shaaron anderson: i miss her smile and her laughter. i miss everything about her. it's more difficult to speak in public about it now. laughter. i miss everything about her. >> it is more difficult to speak in public about it now. >> the news swept the nation when she vanished, laci peterson, the beaming young mom to be. >> please, please let her come

home to us. >> prosecutors speak out in an in-depth television interview. >> you put so much of your life into it that it stays with you. >> laci's husband, finally hear the story he told. his rarely seen police interrogation. >> you have no idea of where laci is? >> no, i do not. >> we couldn't find anything wrong with the guy. >> he was that charming. >> and surprising details from the other woman who helped to uncover the truth. it still affects me emotionally. did scott peterson kill his wife? >> i do not believe he did. >> who else could have done it? >> i am glad you asked that question. >> once upon a time in a small california city lived a sweet

pregnant woman with a radiant smile and outside family hardly anyone knew her name. >>--my daughter's been missing since this morning. she is eight months pregnant. >> she would never know how famous the name of hers would become. >> would never know that a curious, sympathetic puzzled nation had cast an eye her way. laci peterson. she was 27 years old. and on the night before christmas she was gone. >> laci, if you are out there and can hear and see us, we love you. and we are searching. we are looking. >> it hit something, something in the air. that name. that smile. that mystery. impossible to put down. >> whoever has her, please,

please, please let her go and bring her back to us. >> we love her so much and want her back. please. >> and then there was him, the husband. the inscrutable scott peterson. >> i really don't care what people think of me as long as it keeps laci's picture and tip line in the media. >> before our eyes he would morph from a faithful husband who loved his wife to an object of suspicion and outrage. such a circus the whole thing seemed to be. but for all of the noise, all of the breathless coverage, the hours of tv and the acres of tabloids, there was and is a story never completely told. a story the prosecutors told "dateline" first. >> what do you think of scott peterson? >> he is a very unusual person. he is clearly very--

i think he is very smart. i think he thinks he is very smart. >> the story that the detectives saw firsthand. >> when someone is in a position like him and they didn't do it, usually they will say take blood. take a polygraph. scott would not do that. he would only go to a point. he was steve mcqueen cool. >> the story of what happened to her too, the other woman whose name was thrust into a cultural moment. amber fry. >> what does a saga like that do to a person's life? >> i would say from day one it completely changed my life. >> and the story told by a frustrated ex journalist, convinced the cops, prosecutors, the public got it all wrong. >> did scott peterson kill his wife? >> i do not believe he did. >> a video we found buried in

the court archives. >> you are telling me that you have no idea of where laci is. >> no, i do not. >> scott peterson talking to a detective hours after sounding the alarm, laci was missing. but before we get there we will begin here with laci peterson's mother. sharon, surrounded, fortified really by laci's best friends. stacey boyers, lori ellsworth and renee tomlinson. >> they seem to make you feel cheerful. >> they do. they help a lot. i am glad you are here. >> it is tough still. >> it is tough. >> perhaps, harder than ever to talk about it she said. to talk about her long dead daughter whose case so captivated the country. >> there are people growing up who probably don't remember or never knew about laci peterson.

tell me about laci. >> i moved in the third grade and i knew nobody. she was one of the first people i met. there was no not meeting her. >> you get the idea. big personality. >> it just makes you want to whistle. >> she made everybody laugh and welcome, just with a smile. she could smile and you would know that is the girl you will be spending the rest of the night talking to or listening to. maybe not talking so much. she was hard to get a word in edge wise. >> talkative, smart, tenacious. the person that went for what she wanted the way that she did for scott peterson. >> how did laci meet scott? >> at a cafe where scott worked. >> or saw him there and just like that gave a waiter her phone number to pass on to scott. >> she wasn't bashful. >> and laci's mother, liked

scott. liked him a lot. >> very charming, polite. perfect gentleman. >> bringing roses? that sort of thing? >> he would have a dozen roses for laci and a dozen for me. of course i was impressed. >> the courtship was like that, old fashioned in a good way. >> he asked our permission to marry laci. we gave him our permission. >> there was a big wedding in the certainly of 97. scott was a fertilizer salesman in modesto and laci a substitute teacher. his job took him on the road a lot. but they were happy. >> did the three of you get to know the two of them together much? >> i thought he was a great guy. she was always happy. >> it was a joke of, gosh--does he have a brother? >> though laci struggled to get pregnant after nearly five years of marriage, that came too. >> the day after my baby shower that she threw for me.

she took a pregnancy test and she called everybody very early. very early the next morning. >> soon enough, the petersons learned they were having a boy and readied the nursery and decided to name him conor. laci was eight months pregnant by christmas. the last christmas before conor was due. >> you were supposed to have a christmas eve dinner, is that right? >> yes. she was having christmas day. i was having christmas eve. that is when he called. close to 6:15 he called and asked if laci was with me. i said she is not here. he said well, she is missing. >> that was the beginning. christmas eve, 2002. laci peterson with her bright smile was nowhere to be found. coming up, the missing mom becomes national news. >> there is a $500,000 reward. >> we thought somebody kidnapped her. >> i was absolutely panicked.

>> the first clues? her dog dragging it's leash, the neighbors robbed, husband asking for help. >> did he seem frantic or worried? >> little bit. >> when "dateline" continues. >> when "dateline" continues >> when "dateline" continues ( ♪♪ ) and with once-daily trelegy, it can still be beautiful. because with 3 medicines in 1 inhaler, trelegy keeps my airways open for a full 24 hours and prevents future flare-ups. trelegy also improves lung function, so i can breathe more freely all day and night. trelegy won't replace a rescue inhaler for sudden breathing problems. tell your doctor if you have a heart condition or high blood pressure before taking it. do not take trelegy more than prescribed. trelegy may increase your risk of thrush, pneumonia, and osteoporosis. call your doctor if worsened breathing, chest pain, mouth or tongue swelling, problems urinating, vision changes, or eye pain occur. ♪ what a wonderful world ♪ [laughing]

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try new robitussin lozenges with real medicine and find your voice. you know? we really need to work on your people skills. >>what was it about this woman, keith morrison : what was it about this woman, and find your voice. this man, this case, that so quickly gripped the nation? this man, this case that so quickly gripped the nation? was it her smile? it was because it happened christmas eve. subject for a p. h. d. thesis now. at the beginning it was like 1,000 other such cases, a stomach flipping phone call. she is missing. i've has a child missing for 10mins. something may have happened here it is so powerful that it takes over everything. >> it does. it does.

she remembers saying check with the neighbors. call laci's friends. >> we all got a call. i said no. she is like she is missing. >> did he seem frantic or worried? >> little bit. >> worried enough to ask for their help. sharon -- long time boyfriend called the cops. golfing, on a cold christmas eve? odd but okay. he came home to find the dog in the yard wearing a leash. >> because of the leash on the dog. >> yes. we walked together in the park before. i was absolutely panicked i was running around. i was looking at trash cans. i was screaming her name.

they spent the early hours looking for missing posters. >> we had flyers and tape and everything. >> put make up on. that was the last thing. >> yeah. >> didn't have christmas. >> yeah. that is where i am going to be. >> pretty soon the whole town seemed to be looking for laci peterson. >> please if there's anyone out there help bring her home. >> the police were searching too. full out how long did the search go on? >> all night and then all the next day. >> al brocchini, the first detective on the case watched as searchers scoured the area.

they were everywhere here, right. >> yeah. they did a grid search meaning they would have been in eye contact and walked the whole area. >> his partner at the time had a feeling from the start. laci peterson missing was not going to end well. >> she didn't leave an at risk lifestyle. she wasn't out two-timing him or anything like that. she was a girl that was ecstatic from everything that i learned about her, being a mother. >> she wasn't someone that would just walk away but in the anxiety, hope. an idea formed that somehow it might turn out all right. >> we were going to find her. i thought somebody kidnapped her. that is what i thought.

