by Steven Ertelt
LifeNews.com Editor
December 13, 2004
Redwood
City, CA (LifeNews.com) -- In a case that focused the nation's attention
on violence against pregnant women, jurors in the Scott Peterson double
murder trial sentenced him to the death penalty for the deaths of his
wife Laci and unborn child Conner.
According to news reports, Peterson clenched his jaw when the decision was announced but showed no other emotion.
Jurors reached a decision after nearly 12 hours of deliberations over the course of three days. They spent more time discussing the sentencing phase of the trial than they did in determining whether they thought Peterson was guilty.
Judge Alfred Delucchi will officially sentence Peterson on February 25 and can choose to lower the sentence to life in prison if the jury gives him the death penalty. However, court observers say that kind of change is rare.
The decision is just the beginning for Peterson. Appeals in death penalty cases in California can last for decades before ultimately being resolved.
Last month, the same jury of six men and six women found Peterson guilty of first degree murder in the death of Laci Peterson and second degree murder in the death of their unborn child Conner.
In closing arguments, both the defense and prosecution made their case.
Defense attorney Pat Harris told the jury Peterson "has a lot of good in him" and would likely help others in prison.
"There's an opportunity to make something out of a life that has essentially gone wrong, a chance to see that others benefit from the positive part of Scott Peterson, some chance for him to do some good for the rest of his life," Harris said, according to a CNN report.
Meanwhile, prosecutors said Peterson would enjoy something Laci and Conner don't -- life.
"If you have life, he gets to sit in a cell, read a book, write letters; he gets to have life," prosecutor David Harris said. "All the things that Laci and Conner would love to do, all the things that Laci's family would love to be able to share with Laci and Conner."
The case has drawn national attention to the plight of pregnant women who have suffered from acts of violence.
Most often, a husband or boyfriend wants his partner to have an abortion. When she refuses, many attackers have cited that as the reason for the assault.
Spurned by the epidemic, Congress and many state legislatures have enacted unborn victims laws that charge criminals with two crimes when they attack a pregnant woman and kill or injure her unborn child.
