Scott Peterson Could Face New Trial As Judge Determines Jury Misconduct

California Superior Court Judge Anne-Christine Massullo said Wednesday that she expects to hear a new testimony from a juror accused of misconduct that was so significant that it could have denied Scott Peterson a fair trial for the 2002 killing of his pregnant wife.

A two-week-long hearing for juror Richelle Nice is expected to be set for Sept. 22 though it could be pushed to early next year due to pandemic delays, The hearing will determine if Peterson deserves a new trial, according to AP News.

That hearing would get to “the meat and potatoes of what the juror’s information is,” Deputy Stanislaus County District Attorney Dave Harris said.

Over a year ago, California Supreme Court ordered Massullo to consider juror misconduct after it was noted that Nice, who is identified in court papers as Juror 7, failed to disclose a potential bias in the case, thus committing “prejudicial misconduct.”

Nice reportedly has a background of domestic abuse, and requested a restraining order in 2000 against her boyfriend's ex-girlfriend, in fear she would harm her while pregnant.

Nice was also beaten by her boyfriend in 2001 while she was pregnant with her second child, Peterson’s attorneys revealed in a June court filing.

Nice denied being influenced by her domestic abuse background and said in a court filing that she did not “feel ‘victimized’ the way the law might define that term.” She also pointed out that she did not consider the restraining order a lawsuit.

Peterson, 48, is currently serving a life sentence at California's San Quentin State Prison after being convicted of the murder of his pregant wife, Laci, 27.

He was convicted in 2004 and was sentenced to the death penalty in 2005. However, the sentence was overturned last year and reduced to life without parole after California Supreme Court determined "significant errors" in jury selection.

"We've said all along that Scott Peterson did not get a fair trial," Peterson's defense attorney, Pat Harris, told TODAY on Thursday.

If given a new trial, his attorneys said they would present new evidence.

However, the state’s high court last year said there was considerable circumstantial evidence incriminating Peterson for killing his pregnant wife.