>> here is lori, renee and stacey. along with another friend in january 2003. >> there is a $500,000 reward you know for her and the baby's safe return. just take that. take the money. give us laci back. >> in the first day an exhausted sharon, ex-husband laci's father dennis beside her went on tv and pleaded with a kidnapper. >> i would like to send a message out there that whoever has her please, please, please let her go. bring her back. >> early on there were clues the cops uncovered that made kidnapping seemed plausible. remember the couple's dog with the leash attached. scott found it in the backyard a neighbor said she saw the peterson's dog wandering the streets earlier that day. maybe laci was kidnapped walking the dog. just about the time laci disappeared there was a burglary across the street. did she witness a crime? did burglars take her?

the police wanted to know. >> a reward for information for the identity of the person responsible for the burglary. >> didn't take long. soon enough one of them showed up in a tv interview. >> police agreed. no connection to laci. they would have kept digging. >> we are looking at the sex registees and parolees. people with history of abductions, kidnappings. we had some. we were clearing those guys. we were interviewing them and verifying the alibis. >> they were not saying that homicide detectives had other

suspicions. >> we are certainly looking at scott first, scott is the closest to laci. >> that is behind the scenes. in front of the camera the official police statements were more circumspect. >> we have to understand what the other possibilities are. the possibilities are that she could be, you know, a victim of foul play. >> those closest to laci were having trouble grappling with the whole idea of foul play. back then in 2003, even sharon told us impossible. >> they have no doubt he has nothing to do with her disappearance. >> it is a powerful thing, true belief. when it comes crashing down, my, my, my.

coming up, scott peterson down at the station, a rare look at his interrogation. >> was he okay with that? was there any hesitation? >> he agreed. >> didn't ask for an attorney? >> no. didn't ask for an attorney. >> well, like that's a morning decision. >> is there something fishy about his story? >> he didn't know what he was fishing for or what bait he was using. >> when "dateline" continues. of relief from chest congestion and any type of cough, day or night. mucinex dm. it's comeback season. students... students of any age, from anywhere. using our technology to power different ways of learning. so when minds grow, opportunities follow. ♪ why choose between a longer life or quality of life? you deserve both.

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you will love migrating... the sun... the sand... [ thunder clap ] we're not gonna make it. are we? uncle dan! we're trying to get to jamaica. stay close and... everything will be all right. [ gulps ] >> it did not take long for the keith morrison : didnt take long for the laci peterson story to go wide, that face with smiling laci peterson story to go wide. that face was smiling out of magazines and television screens nationwide. friends and family desperate to get the story out talked to

anyone, everyone. they noticed one person seemed to stay in the background, scott, grieving in private, his parents told us back in 2003. >> he is brave but devastated. >> he would not be a good spokesman. >> there was one camera scott couldn't shy away from. at the police station, in this rarely seen video, you can watch scott, hear his words. does he seem like a worried, frantic husband? you will see. >> tell me about the morning. >> okay. i don't know what time we got up. probably--laci got up and went and i assume she had breakfast. --

>> didn't ask for an attorney. i wasn't planning on arresting him. i don't have to do that. i know whatever he told me i am taking him home. don't have to talk to me if you don't want to. >> and then she was going to the store to buy christmas morning breakfast. and that was going to be an involved prep. so that was her afternoon, prepping the breakfast and she was going to make cookies for tonight. >> as he sat there, he was struck by how passive scott was, even as he revealed he didn't go golfing. >> when did you realize you were going to go fishing? >> well like that's a morning decision. >> morning decision -- >> go play golf at the club or go fishing. >> okay. >> seemed too cold to go play golf at the club. >> he said he drove to his

warehouse office a few miles away. >> you drove over to the shop. what did you do there? >> i assembled my mortiser, the woodworking tool to make tables. >> yeah. >> i just got that and so i assembled it. checked my e-mail. sent one e-mail. hooked the boat up and went. >> scott said he drove to the marina 90 miles away, parked his car and put his boat in the water. >> did you go very far? >> well, a couple of miles. i went north. found like a little island kind of deal there. island. had a bunch of trash on it. a big sign that said no landing. it looked like broken piers

around it. i assumed it would be a decent shallow area. >> did you troll? >> little bit. lot of the reason i went was just to get that boat in the water. >> details that sounded plausible enough, except to detective -- >> me and the officers. they were fisherman too. his pole is one you would use in a stream. his lures were jigs you would use in the delta. he didn't know what he was fishing for or what bait he was using and no gear that was meant to be fishing in the bay. >> he wondered why had scott bought a fishing license days before if he didn't know he was going to fish that day. >> there is a receipt dated december 20th when he bought his license. >> he said it was a last minute decision. >> that day. >> that didn't jibe. >> that doesn't jibe. >> the detective was skeptical

of scott's fishing story. >> why would you go 90 miles -- if all you are doing is that you want to try out the new boat and you live in modesto. i can tell you 20 places within 25 miles of here you can put the boat in the water and try it out. >> scott said he had proof, a parking receipt from the marina. >> here is my receipt to prove it was there. i fished that marina a lot of times. i got four or five on my dash board right now. i don't know what made him decide i will put it in my pocket in case i need it later. but he was ready, prepared. >> scott said that the fish were not biting that afternoon, and headed back to modesto and got home around 4:30 where he found the dog with the leash

attached, an unlocked backdoor and no laci. >>i grabbed some pizza from the fridge. >> took the box out. >> yeah. >> put them on the counter. grab some milk then jumped in the shower. >> he was calm as he spoke. calm, matter of fact. helpful. >> were you calling for laci? >> of course. >> but she wasn't home. >> no. assumed she was at her moms. >> then you called over to her moms. had they heard from her? >> no. >> he answers the questions but does not do more than that, right? is that fair to say? >> he has got an answer. he does not elaborate or get emotional. >> which investigators thought, at the time, wasn't necessarily a good thing. >> he told me, oh, that is concerning. i get home, and her car is there, and the dog is running around on the leash, you know,

the door is unlocked, and her purse this here, and that is really concerning me, but let me take my clothes off and wash them, and let me eat some pizza, and take a shower before i even try to figure out what is going on here. that is concerning. that was concerning to me. >> and then the detective asked the question that soon everyone would be asking. >> so, what you're telling me, scott, is there's no -- you have no idea where laci is? >> none. >> most people, in that situation, they're going to have a lot of questions for you. are you guys doing this? i've heard of this, why don't you do this? we've got that from sharon, and we've got that from ron we've got that from laci's friends. everybody had an interest in trying to get us to go faster. >> everybody, that is, but scott. now why, they wondered, would that be? coming up -- >> hey, beautiful, i just left a message at home. >> when i listened to that, i

thought, if he was leaving this recording for us to hear, -- >> scott, under scrutiny. >> i was afraid to say it out loud he'd been involved with her disappearance. >> when "dateline" continues. my patients say you know doc, it really works. what can you do with sensitive skin? ♪♪ cetaphil gentle skin cleanser does more than clean. it actually protects skin by keeping it hydrated. so you're always ready for the unexpected. cetaphil. we do skin. you do you. hey, you should try new robitussin honey medi-soothers for long-lasting cough and sore throat relief. try new robitussin lozenges with real medicine and find your voice. you know? we really need to work on your people skills. want the power of 5 serum benefits in 1? new olay super serum activates on skin to hydrate, smooth, visibly firm, brighten,

