnesses herself to correct minor errors in the preliminary hearing record.

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Four counties have offered to host the murder trial of Scott Peterson in the killings of his wife and unborn son, including three in the San Francisco Bay area preferred by the judge in the case, court officials said Tuesday.

Alameda, San Mateo and Santa Clara counties in Northern California and Orange County in Southern California are possible contenders for the trial that is expected to last five months, including jury selection, said Michael Tozzi, the executive officer of Stanislaus County Superior Court.

Judge Al Girolami will hold a hearing next Tuesday to consider where the case should be moved.

On Thursday, Girolami ruled that the extensive news coverage of the killing required him to move the case out of Laci Peterson's hometown to ensure that her husband gets a fair trial.

His wife was eight months pregnant when she was reported missing from their Modesto home on Christmas Eve 2002. The bodies of the mother-to-be and the fetus of the boy she was carrying washed ashore in San Francisco Bay four months later, two miles from where Scott Peterson said he was fishing the day she vanished.

The judge said he wants to hold the case within driving distance of Modesto to accommodate .......

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Associated Press photo Stanislaus County Superior Court Judge Al Girolami ruled last week that the Scott Peterson trial should be moved. Alameda, San Mateo, Santa Clara and Orange counties are possibilities.

MODESTO - A university investigation into a faked survey scandal involving the Scott Peterson double-murder case may last several weeks or months, President Marvalene Hughes said Tuesday.

A preliminary inquiry launched Thursday at California State University, Stanislaus, which had been predicted to take a week, has evolved into the full-blown investigation, Hughes said.

“I want the community to have the patience that is needed in order to investigate this case thoroughly and appropriately,” she said.

Judge Al Girolami cited the 10-county survey, overseen by Professor Stephen Schoenthaler, in a decision Thursday to move the Peterson trial out of Modesto. Girolami didn’t know about the allegedly falsified survey data until later that day.

Scott Peterson, 31, is charged with killing his pregnant wife, Laci, and their unborn son, Conner. Prosecutors are seeking the death penalty.

•Three Bay Area counties could handle Scott Peterson’s double-murder case, administrators of California’s court system said Tuesday. Officials also added a fourth possibility: Orange County in Southern California.

The Administrative Office of the Courts, which assists trial courts when a change of venue is ordered, said Alameda, San Mateo, Santa Clara and Orange counties would not be unduly burdened if they took the case.

• Another criminal justice student came forward to The Bee, bringing to nine the number who have admitted claimed fabricating survey responses. All said they were pressed for time during finals and worried about telephone bills because they were required to make dozens of lengthy, long-distance calls with their own phones.

• A national association of pollsters issued a rare official statement, calling the survey a disgrace if the allegations are true.

• Another judge extended until Feb. 10 the authority of Sharon Rocha over the estate of her daughter, Laci Peterson.

Schoenthaler continues to teach a course during the current winter term ending Feb. 4, university spokesman Don Hansen said, and is expected to teach other classes when spring semester begins Feb. 16. ...........

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MODESTO, Calif. -- A survey scandal in the Scott Peterson case will delay another murder trial in Fresno County whose defendant - an alleged Muslim terrorist - relied on the same survey expert.

Also Monday, the leader of a national surveyors' association condemned the supervision of the Peterson poll.

But the defendant's attorney said Monday that he will seek a delay of "at least several weeks" while the Peterson poll is sorted out.

"We're looking into what's happening in Stanislaus County right now, as it might affect our case," said Peter Jones, a deputy public defender in Fresno County. He represents Ramadan Abdur-Rauf Abdullah, who has pleaded innocent by reason of insanity in the slaying of a deputy sheriff.

Last week, seven of Schoenthaler's fall semester students said they falsified all or part of the surveys that the professor required the students to submit for 20 percent of their grades. Schoenthaler compiled the data and concluded that unbiased jurors were not likely to be found in Stanislaus County.

An eighth student came forward to The Bee during the weekend. Prosecutors have made a public appeal for the students to contact them as well.

Thursday, Superior Court Judge Al Girolami - unaware that some of the polling was fabricated - cited the survey in his decision to move Peterson's trial, probably to the Bay Area............

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A survey scandal in the Scott Peterson case will delay a murder trial in Fresno County whose defendant -- an alleged Muslim terrorist -- relied on the same survey expert.

Also Monday, the leader of a national surveyors' association condemned the supervision of the Peterson poll.

Stephen Schoenthaler, a criminology professor at California State University, Stanislaus, is scheduled to testify Friday in Fresno regarding a change-of-venue survey that he compiled for a murder case there. But the defendant's attorney said Monday that he will seek a delay of "at least several weeks" while the Peterson poll is sorted out.

