Peterson Was Offered Deal, Lawyer Says

Less than a month after Laci Peterson vanished, prosecutors promised not to seek the death penalty against her husband if he led them to her body, according to his lawyers.

The deal was offered to Scott Peterson in January, months before he was charged with murdering her, according to court papers filed Tuesday in Stanislaus County Superior Court by defense attorneys Mark Geragos and Kirk McAllister.

The revelation came in a defense motion that challenges wiretaps of Peterson’s phone calls. The defense contends that the wiretaps violated state and federal laws and should be barred from evidence that prosecutors want to use in the death penalty case.

Much of the information in Tuesday’s filing was blacked out to keep evidence, which has been sealed by court order, from public view. But one section claims that authorities were anxious to proceed with the case against Peterson.