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keith morrison : a week after laci peterson so, your dermatologist can help you get clear. disappeared they had a vigil. >> a week after laci peterson stacey boyers: everyone coming together and praying just helps, helps you feel like youre doing something. keith morrison : candles and prayers and tears and though disappeared they had a vigil.

everyone coming together and praying makes you feel--candles and prayers and tears. though much of modesto was here, not a single person understood, not yet and not for a while why the gathering would become a defining moment. it looked like he might have shed a tear or two, he seemed to be avoiding laci's family and friends. what about the vigil? >> he wasnt on the stage, he was on the phone. >> sharon would not know for a long time the truth about scott's phone call that night. it was that night sharon first allowed her mind to go to that very dark place. >> it was new year's eve when i started to go back and forth. i thought could he be involved

with her disappearance. >> sharon was a frantic mess and she looked at him and he just seemed so detached somehow. >> never once did he say my god, where is laci. i hope she is okay. >> you were feeling that panic. even as you talk about it we could see a little bit of it left. >> yes. >> he didn't have that. >> he didn't have it. i made out a list of did or didn't here. >> she didn't want to believe it and didn't want to go there so she didn't. but the detectives were trained to go there and they turned over everything scott said did and didn't do and wondered why. a fake feeling from the

beginning, like the voicemail he left laci.when he drove home from the -- >> hey beautiful, i just left you a message at home. >> i thought no. this does not sound right. married five years. she's pregnant. talking to her like he is on their third date. the tone to it that he was leaving the recording for us to hear so that he would appear to us as a devoted husband and not somebody involved in foul play. >> of course, it could be he was just a romantic guy. >>and there was this, under the circumstances the day laci disappeared why was he obsessively fastidius when they searched the pickup truck. >> he was worried about the wrong things. i open the door and it bangs into the land rover. i will hold this or move my truck. i wrote it in my police report.because i thought, thats weird. >> these were not hard facts of evidence, just a rising death

of suspicion like when did scott get a boat. >> he said he had taken his boat out. i said what boat? he didn't have a boat. >> scott said he knew about the boat. how could it be that sharon had no idea and that he recently bought a used 14-foot game fisher. i treated him like a husband. the husband of the missing person. but i had suspicions. i asked him to take me to the boat. >> late the first night the detective and scott went to scott's warehouse where he kept his boat.

>> you came here that night. >> that night. >> what did he tell you when you came here? and you wanted to look inside? >> he said there is no electricity. >> no lights which was a lie. to the detectives it all smelled bad, so they did the things that detectives do. they got a wiretap on scott's phone and they watched him constantly. sometimes they noticed he watched them too. >>i look at my side view mirror and scott. so i got out of the car and he said, hey, how. >> it was just odd as this was 16 days after laci desappeared. when searchers in the bay found something. >> sonar detected an object

underwater that could be a body. >> sharon froze, terrified. she still hoped laci was alive. listen to this recording. you can hear sharon's relief when she called to tell him wasn't laci. >> scott this is mom. it was a boat anchor. we knew it wasn't laci. i just want you to know. >> that is scott whistling in the background. he seems relieved too. just thought that, one you can be glad that it wasn't so easy. but for us seemed like he was happier -- >>it was more felt lucky that wasn't her, suggesting to us that we were looking in the right spot. >> and yet he seemed such a boy scout. no history of being abusive. they stewed in their suspicion, aware they had nothing on him. >> we couldnt find anything on this guys, --, i don't think he

had a traffic ticket. he was really the guy you wanted to marry your sister. we were waiting to see he wasn't a perfect guy. >> in one remarkable moment, they get that and more because of her. coming up, he was single and looking for the one. >> enter amber. >> did you think about wait a minute, i could make a life with this man? >> you know, i did. when dateline continues. really works. what can you do with sensitive skin? ( ♪♪ ) cetaphil moisturizing lotion hydrates for a full 48 hours. because a lot can happen in 48 hours. cetaphil. we do skin. you do you.

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call your doctor if worsened breathing, chest pain, mouth or tongue swelling, problems urinating, vision changes, or eye pain occur. ♪ what a wonderful world ♪ ask your doctor about once-daily trelegy for copd because breathing should be beautiful. hey, you should try new robitussin honey medi-soothers for long-lasting cough and sore throat relief. try new robitussin lozenges with real medicine and find your voice. you know? we really need to work on your people skills. >> october 2002, months before keith morrison : october 2002. months before laci peterson disappeared and a hundred miles laci peterson disappeared, 100 miles away in fresno, california, a woman named amber fryee got a phone call about a woman about a guy. >> i was doing really well getting my career started in massage therapy, single mother.

i was told about a great guy my friend wanted me to meet. >> so to set you up on a date. >> a blind date at first. i said okay. a little, like, i wonder who she sees as a good fit for me. >> he sounded perfect. >> she had said he had a good sense of humor, good-looking, had a career, he was single and looking for the one, like, soulmate. >> he was serious about this? >> yeah. >> his name? scott peterson. it was late november when they met in person and it was electric. >> we had a really great first

date, really good. >> you meet someone, you feel like there's no wall between the two of you. was it like that? >> yeah. >> was it like he was immediately attracted to you, you to him? >> when we met, we were chuckled about being pleasantly surprised at one another. i would say there is a mutual attraction. >> what did he tell you about himself? >> on our first date, he was telling me about his family, and plans he had upcoming, like thanksgiving, and fishing trips, and going to maine with his family, the cabin, he was planning to go to europe with some friends. >> he wooed her fast with strawberries and champagne. >> it was early, bright, and exciting? >> absolutely. >> he was eager to bond with amber's little girl. >> he was sweet with her, she was excited. we had planned a picnic and a little hike. she held both of our hands as we walked and was comfortable with him. >> must have been very sweet at

the time? >> it was. >> and it is not always you find a man who is comfortable with the idea of you having a child, or children? >> right. >> he bought them both gifts you brought groceries to the house, he made dinner, he was considered, carry, even in voice mail. >> hey, sweetheart, scott here. i'm on my way. driving to the gym here to do my weekly five minute workout. see how you're doing. i will try to give you a call tomorrow. bye. >> it was going really good. i was really excited. he was always complimenting, he would leave the best messages, and looking forward to seeing you. >> also perfect. scott never mentioned, of course, that he was married. his wife was laci, and he and laci were making a are nursery of his firstborn on his way. amber knew nothing of. that yet, something wasn't sitting right with her, she thought. why, when he called her, so often the sound of running

water in the background, as if he was masking the sound of the conversation? >> it was odd. why are you talking to me in the shower? he blew it off, like, it wasn't a big deal. >> early december. >> he called me one day saying he needed to talk to me and i could hear he was worried, something was going on. >> scott was contrite, said he had a confession to make. >> he apologized because he wasn't honest with me i'd ask if you would enter her been married, and that, in fact, he had lost his wife. this would be the first holidays without her. >> that's the expression he used, i lost my wife?

