The high court found that the trial itself was fair and the murder convictions stand.
In an automated appeal, first filed in the Supreme Court in 2012, the court found that potential jurors were wrongly dismissed, in part because they raised general objections to the death penalty on a questionnaire.
“While a court may dismiss a prospective juror as unqualified to sit on a main proceedings if the jurist’s views on sentencing would substantially limit his or her ability to follow the law, a juror cannot be dismissed simply because he or she has expressed opposition to the death penalty as a general matter, “the advice states.
Nothing in the questionnaires revealed that the disqualified jurors were unable to vote for the death penalty if the circumstances warranted, the justices said.
“The death penalty must be reversed, and the people have been given another chance to seek this punishment before a well-selected jury if they so choose,” the opinion said.
The case has been referred to the Superior Court of Stanislaus County to handle the conviction.
Laci, who was seven months pregnant, disappeared from her Modesto home just before Christmas 2002 and was reported missing by her husband.
In the early days of the month-long search for Laci, a woman who had an affair with Peterson came to the fore. In April 2003, the body of Laci and her son was washed in San Francisco Bay. Scott Peterson was arrested shortly thereafter.
In November 2004, a jury found Peterson guilty of first-degree murder before Laci’s death and second-degree murder before the death of his son, Conner. Peterson, now 47, was sentenced to death on December 13, 2004.
Cliff Gardner, a lawyer for Peterson, thanked the Supreme Court for its decision.
“We are grateful for the California Supreme Court’s unanimous recognition that if the state wants to kill someone, it must continue with a trial with a freely selected jury. Attorneys may not rely on a jury specifically organized by the state to to return a verdict of death, “Gardner said.
“In deciding whether to seek a new death sentence, the question for prosecutors now is whether they can prove Mr Peterson punishable for this crime to even a single juror sitting through an honest selection process for jury.”
John Goold, spokesman for the Stanislaus County District Attorney’s Office, said, “We are appealing the decision and will discuss it with the victim’s family.” The district attorney’s office has not said if it will seek the death penalty again.
California has not executed a resident since 2006.
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