Jury to Begin Deliberations in Drew Peterson Murder Trial
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Giovanni Rufino/NBC NewsWire(JOLIET, Ill.) — The fate of former Illinois cop Drew Peterson will go to the jury in Joliet, Ill., Wednesday morning, after prosecutors and defense attorneys finished their closing arguments Tuesday. Peterson is accused of murdering his third wife, Kathleen Savio.
Defense attorney Joe Lopez pleaded with the jury during his statement to remember that there is no physical evidence tying Peterson to the scene of his wife’s death in 2004.
Savio’s death was initially ruled an accident after she was found dead in her bathtub. After Peterson’s fourth wife, Stacy, disappeared without a trace in 2007, however, police exhumed Savio’s body and reexamined it as part of the Stacy Peterson investigation. They then changed the cause of death to homicide and charged Drew Peterson.
He has denied any involvement in Savio’s death, and prosecutors admit there is no physical evidence connecting him to the scene of the crime. He has never been charged in connection with Stacy’s disappearance.
Prosecutors Tuesday reminded the jury that a witness called by the defense admitted that the chance of a healthy adult drowning in a bathtub was “one in a million.”
Forensic pathologists testified for both sides about Savio’s injuries; experts for the prosecution said that her injuries pointed to homicide, while those for the defense said they indicated an accidental fall in the bathtub.
The jurors, who have arrived in court in matching outfits on many days of the trial, did not coordinate their clothing Tuesday.
Judge Edward Burmila recessed court Tuesday following closing arguments and said he planned to instruct and charge the jury beginning at 9 a.m. Wednesday.
Peterson’s attorneys said before court Tuesday morning that Peterson is ready, whatever the jury may decide.
“He’s a bit anxious but prepared emotionally for whatever happens,” attorney Joel Brodsky said.
Drew Peterson, a former Bolingbrook, Ill., police sergeant, faces 60 years in prison if convicted.
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