>> yes. he was crying, and just, you know, very emotional. >> it was a tender moment, september. she felt compassion for him. >> i thought, maybe she died of, you know, cancer, or in an accident. i mean, obviously, his words were obviously something recent or more recent. >> did you ask? >> i didn't ask. i didn't want to pry because he was so emotional. >> that secret off his chest, scott gave her a new cell phone number where she could reach him when he took a long planned trip to europe over christmas. that is -- >> if you still want to talk to me after, you know -- >> after i've told you this? >> right. so, like, yes, of course. >> did you start to think about, wait a minute, i could make a life with this man? >> you know, i did. >> yet, even here, december 14th, as they got ready for a christmas party with amber's friends, the little beast of doubt was worming its way into her mind. >> i was starting to feel that woman's intuition, something wasn't right. >> really? >> yes. >> he was in europe, he told,

or she should write to him at a post office box in modesto, but he had told her he lived in sacramento. why in modesto? why these odd questions she couldn't answer? she had a cop friend she called him, good he checkup on scott peterson from sacramento? a few days later, her friend called back. >> he'd said he found an article, and he was going to print it and bring it to me. i said, okay. >> that was december 29th, scott had left for your two days earlier, or so he said. >> amber read the article. >> i was in disbelief of what i am writing, because it sounds like him, fertilizer salesman, modesto. i don't think there was a full picture of him, but there was his truck that was in this article. >> so were these words,

pregnant and missing. >> i need this confirmed. i don't want to believe but i just read. >> turning your world upside down? >> absolutely. >> that is when amber called the modesto police. >> i reach a dispatcher, and i said, i have been dating this person. i am just -- i want to know if this is the same person. >> sure. >> she said, okay, okay. like, okay, it is, or, what? i gave his birth date, i gave his full name, and then, she says, okay. i said, okay, yes? she goes, yes. >> yes, amber scott peterson, and scott peterson with the missing wife, where one in the same. >> i remember crying. i don't know for how, along i was shaking, like, be adrenaline, and just the -- i was in shock. >> amber frye, who thought, maybe, she met the one, was in the middle of something terrible. >> coming up -- >> amber? >> we wanted to start recording calls. >> hushed conversations, hidden recordings, amber goes undercover. >> as soon as i plug in her little recorder, and i am

showing her, pushing the red button, the black but, in the phone rings. >> he called. >> hey, i'll be in paris tomorrow. i'm flying to normandy right now. hopefully the phone works better. >> i was shaking uncontrollably, there was -- i was so nervous, and scared. >> when "dateline" continues. our voice. you know? we really need to work on your people skills. what can you do with sensitive skin? ♪♪ cetaphil gentle skin cleanser does more than clean. it actually protects skin by keeping it hydrated. so you're always ready for the unexpected. cetaphil. we do skin. you do you. travel. there is nothing like it dancing is my passion. but with my moderate-to-severe eczema, it hasn't always been easy. i was constantly itching. whatever i was doing now, i'm staying ahead of my eczema there's a power inside all of us to live our passion.

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i'm a little anxious, i'm a little excited. i'm gonna be emotional, she's gonna be emotional, but it's gonna be so worth it. i love that i can give back to one of our customers. i hope you enjoy these amazing gifts. oh my goodness. oh, you guys. i know you like wrestling, so we got you some vip tickets. you have made an impact. so have you. for you guys to be out here doing something like this, >> in all fairness to the it restores a lot of faith in humanity.

keith morrison : in all fairness to the modesto police department, scrambling to manage that flood of tips about modesto police department, scrambling to manage that flood of tips about laci peterson, amber's phone call was a barely discernible ripple. >> did they call you back right away? >> no. >> so, the next day, she called again, and, looking over the dispatcher shoulder at just the right moment, was detective

burkini. >> i happened to be standing behind one of them, and ben was typing, i would see the name amber fryee, and she said, scott peterson's my boyfriend. >> you're seeing this? >> i'm seeing this, and i, go beds, are you talking to them? let me talk to her. >> before too long, the two detectives were in fresno, listening in person, to amber's story of scott's amherst courtship. >> it was like a script writer was writing this, and talented with the romance he was. >> i basically told them our hold relationship that we had been having and our conversationalist currently at the moment. >> he was over in europe

somewhere? >> right. you know, i think they, too, we're a little in disbelief, shaking their head. no, he is definitely in modesto. >> scott had been lying the whole time, elaborately. even called amber from a pay pony at the airport to say goodbye when he is supposedly left for europe so she would see the color i. d.. if ember hadn't known where scott really was, she sure knew a lot. >> she had a mental recall that was punctuated with wine corks and all sorts of memorabilia. >> that she saved? >> that she saved from the romance. >> the detectives asked, could she help them in their investigation?

>> at that point, i, said whatever is needed, i would cooperate with them because it wasn't about me at that point. there was a missing pregnant woman. >> true. >> you, know i've been having a relationship with her husband, unknowingly, he was married. >> we want to start recording calls. >> amber agreed, so they went right out and bought a portable recorder, and what do you know? >> as soon as i plug and her little recorder, and i'm showing her to push the red button and black but, in the phone rings. >> he called. >> oh, boy. >> amber? hey. are you there? >> i'm here. >> i can barely hear you. >> their expression, they were just like, i can't believe he's calling it right now.

>> hey, i'll be in paris tomorrow, i'm flying to normandy right now, and hopefully the phone works better. >> i was shaking uncontrollably, my fingers were just sweaty mess. i was fumbling because i was so, just, nervous, and scared. >> and so it began. for the next eight days, scott peterson pretended he was traveling in europe. amber fryee pretending she was still his girlfriend. the cops? they kept looking, bringing set dogs to berkeley, divers to the bay. laci's friends held that vigil, prayed. all the while, amber secretly recorded her conversations with scott, inwardly trembling. >> i was shaking, and trying to catch my breath, and calm down. there was too many nerves there, and i would pace back and forth. >> one of those calls, of course, she didn't know it at the time, was going to be notorious. >> new year's eve. >> the big one? >> yeah. >> coming up -- >> first of all, i met scott peterson november 20th, 2002. >> revealing the truth to the world. matzo amber fryee's firestorm. >> we thought it was best to get her up there, almost like exploding here on bomb. >> i was introduced to him, i was told he was not married. scott told me he was not married. we did have a romantic relationship. >> i had a panic attack, i couldn't breathe. i literally could not catch my breath. >> when "dateline" continues.

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don't take dovato if you're allergic to its ingredients or taking dofetilide. this can cause serious or life-threatening side effects. if you have a rash or allergic reaction symptoms, stop dovato and get medical help right away. serious or life-threatening lactic acid buildup and liver problems can occur. tell your doctor if you have kidney or liver problems or if you are pregnant, breastfeeding, or considering pregnancy. dovato may harm an unborn baby. most common side effects are headache, nausea, diarrhea, trouble sleeping, tiredness, and anxiety. detect this: i stay undetectable with fewer medicines. ask your doctor about switching to dovato. with fewer medicines. keith morrison (voiceover): continuing now with our story. laci peterson is missing. i was absolutely panicked. i thought somebody kidnapped her. keith morrison (voiceover): her husband is playing it cool. he was steve mcqueen cool. continuing now with our keith morrison (voiceover): but the woman story. laci peterson was missing. >> i was panicked. >> i thought somebody kidnapped

her. >> her husband is playing it cool. >> he was steve mcqueen cool. >> the woman he has been secretly seeing has turned the tables. >> i was shaking uncontrollably. >> soon, a discovery, and an arrest. prosecutors speak out in a rare television interview. >> there is something underneath the surface that is truly evil. >> amber fryee had been working with detectives covertly recording her conversations with scott peterson. in this one, scott told amber he was calling from a continent away, having a ball in paris. of course, it was a big way. >> amber, if you can hear me, it's new year's. >> i know! i can hear you. >> amber? >> i wish you could hear me. >> i'm near the eiffel tower, the new year celebration is

unreal. the crowd is huge. >> in fact, the crowd was huge, it just wasn't in paris. it was in modesto, and they weren't celebrating, scott called amber from the vigil for laci. the one where he made himself scarce while sharon and her friends pleaded for help, and scott called amber, inventing fine details of his trip like jogging on the cobblestones of europe. >> i think i should just run on the street, because these cobblestones are slippery. >> he worked at the time difference, for his phone calls. >> if you go to bed at nine, at 6:00 my time. >> he kept on wooing her, unaware of who was listening. >> can i tell you how wonderful you are? that's pretty easy to do. how thoughtful you are, and amazing. you know, i always call you and i tell you your special, and that's just not a big enough word for it. >> oh, very interesting, but --

