By Ashley Robinson Scott Peterson, the California man convicted of murdering his pregnant wife, Laci Peterson, and their unborn son, Conner, remains in prison more than two decades after his trial. Although California’s highest court overturned his death sentence in 2020, it did not overturn the murder convictions. Peterson is now serving life without the possibility of parole, while lawyers with the Los Angeles Innocence Project continue to dispute the prosecution’s case. As of October 12, 2026, he has not been granted a new trial or released. A judge rejected his latest major challenge in April 2026.
Is Scott Peterson Still in Prison Right Now?
Yes. Scott Peterson remains incarcerated at Mule Creek State Prison in Ione, California. He is serving life without the possibility of parole for the first-degree murder of Laci Peterson, along with a concurrent sentence for the second-degree murder of their unborn son, Conner.
He is no longer on death row. That change affected his punishment, not the jury’s guilty verdicts, and he has no scheduled release date.
Why Was Scott Peterson Sent to Prison?
Laci Peterson, who was eight months pregnant, disappeared from the couple’s home in Modesto on December 24, 2002. In April 2003, the remains of Laci and Conner were discovered along the shore of San Francisco Bay, near the area where Scott Peterson said he had gone fishing on the day she vanished.
Prosecutors argued that Peterson killed his wife and disposed of her body in the bay. Their case relied heavily on circumstantial evidence, including his movements, statements to investigators, secret relationship with Amber Frey and evidence associated with his fishing boat. Peterson has maintained that he did not commit the murders.
What Was Scott Peterson Convicted Of?
On November 12, 2004, a jury in San Mateo County convicted Peterson of first-degree murder in Laci’s death and second-degree murder in Conner’s death. The case had been moved from Stanislaus County because of extensive publicity.
Jurors subsequently recommended the death penalty. In March 2005, a judge formally sentenced Peterson to death, sending him to California’s death row at San Quentin. The convictions have remained legally valid despite years of appeals and post-conviction petitions.
Why Was Scott Peterson Taken Off Death Row?
On August 24, 2020, the California Supreme Court unanimously reversed his death sentence because the trial judge improperly dismissed prospective jurors based on their general opposition to capital punishment without adequately determining whether they could follow the law.
The court upheld the murder convictions. The prosecution later chose not to pursue another death-penalty proceeding, allowing the case to move to resentencing instead. Removing the death penalty did not mean Peterson had been found innocent.
How Long Is Scott Peterson’s Prison Sentence?
On December 8, 2021, Superior Court Judge Anne-Christine Massullo resentenced Peterson to life in prison without the possibility of parole for Laci’s murder and a concurrent term of 15 years to life for Conner’s murder.
Because the principal sentence excludes parole, Peterson cannot obtain release through an ordinary parole hearing after serving a minimum number of years. His prison term is not scheduled to end on a particular date.
Where Is Scott Peterson Being Held?
Peterson is held at Mule Creek State Prison, a California state correctional facility in Ione, Amador County. He was transferred there in October 2022 after spending many years at San Quentin, which had housed the state’s death row.
The move followed his resentencing and was a change in custody location, not a release or reduction of his life sentence.
Did Scott Peterson Get a New Trial?
No. His defense argued that a juror had concealed relevant personal experiences during jury selection, raising questions about impartiality. In December 2022, a California judge rejected his request for a new trial based on that alleged misconduct.
Further litigation has continued, but no court has ordered a retrial of the murders. Peterson’s statements of innocence and his lawyers’ allegations are separate from what the courts have established.
What Is the Los Angeles Innocence Project’s Role?
The Los Angeles Innocence Project began representing Peterson in 2024 and has sought forensic testing, records and additional review of the original investigation. It argues that evidence concerning a nearby burglary, possible alternative suspects and certain scientific conclusions deserves renewed scrutiny.
This organization is separate from the nationally known New York-based Innocence Project. Prosecutors have contested the defense’s theories and maintain that the convictions were supported by the trial evidence.
Was New DNA Testing Allowed?
In May 2024, Judge Elizabeth Hill permitted renewed DNA testing on one item: a strip of duct tape found on Laci Peterson’s clothing. She denied requests to test most of the other items, including material the defense linked to a burned-out van and a mattress.
The limited testing order was not an exoneration. Reported results have not produced a publicly confirmed court finding overturning the convictions, and the defense has continued to seek other forms of relief.
What Did the April 2026 Court Ruling Decide?
On April 27, 2026, San Mateo County Superior Court Judge Elizabeth Hill denied Peterson’s third habeas corpus petition, which had been filed in August 2025 and raised 14 claims. The court found the claims procedurally barred, without merit, or both. It did not accept the petition’s arguments as sufficient to establish a basis for overturning the convictions.
The Los Angeles Innocence Project disagreed with the ruling and announced on April 28 that it intended to seek review in a higher court. A plan to appeal, however, does not reverse a judgment or require a prisoner’s release.
Could Scott Peterson Ever Be Released?
Peterson has no ordinary parole route under his current life-without-parole sentence. His legal position could change only through an effective court order granting relief from the convictions or sentence, or another extraordinary legal mechanism such as executive clemency.
As of October 12, 2026, none of those outcomes has occurred. Peterson remains at Mule Creek State Prison, his two murder convictions stand, and the April 2026 rejection of his latest petition remains a major setback to his effort to obtain a new trial.
Olivia Wilson