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Drew Peterson found guilty in the murder of Kathleen Savio 9/6/12
Associated Press
September 6, 2012
(CBS/AP) JOLIET, Ill. - Drew Peterson, the former Illinois cop who was accused of murdering his third wife, Kathleen Savio in 2004, has been found guilty.
Savio was found dead in a bathtub in 2004. Initially, police thought her death was accidental, but after Peterson's fourth wife, Stacy Peterson, disappeared in 2007, authorities took a second look and determined Savio's death was a homicide.
Peterson had pleaded not guilty.
Earlier on Thursday, the jury sent a note to the judge in the case asking for a definition of the word "unanimous." On Wednesday, the jury asked to re-hear hearsay testimony from Savio's divorce attorney and a pastor who spoke with Stacy Peterson before her disappearance.
The verdict was the culmination of a years long judicial process. Peterson has been jailed since 2009. In April, an appellate court ruled that prosecutors could present hearsay evidence in the case.
Because of a botched initial investigation into Savio's death, detectives collected no fingerprints, strands of hair or any other physical evidence. That meant the case largely hinged on the hearsay and other circumstantial evidence. Sentencing is set for November 26th.