>> what were you hoping for from those recorded conversations that you didn't get? >> of course, ideally, i was hoping he would say, no, i murdered my wife, i dumped her in the bay, let's run off to europe. that wasn't going to happen. >> so, detectives went right at it. they asked scott to come down to the police department again, and without telling him where they got, it they showed him a fax of a photo of himself with amber at the christmas party. >> of course, he lies when he is confronted. >> prosecutor. >> he sees the picture within himself with amber and says, that's not me. >> was it clearly him? >> it was. >> if scott suspected the detectives had somehow found out about amber, he didn't let on, and he kept calling her, and she kept recording. he started testing her with questions. >> did you see that news on paris? >> no i didn't, actually. >> there was a bomb that exploded.

>> and i was like, what bombing? there was another time he had asked if i had seen the article on the monarch butterflies that are -- and i said, no, i gathered right away he was asking because these are, in fact, something that was in the paper, possibly? >> right. >> if i was looking at the news. >> to find out, in other words, if she knew about laci. then, on january 6th, 13 days after laci disappeared, scott told amber himself. >> you haven't been watching the news, obviously. >> no. >> i have not been traveling during the last couple of weeks. my -- i've lied to you, that i've been traveling. >> okay. >> the girl i'm married to, her name is laci. then she disappeared just before christmas.

for the past two, weeks i've been in modesto with her family, and mine, searching for her. >> okay. >> she just disappeared, and no one knows. >> scott had no idea, of course, that amber happened to be in the police station when he offered that a big admission, or, that embers responding question was a huge deal, to both her and the cops. >> you came to me earlier in december, and told me that you lost your wife. what was that about? >> she is alive. >> what? >> she's alive. >> where -- she's alive? where? >> and modesto. >> and you came and told me this elaborate lie about her missing, and this tragedy, and that -- >> now. >> that this will be the first holidays without her?

>> sweetie, i never said -- amber -- >> yes? >> i -- got, i don't want to fight with you. you know that i -- i never said tragedy, or missing. >> oh, yes, you said you've lost your wife. >> no, that -- yes. >> obviously, without me saying much, but we were -- >> i said that i lost my wife. >> yes, you did. >> i did. and, yes -- >> how did you lose her then, before she was lost? explain that. >> there are different kinds of loss, amber. >> different kinds of loss? now, what did that mean? >> investigators built their case against scott. laci this family was in a world of pain. it was january, of 2003, and sharon was still gripping onto a slipping remnant of hope that her laci was still alive, was barely hanging on. the day after that new year's eve vigil, when scott walked into the house. >> i asked him, how are you

doing? and he said, you know, i'm doing okay. i just remembered, it was almost like i was pulling back from him, thinking, you're doing okay? what do you mean you're doing okay? >> sharon definitely wasn't doing okay. the cops, moving forward incrementally, needed more. >> police looking for laci peterson in modesto, california, want to verify her husband's alibi. >> modesto pd put out a bulletin, had anyone seen this truck, this boat, on christmas eve? they expanded their ground search to the foothills, the reservoirs, even mine shafts, and by mid january, police decided they needed to tell sharon about scott's affair. >> they said, hey, we've got information we need to let you know about on this, the best thing we could do is give it to you. >> they showed her the photo own amber's christmas party,

the one scott said wasn't him. >> i literally thought i was going to throw up, i stood up real fast be cause i wanted to get out of there. i wanted to get away from. them i didn't want to hear what they were saying. >> what mother would? >> i remember in my stomach just turning, and i just -- saying, just, crying, he didn't have to kill her. >> that changed everything you never thought about him? >> it did. >> detective wheeler told sharon about amber because rumors were in the air, the media is sniffing about, and getting close. >> we get to the office, reporter was right there. >> oh, boy. >> yeah. >> january 24th, local news showed up at embers workplace. national tabloids were not far behind. >> did you talk to them? >> no i, refused to talk to anybody. >> trapped in her office, she called detective mueller. that's when the modesto pd decided that, if amber story was going to break anyway, they would break it on their terms. >> we believe, at the time, it was best to get her up there,

almost like exploding your own bomb. >> real are sent to colleagues to fetch her with a statement all prepared. >> they were speeding back, in a sense, getting there. you know, having this statement written out, trying to read it a few times, so it's not to foreign. >> as they drove to modesto, headquarters gathered to the media, big news coming. >> we are waiting for modesto police to come out any moment and speak on developments on the laci peterson investigation. >> this is the moment when amber fryee burst like a deer in headlights on to the public stage. >> first of all, i met scott peterson november 20th, 2002. i was introduced to him, i was told he was not married. scott told me he was not married. we did have a romantic relationship. >> i had a panic attack, i couldn't breathe. i literally could not catch my breath. >> when i discovered he was

involved in a disappearance -- the laci peterson disappearance case, i immediately contacted the modesto police department. >> she spoke for just over a minute. >> i am very sorry for laci's family, and the pain that this has caused them. i pray for her safe return as well. >> and now everyone knew, and scott knew everyone knew. so, did he stop calling amber fryee? no. listen to this. >> i meant to say how brave you are. i'm really glad that you did that. >> it wasn't a matter of choice. >> what's that? >> it really wasn't a matter of choice. i was -- they were sticking out at my work all day. >> i know, but still, it was incredibly brave, and it just shows one amazing character you have. >> scott called to congratulate her, to thank her, very strange. the police were thinking amber as well. now, they had a nucleus, like

the day scott told amber he lost his wife, it was the very same day he bought the boat. coincidence? no, thought the police. had to be evidence of premeditation. the very existence of amber fryee changed everything, and revealed that many little beasts of doubt had been turning about in the minds of even scott's die hard supporters. >> after amber came forward, that is when they started to open up about the things they had been kind of hiding and holding back. >> people remembered things, like how scott once told someone he was hoping for infertility, that he seemed uncomfortable holding babies, that he didn't want to touch laci's pregnant stomach, he complained he was having a midlife crisis at age 30. now, when people thought about his story that laci walked her

dog, they remember it, she'd been too tired to do that, and they remembered the peculiar way he acted the night laci disappeared. >> we were standing in the driveway, i asked if he'd called his parents, he said no, i was trying to have a conversation with him, and he continued to just turn away for me. he would never look me in the eye. i had to keep following him around, trying to have visual contact with him. >> because scott peterson had something to hide. >> coming up -- >> i had a romantic relationship that was inappropriate. >> scott peterson goes public. when "dateline" continues. but this is my story. ( ♪♪ ) and with once-daily trelegy, it can still be beautiful. because with 3 medicines in 1 inhaler, trelegy keeps my airways open for a full 24 hours and prevents future flare-ups. trelegy also improves lung function, so i can breathe more freely all day and night. trelegy won't replace a rescue inhaler for sudden breathing problems. tell your doctor if you have a heart condition or high blood pressure before taking it. do not take trelegy more than prescribed.

