Scott Peterson case timeline

Nov. 20, 2002

Sibley gives Peterson the phone number of Amber Frey, a 28-year-old massage therapist from Fresno. Peterson tells her he is single.

Dec. 9, 2002

Frey learns Peterson is married; he tells her he lost his wife and that this is the first holiday he'll spend as a widower. The same day, Peterson also buys a fishing boat for $1,400 cash.

Dec. 23, 2002

Sharon Rocha, Laci's mother, spoke with her daughter briefly by phone during the evening and told police later that she seemed fine.

Dec. 24, 2002

Laci Peterson reported missing at 5:48 p.m. by Scott after he allegedly returns from a solo fishing trip to the Berkeley Marina. He tells police he last saw his wife that morning when he left their Modesto home. Her purse and cell phone are found inside the home.

Peterson's dog, McKenzie, was found by a neighbor wandering the streets of Modesto. The neighbor put the dog in the backyard.

By 11 p.m., three Modesto detectives search Peterson's fertilizer storage warehouse where he kept his boat.

Dec. 26, 2002

A volunteer center is opened at the Red Lion Hotel in Modesto and thousands of flyers are circulated. A $100,000 reward is offered by friends and family and another anonymous $25,000 reward is offered through the Carole Sund-Carrington Memorial Award Foundation.

Dec. 30, 2002

Frey contacts police about her relationship with Peterson and agrees to secretly tape their phone conversations.

Jan. 2, 2003

Modesto police announce they suspect foul play in Laci's disappearance and begin trying to verify Scott Peterson's whereabouts.

Jan. 17, 2003

Laci's relatives say that Scott Peterson was having an affair. Police also say that he took out a $250,000 life insurance policy on his wife although that is lately proven false. The volunteer center closes.

Jan. 24, 2003

Amber Frey confirms an affair with Scott Peterson to the media and said she did not know he was married.

Jan. 28, 2003

Peterson admits the affair with Frey but said his wife knew about it.

Feb. 5, 2003

Scott Peterson tries selling his wife's SUV to purchase a new truck as a replacement for the one seized by police. The car dealer later returns the vehicle to her family.

March 5, 2003

Modesto police announce that Peterson's disappearance has been reclassified as a homicide even though her body has not been found.

April 13, 2003

The body of the full-term fetus, nearly intact, is found by pedestrians in Richmond. The next day, the decomposed remains of Laci are found nearby. Both are about three miles from where Peterson said he had been fishing.

April 18, 2003

The bodies are positively identified through DNA. Hours before the announcement, Scott Peterson is arrested at the Torrey Pines Golf Course near his parents' San Diego home. He has dyed his hair blonde and is carrying his brother's identification and $10,000 in cash.

April 21, 2003

Peterson is formally charged with two counts of murder which makes him eligible for the death penalty.

April 23, 2003

Prosecutors say they think Laci was murdered at home on either Dec. 23 or Dec. 24.

May 2, 2003

Defense attorney Mark Geragos announces he will take Peterson's case.

May 4, 2003

Thousands of mourners attend a memorial service for Laci and Connor in Modesto.

May 29, 2003

Results of the autopsy are leaked to the media, including news that the fetus' body had been cut and had tape wrapped around his neck.

Nov. 18, 2003

Peterson is ordered to stand trial for two murders.

Jan. 8, 2004

Stanislaus County Judge Al Girolami rules that Peterson cannot receive a fair trial in Modesto and orders it moved to either Santa Clara, San Mateo or Alameda county.

Jan. 23, 2004

Following a hearing in Stanislaus County, Peterson is transferred to San Mateo County Jail where he is held in protective custody.

Jan. 27, 2004

Retired Alameda Superior County Superior Court Judge Alfred Delucchi, 72, is appointed to preside over the case.

June 1, 2004

The trial opens as a local radio station parades a moving billboard around the court house and national media outlets stake out tents.

Sept. 21, 2004

Modesto police detectives testify that 41 reasons pointed them toward the bay when searching for Laci Peterson's remains.

Oct. 29, 2004

Jurors are told they can consider second-degree murder, a lesser charge that does not carry the death penalty.

Nov. 3, 2004

The jury begins deliberating.

Nov. 10, 2004

The jury foreman - a man with dual medical and law degrees -is dismissed. He's replaced by a Half Moon Bay firefighter/paramedic.

Nov. 17, 2004

Scott Peterson is convicted of the first-degree murder of his wife and the second-degree murder of her unborn fetus.