REDWOOD CITY, Calif. — Scott Peterson's lawyer acknowledged Tuesday that his client was "a 14-carat a--hole" for cheating on his pregnant wife, but urged jurors to set aside their disgust and focus on what he said were reasonable interpretations of the circumstantial evidence against him.
In his closing argument, defense attorney Mark Geragos said prosecutors painted the fertilizer salesman as "the biggest jerk to walk the face of the earth" in an effort to distract the jury from tenuous evidence linking him to the murders of Laci Peterson and the couple's unborn son.
"They hope you'll say, 'They may not have the evidence, but I hate this guy,'" Geragos told the panel. "The only thing they are banking on is that you are going to hate him, and if you hate him, you are going to suspend rationality."
Peterson was conducting an affair with massage therapist Amber Frey on Dec. 24, 2002, when his pregnant wife went missing. Geragos told the panel that the revelation of that infidelity caused police and his wife's relatives to see all his actions as suspicious.
Story continues ......
Is it just me, or does it sound bleak when the best thing a defense lawyer can say about you is that you're a 14 carat gold a$$h@le?????
Wonder how proud his parents are now....
Pinz
Go Brit and M. Barone!