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is to find laci and to bring her home to us. and only focuses to find lacian. i love my daughter so much, i miss her every minute of every day. >> on the same day that amber fryee told the world about her relationship with scott peterson. >> scott told me he was not married. >> laci's mother stood before the cameras as well. it was exactly a month since laci disappeared. >> i missed sharing our thoughts and lives together, i miss her smile and her laughter, and her sense of humor. i miss everything about her. >> sharon, who kept trying to keep hope alive, found it is slipping away. >> someone has taken all of this away from me, and everyone else who loves her. >> any thoughts that scott had nothing to do with it, gone too.

even though sharon would not to mention him by name. >> i know someone knows where laci, is and i am pleading with you, please, please, let her come home to us. >> unbeknownst to them, scott was thinking about going public as well, and he discussed it with, who else? amber. >> i am going to speak to the press. >> when? >> this coming week. >> you have a date? >> well, i'm debating on when it should be. >> okay. >> because tuesday is the state of the union address. >> okay. >> that will take up, you know, a lot of time. >> i'm sure it will. >> i want maximum coverage. >> he got it, all right. a sudden world of interviews. a few days after his affair with amber was revealed, scott talked about it on nbc's bay area station. >> obviously, yes, i had a romantic relationship that was

inappropriate and unfair to a lot of people. >> many of the people who knew scott and love scott no longer believed a word he said. >> for the police, who had never believed him, amber frye was just one part of an intricate and entirely circumstantial case against scott. it relied on the smallest of details. strands of evidence to try to weave into a rope with which to hang scott. another strand? scott sudden desire to sell his and laci's home just weeks after she went missing. >> he said, i think we should get the house up on the market, and my mom said, this isn't the time to be discussing this, scott. >> but he did sell laci's car, another strand. and then there was a cement dust that was at the scots warehouse. >> a lot of people use concrete anchors for small boats, and it

looked like five of these little coffee can anchors head been made there on that trailer. >> but only this one anchor was found. >> it was clear there was more than one, now where are those? nobody knows. >> the other four used to weigh down laci's body? those got said going fishing was a last-minute decision, there were seat charts and maps of the berkley marina on his computer from early december, and scott told police he spent time at his warehouse office on the day laci disappeared. they couldn't help but notice how secluded the place was. >> this is very isolated back here, especially on a christmas eve. >> if you wanted to get away with something, this is the place you could do it. >> yep. >> like move a body into a boat thought detective. >> we have a window here in the front that goes with the screen ajar. >> police gathered the strands, swung the rope, and everything that happened, happened with a lot of people watching.

>> where does scott peterson stand in all of this? >> he's not been eliminated from the investigation, nor has he been identified as a suspect. >> not identified as a suspect, not officially. clearly, the only person of interest for the cops, and the media. >> what have you got in the bag, sir? >> evidence. >> evidence? >> and sharon kept grappling with the depressing truth that she just didn't want to believe. >> i felt like i should have felt her leave this earth, i brought her into this world, i should have felt when she left, so that i would have known whether she was gone or not, so at that time, i still had hope that she was coming home. >> change and powerful thing, isn't it? >> it is. >> you give birth to a person, you bring them up, you feed them, and you care for them, and -- >> and we are very, very, very close. >> yes. >> and scott? he soon faded from public view, couldn't stay much in modesto, and amber finally told him to stop calling her.

>> i think, right now, for me, scott, and really everything that has happened in the last 50 plus days for myself, and the family, and you, and everything that is going on right now, i think it would be best if you and i didn't talk anymore until there is resolution in this whole -- >> yeah, i agree with that. >> good. >> you're right. >> good. >> and everyone just waited until the sea finally revealed what everyone had been waiting for. coming up -- >> i felt something that day. i just knew. >> a devastating discovery, and a ride in the danger. >> this was completely off the charts. nobody has ever acted this way. >> when "dateline" continues.

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april 13, 2003. it was a cool day in northern california. >> april 13th 2003, it was a sharon rocha was hiding from the world. cool day in northern california. sharon was hiding from the world. >> it was one of those days, i buried myself with a blanket over my head. >> she had locked herself away that day, that friends had to come to her house, to tell her there was news. >> they are knocking on my backdoor, the slider, and the backyard.

>> it had been nearly four months since lacey disappeared, yet somehow, sharon felt more bad news was coming. early that morning, when the tides were low, the body of a baby had been found on the shoreline north of berkeley. the next day, another body, a torso, badly decomposed found nearby. >> the county coroner arrived at the scene and has recovered the remains of the victim. we are, at this time, letting people know we believe the gender of the victim's female. >> even without positive identification, everyone knew, even sharon, who, despite everything, kept trying to hold on to a shot of hope that she'd wake from the nightmare, from scott, it was not a peep. >> the fact he didn't pick up the phone and call anybody to find out if that was his wife and his baby, left no doubt in my mind. >> her daughter was dead. her grandson would never be born. detective john buhler had known

that for a while, and now, it was nearly ready to arrest scott, just not quite. >> we are going to wait to serve the warrant until after the dna results were released to confirm the bodies were laci and connor. >> that april, scott peterson was living in san diego near his parents. so, take, take, tick. detectives waited for lab results. police kept an eye on scott. >> they had the surveillance going on him for quite some time before that. >> then, april 18th, 2003, 7 am, the lab results were still pending when scott peterson decided to play cat-and-mouse with whomever was after him. >> he's a good driver, at least he was. he knew we were behind him. >> scott started driving a radically, very fast. >> we were trying to keep this rolling surveillance on him. we had a helicopter for part of the time.

>> he stopped and started. >> it cross over three lanes of traffic and take an exit ramp. we didn't do that, we ended up missing him. >> driving offensively, at times, giving one cup the finger. >> how long did he lead you on this chase? >> gosh, this was, it seemed like it might have been a couple of hours or so, maybe longer. >> scott, with police trailing, traveled 160 miles that morning, until law enforcement decided it was just too dangerous. >> we have to arrest him, they put the lights on him, he pulled off into the entrance at torrey pines golf course. they made contact with him, as we pulled up, came out of the car put the handcuffs on him, no hysterics, no profanity, typical scott, in all his controlled demeanor. >> what they found in the car was scott was fascinating, camping gear. for cell phones, his sisters credit card, his brother's drivers license, and cash. >> almost $15,000 in cash. >> he also looked different, way different, by intent, clearly. >> when you arrested him, did

he expressed anything, that would suggest he understood that was it, he was going away? >> i want to search his car, he said, john, could you tell me if those bodies were my wife and son? i just told him, scott, you know the answer to that. >> as they drove north of modesto with their prisoner in the backseat, wheeler got confirmation that the dna was in. the bodies were connor and laci. they told scott. >> he's wearing sunglasses, i'm looking, it doesn't make a reaction whatsoever. >> just a few minutes later, they stopped by a roadside burger plays to get something the eat, given the news he'd just received. wheeler seemed scott wouldn't have much of an appetite. he was wrong. >> he goes, i'll have a double double with cheese, a small fry, and a vanilla shake. like, we are coming back from fishing. >> cold? that's what wheeler thought. >> i've run into people who had grief before, many, many times,

and this was completely off the charts. nobody has ever acted this way, in my presence, when it came to something like that. >> when they got back to modesto, scott was booked into jail. it seemed like the end of the road for scott peterson, but the circus wasn't leaving. it was just moving up the road a bit. >> coming up -- prosecutors speak out in an in-depth television interview. >> he wanted a different life. >> years later, they share their story. when dateline continues. and calms the nerve down. and my patients say you know doc, it really works. what can you do with sensitive skin? ♪♪ cetaphil gentle skin cleanser does more than clean. it actually protects skin by keeping it hydrated. so you're always ready for the unexpected.