Last week, seven of Schoenthaler's fall semester students said they falsified all or part of the surveys that the professor required the students to submit for 20 percent of their grade. Schoenthaler compiled the data and concluded that unbiased jurors were not likely to be found in Stanislaus County.

An eighth student came forward to The Bee during the weekend. Prosecutors have made a public appeal for the students to contact them, as well.

Thursday, Superior Court Judge Al Girolami cited the survey in his decision to move Peterson's trial, probably to the Bay Area.

Peterson, 31, is charged with killing his pregnant wife, Laci, and their unborn son. Prosecutors ........

I just watched part of that clip..trying to watch CTV at the same time.
Boy, did you see the "killer" looks that Snott was giving the Pros.?? No yucking it up today
Psycic says that Snott ABSOLUTELY killed Laci...he has hit her before, there was a fight and he hit her, says LE should check the countertop because Laci's head hit the counter.
Countertop chipped. (?) She said there was not alot of blood.
Hope they post transcritps of this.

Also, I believe she said the blow to the head didn't kill her, caused her to black out, and was later strangled. LE should check both the chip to the counter top and her skull.

Re: Chandra Levy ... Paraphrasing: The "limo driver" and two others that she didn't know killed her. GC didn't ask them to kill her but to "take care of it."

did you see any of the court hearing today? Gads, you should watch Scott Peterson's expressions, and of what you think he might be thinking when the Prosecution was talking on discharging the charges.... Like, I would like to really beat you up, until he then got into the finding of Laci and Conner at the Marina, then I thought I could almost see Scott break with sarrow! Now you can see just where Geragos is going with his, why scott is not guilty crap! And, possible tainting the new jury pool to be selected on his crap he spoke of at this hearing because of change of venue. --- Okay, Stanislaus people didn't buy the cult, lets see if other county folks could be dooped enough to swallow it!

47 posted on 01/14/2004 2:53:28 PM PST by runningbear (Lurkers beware, Freeping is public opinions based on facts, theories, and news online.......)

48 posted on 01/14/2004 2:53:58 PM PST by runningbear (Lurkers beware, Freeping is public opinions based on facts, theories, and news online.......)

49 posted on 01/14/2004 2:54:54 PM PST by runningbear (Lurkers beware, Freeping is public opinions based on facts, theories, and news online.......)

Listening to her was very chilling...
I just watched the rest of the clip from today...
Snotty- clenched jaw, lips tight, closing eyes hard. Every time he looked over to the Prosecutor, he had those black doll eyes...he looks evil!

Geragross...is just a joke, almost hysterical with his argument.

Geraross misspoke when he said the coroner said Connor could have been anywhere from 3 to 7 weeks past the gestation period that Laci was at....talking heads said that the coroner said 1 to 7, and this is not an exact science. The way MG was arguing this today made me believe that he is banking on that theory while mistaking the facts at the same time...trying to plant a seed to taint the pool??? IMO his misspeak was purposeful. He is much to expensive an attorney to not get the facts straight.

Those wicked, steely eyes leering at the prosecution ... left me thinking how he will hold up to the jury during the trial ... without medication.

MG may be an expensive, high-profile attorney but that doesn't make him good. On a limb, I'll suggest MG loses the SP case and later, if he continues to defend, enters a plea in the MJ case.

They already are stonewalling!! Did you see that Lawyer this morning for the "professor"??? What an absolute Ass. Also, Distasto was FANTASTIC this monring. It's the first time I have seen him let loose and get aggressive. I LIKED IT. Geragos is attempting to say that the baby was 7 weeks older than when laci went missing.!! I think that's his NEW Defense. What a blowhard. Peterson didn't look so smug this morning.

Scott Peterson (news - web sites), who is facing charges in the killings of his wife and unborn son, listens as prosecutor Joseph Distaso responds to defense attorney Mark Geragos's reasoning to dismiss the case during a hearing, Wednesday morning, Jan. 14, 2004, at the Stanislaus County Superior Court in Modesto, Calif.

You're right.

It looks like the defense is going to be that the baby was older than 8 mos., and the cops are prudes, going after a guy who had an affair.

Notice how he kept talking about the baby this and the baby that? I bet anywhere else he would be talking about a fetus, or pregnancy tissue.

He's got nothing!

Pinz

BTW, anyone else notice that Scott either has a late case of acne, or his herpes is acting up? He had several scabs on his face today.

Pinz

See my post 51 Pinz...I agree with you and CO. And he mis- quoted the coroner about the gestation.
PS..Little man and I have seen Return of the King 4 times already! He wants to go for a fifth time on Mon...we are off for MLK BD. I told him he has to go with friends,..I loved it too, but I don't care to sit that long again! ;o)

Orange County is obviously easier for the Peterson family and a disadvantage for Laci's family. Too bad, that doesn't seem right, but maybe this is a case of a judge trying to too hard to be fair.

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