In 2004, a jury found Scott Peterson guilty beyond a reasonable doubt of murdering his wife Laci Peterson and their unborn son Conner Peterson. This week, A&E presents reason(s) to doubt Scott Peterson’s conviction. You be the judge.
Scott Peterson’s former lead defense attorney Mark Geragos has always believed in his client’s innocence. In Scott Peterson: The New Evidence, he practically shouts it from the rooftops. That’s kind of his thing though.
Geragos, who has made his bones defending controversial celebrities like Michael Jackson, Chris Brown, Diddy, and Jussie Smollett, knows better than most how popular TV content can influence legal matters. Recently, he has seen such an the impact with yet another famous (infamous, really) client — well, a pair of clients.
Ryan Murphy’s scripted drama Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story was a huge hit in 2024. “The Netflix Effect” practically sprung the brothers, convicted of murdering their parents José and Kitty Menendez in 1989, right out of prison. The Menendez season of Monsters played up the accusation by the brothers that José sexually abused his sons for years.
“A documentary, a movement can get people to take a a look at something that they thought or concluded before was set in stone,” Geragos told The Hollywood Reporter. “In Menendez, we evolved based on our understanding of childhood sexual abuse. In Peterson, I think we have evolved that, you know, just because somebody has an affair does not necessarily make the leap to they are a killer.”