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it's my best skin yet. judge: is that correct, mr. peterson? you're pleading not guilty to the two charges of murder, plus the special-- denying the special allegations? mark geragos: absolutely. >> is that correct, mr. that's correct, your honor. peterson, you're pleading not guilty to the two charges of murder, plus denying the special allegations? >> absolutely. >> that's correct, your honor. i am innocent. >> as the case against scott peterson slowly made its way from arrest to trial, what really happened to laci peterson became a kind of televised courtroom theater. >> the defense is asking that the jury be sequestered for up to five months. >> the cast included legal celebrities like defense attorney mark geragos, who signed on to defend scott peterson. >> scott looks forward to finding out who did this to his wife and to his child, conner.

>> and women's advocate -- >> thank you for coming today. i'm attorney gloria allred. to my right is amber frey. >> -- gloria allred, who erected a protective wall around the story's wild card, amber frey. >> amber was not going to be doing any interviews during the course of the case, even though so many people wanted to interview her. >> sure, yeah. wasn't she offered immense amounts of money to do covers and things like that? >> there were many offers to amber, if she would only provide an interview. but she needed to protect her testimony for the actual case. >> but altogether missing in the legal cacophony were the prosecutor prosecutors. this was their first in-depth interview about the peterson case. during the trial, they often had to bite their tongues. >> your radio would go off in the morning, the radio alarm, and the little news blurb that you would hear on the pop radio station, whatever, would

reference the case. they could say whatever they wanted, right? and it wasn't always necessarily true. >> good morning, your honor. >> good morning. >> in court, geragos wanted a change of venue, though just 90 miles or so from modesto, did anyone not know about the peterson case? >> how is he feeling about the move? >> he just wants the trial to take place so that people will be able to see what really took place. >> scott's mom assured reporters her son was innocent, but she couldn't have been very happy when everyone came to the courthouse and saw a local billboard a local radio station bought right across the street. man or monster? what'd you think when you saw that? >> well, that's when we were about to start jury selection. >> first day of jury selection. >> so, i think we were worried we were going to have another change of venue. >> but here it stayed. june 1st, 2004, a year and a half after laci peterson vanished, her husband, scott, went on trial for her murder. and right off the bat, the

prosecution told the jury about scott and amber. he winced as they showed these photos of the two of them from the night of the party, the same photos that helped him get caught. and then they showed the jury this picture of laci, same night, different party. she went alone. >> the reason for the murder was he didn't want to be married anymore. he didn't want to have a child. he wanted a different life. and amber was just a symptom of that. he didn't want what he had. >> and he wanted to be rid of what he had. >> he did. >> one way or another. >> mm-hmm. >> laci and conner were responsibilities, and he didn't want that. >> he doesn't care about anyone but himself. he can be very smooth, but there's something underneath the surface that is truly evil. >> so, said the prosecutors, scott strangled or suffocated laci on christmas eve early in the morning, or possibly the

night before. and then after that, after he had done that -- >> dragged her from the bedroom out to the carport. pickup truck backed into the carport. take her out the side door, wrapped up, most likely, load her into the bed of the truck, drive over to the warehouse, move her to the boat, cover the boat. >> then, after sending an email and putting together a woodworking tool, law enforcement believed, he headed to the bay. but evidence of murder? that was all circumstantial. they had no incriminating dna, minimal forensics, just all those little strands. and in fact, it didn't always go well for the prosecution. as geragos worked to keep them off balance. >> we would try and present witnesses in a chronological order, in a way that made sense to our theory of the case, and they were very good at disrupting that and saying, we're not ready for that witness or -- >> just trying to throw a monkey wrench into your smooth telling of the story.

>> yeah. >> if it happened once, maybe it was just coincidence. if it happened every single week, at some point in time, it's a plan. >> it got worse for the prosecution. geragos, who believed the modesto pd had it out for his client, tried to make it look like alboro keenie had omitted evidence. he asked him on the stand, did you omit evidence about scott visiting the warehouse october 23rd? >> the answer was, "i did. " then, okay, we're done for the day. and it's like, you know, can i answer or -- >> and that was a very good point for him to make because it would create the impression that, in fact, laci did know about the boat, as scott said she did, and it lent credibility to the rest of the story as a result. >> well, maybe, maybe not. but he could have got the whole story. >> of course, the whole story wasn't what the defense attorney wanted, that the information was in another cop's report, that nothing had been hidden. but what did the jury think? what was your sense of how well that prosecution was going?

>> i was a bit concerned. i felt that their burden of proving guilt beyond a reasonable doubt had not yet been met. >> but the big change, the sea change, was the day she walked in. >> walking in the courtroom, you could hear body shifting towards the door. a lot of pressure. >> as scott watched, amber frey told the jury everything from strawberries and champagne on their first date to his tearful confession of losing his wife weeks before she went missing. >> how did you lose her then, before she was lost? explain that. >> there are different kinds of loss, amber. >> and all those phone calls were played for the jury. >> the jury could hear his words -- of course, not his words under oath, but his words on the phone call -- to amber and how he lied and

lied and lied, and even lied about lying. >> mark geragos did what he could. he went after amber repeatedly, questioned her about how much she had to drink on her dates with scott and about how often she and scott had sex and how soon. did the defense rattle you? >> no. he tried. >> amber didn't buckle, and the prosecution hit its stride. an expert told the jury, the baby died between december 23rd and december 25th. another expert told the jury that laci's decomposition was consistent with three to six months in the water. and a search dog handler testified her dog picked up laci's scent at the berkeley marina. and, said the prosecutors, it was obvious scott peterson knew laci and conner were gone for good. he had even turned conner's nursery into a storage room. >> put office furniture and pillows and a locking device from a car in there. scott wasn't expecting conner to ever come home. >> coming up --

he's a lying cheat. >> yes, he was. >> a cheater, a liar, but a killer? i mean, really, who else could have done it. >> i'm glad you asked that question. >> when "dateline" continues. tinues tinues what can you do with sensitive skin? ( ♪♪ ) cetaphil moisturizing lotion hydrates for a full 48 hours. because a lot can happen in 48 hours. cetaphil. we do skin. you do you. hey, you should try new robitussin honey medi-soothers for long-lasting cough and sore throat relief. try new robitussin lozenges with real medicine and find your voice. you know? we really need to work on your people skills. type 2 diabetes? discover the ozempic® tri-zone. ♪ ♪

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for long-lasting cough and sore throat relief. try new robitussin lozenges with real medicine and find your voice. you know? we really need to work on your people skills. why are we the only birds heading this way? an migration is...e. stay close and everything will be alright. [ gulp ] i'm okay. yeah, no. hold on! [ quack, quack ] four months into the trial, the defense four months into the trial, got its chance to disprove the prosecution theory. the defense got its chance to disprove the prosecution theory. we wanted to talk to attorney

mark geragos about the trial. he didn't respond to our request. we wanted to talk to scott peterson, but he wasn't interested. turned us down, said his family, because he didn't like my coverage of the case back in 2003. scott's frantic story, simple, yet utterly baffling was this. his family still insists he's an innocent man, and we wanted to hear that from them. they turned us down, too, and suggested we talk to a retired journalist named richard cole, who shares their point of view and said the prosecution theory of the case makes no sense. >> because it was so ridiculous. scott peterson kills his 160-pound wife, puts her body in the back of his truck. he then drives it to his office to pick up the boat. and then, what does he do with the dead body of his wife in a parking lot? he goes back into the office, spends an hour on the internet sending christmas email to his

boss, and then he said, oh, well, i guess i'd better get rid of the body now. >> cole believes that media coverage, biased against the defendant, somehow seeped inside the courtroom. >> this gigantic tsunami of media coverage, much of it false, much of it totally distorted, concentrating on things that had nothing to do with the evidence. and that, basically, i think, consumed that little fact trial inside the courthouse. >> the most damaging witness against scott, he said, didn't see anything really related to a murder. but nonetheless, forever tainted scott in the eyes of the public and the jury. >> once you started looking at

that case through an amber lens, everything he did was wrong. >> because he's a lying cheat. >> yes, he was. >> the affair with amber, said cole, made everything scott did look sinister, but it didn't prove he killed laci. scott peterson was behaving pretty oddly. >> his behavior does look odd. he backed himself into a horrible position. >> sure. >> he's thinking, if anyone ever finds out about this woman, not only will it look bad for me, but that will become what this story is about, and he was exactly right. so, he very foolishly and not very well tried to keep her at bay with lies, thinking, laci will be home next week. >> and that would explain why scott hid from tv cameras, not guilt about laci, guilt about amber.

in cole's mind, scott acted like a man who had expected his wife to come home. so, that, said cole, is why scott didn't want a ding on the car door when the cops were searching his truck. so, laci's car, though. >> he did sell the car because you know, he was not rich. the peterson family isn't rich. >> and scott hemmed and hawed about what he was fishing for, said cole, because the whole point of the trip was not to catch something as it was to test the boat before giving it to laci's stepdad, ron, as a christmas present. >> the boat was basically kind of a gift, and that's why it was kept a secret granskis, because it was a christmas thing. >> all innocent, said cole, but why did scott tell amber before laci vanished, i lost my wife. >> amber confronts him about having a wife and he says, "i lost her and this would be my first christmas without her. " >> scott had had that line used on him by a woman who was

married. and he asked her if she was married and she said, i lost my husband. and scott decided that he liked that and that was a really good line. >> in other words, scott was a cad, not a killer, so said cole, anyway. but then how to explain the strange similarities between scott's fishing story and the circumstances of the murder? but you know, he went fishing in the bay. >> yep. >> they found the bodies in the bay. >> yes. >> i mean, really. who else could have done it? >> i'm glad you asked that question. let's remember the scene. she disappears. within a few days, scott's, "i went fishing in berkeley" story is all over the media. >> so, the real bad guys, maybe local sex offenders, or the two men arrested for the burglary across the street, took their victim to the bay and framed scott that way. that's cole's theory, anyway.

it made more sense, he said, than the case against scott. so, what really happened on that cold december morning? 12 people would decide. >> members of the jury, you have heard all the evidence and the arguments of the attorneys. and now it is my duty to instruct you on the law that applies to this case. >> after five months of trial, the jury went off to deliberate. one day, two, a week they stayed out. and nobody knew, what were they thinking? coming up -- a legacy. >> she's in heaven and she's in our hearts. >> a lesson. >> that gut feeling. more women need to listen to that. >> a life in the jury's hands. >> i just burst into tears. everything just comes gushing out. >> when ""dateline"" continues. what can you do with sensitive skin? ♪♪ cetaphil gentle skin cleanser does more than clean.

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ask your eczema specialist nearly two years after laci disappeared, nearly two years after laci after nine days of deliberation, disappeared, after nine days of deliberation, the jury in the scott peterson trial finally announced they had a verdict. >> it's pretty exciting and terrifying. >> as the crowds gathered out front, the reporters got into position, and everyone flooded back into the courtroom. what is it like for your level of anxiety? >> i felt like i was going to explode. >> the verdict is being read right now in a california courtroom in the double murder case against scott peterson. there is no camera in the courtroom, but an audio, live audio feed, is being provided. >> we, the jury, in the above-entitled cause, find the

defendant, scott lee peterson, guilty of the crime of murder of laci denise peterson. >> finally, the words sharon and all those who loved laci had been waiting for -- guilty of laci's murder, and -- >> guilty of the crime of murder of baby conner peterson. [cheers and applause] >> outside the courthouse, crowds cheered. inside? >> i remember i just burst into tears. everything just comes gushing out. it's just two years of anxiety, of waiting. >> a month later, the jury decided scott's fate. >> we, the jury, in the above-entitled cause, affix the penalty at death. >> for 15 years, scott peterson san on san quentin's death row, a condemned man. >> calling the matter of the people versus scott lee peterson. >> then, in june of 2020, via

video conference, the california state supreme court heard his appeal, which focused in part on how the trial jury was chosen. >> and what happened here was a systematic exclusion of those jurors that were opposed to the death penalty but could consider death. >> state countered. >> there is no credible claim in this appeal that any 1 of the 12 jurors that heard that evidence was anything other than fair and impartial. >> in a written ruling issued nearly three months later, the court sided with peterson on the jury question and overturned his death sentence. but the court also affirmed his murder conviction. yet, there's more to come -- maybe. this appeal isn't his last. and in the meantime, scott peterson remains in prison. no one has survived untouched. amber frey's life certainly never returned to what it was. but if anything, she told us,

the whole strange experience made her stronger, her beliefs stronger. >> i'm a christian. i'm a true believer in jesus christ. and i believe truly in my heart that god prepared my life for this. >> and she's determined to teach her own daughter something she wished she'd understood better when she met scott. >> we all have heard the expression women's intuition, that gut feeling. i think more women need to listen to that, because it's so easy for, i will say, a man to say "you're crazy, " like, you're being paranoid. >> sharon rocha wishes she had had some sort of gut feeling in late december 2002, when she and laci were looking forward to the new baby, their lives full of hope back then. back in those innocent days, before the rest of us heard the name laci peterson or saw that smile. >> it does make you question yourself. >> mm-hmm. >> you no longer trust your instinct or what you think you know about people or who you know or how you know them. >> laci's mother, her friends, their lives never really returned to normal.

how could they? but they've adapted, like humans do. stacie, laurie and rene now have their own children, and those children who never met laci know her, in a way. >> she's part of our life. i mean, she is a part of our life still, so that means our children need to know about that part of our lives. >> she's special and she had a

baby. >> so, the cemetery isn't a place of sadness for them, usually. >> i love it, because my boys get to hear about her and they always bring cars out for conner, or i think they brought a baseball out this time. >> it's a place where they can celebrate a life, someone they loved. >> she's in heaven and she's in our hearts. >> their laci. >> beautiful. >> oh, how pretty. >> i'm craig melvin. and this is dateline. it was one lie. after another lie. it doesn't make any sense. it took my father, you killed my father.