TWIST IN DREW PETERSON MURDER CASE - Watch Fox Chicago Tonight at 9 pm CST

Kathleen Savio Peterson

Tonight at 9 pm CST, WFLD Fox Chicago's Jeff Goldblatt is airing a story that adds another twist to the Drew Peterson murder case.

The story isn't really about Kathleen Savio or Stacy Peterson. Instead, the story is about the pathologist who performed Kathleen Savio's autopsy.

Apparently, this pathologist has been accused of messing up some cases in the past...

The exclusive story is here: Exclusive: Drew Pathologist Under Cloud

Be sure to watch tonight!

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JUDGE WHITE TO BRODSKY/PETERSON CIRCUS: GET DOWN OFF OF THAT TIGHTROPE - PRONTO!

Drew Peterson in Will County Custody (M Spencer Green)Will County Judge Stephen White called the curtain on the Peterson/Brodsky media circus. Article here. During the hearing, State's Attorney James Glasgow stressed to the judge his fear of Brodsky tainting the jury pool by his interviews with the media.

BRODSKY'S PRESSERS ARE OVER
This case is like none other I can remember in recent history: The media attention has not been around the case per se but mostly around the attention created by Joel Brodsky and Drew Peterson. It's literally like Brodsky is trying to sell tickets to a circus! The press releases, the interviews in NYC, the press conferences. So ridiculous! I have never seen an attorney use a publicist to issue a press release about his client's engagement to his live-in girlfriend. (I was actually in-studio when Glen Selig's press release of Peterson's engagement to Christina Raines came through the fax.) I have never seen an attorney do so many TV interviews with his client who has not been charged with a crime. To me, this is bad lawyering. How can an attorney put his client on TV knowing there's a chance he may say something incriminating? Remember when Drew was interviewed on Fox Chicago and Drew said he told his kids their mom is never coming home?!? An attorney should never encourage interviews of his client. In fact, an attorney is to tell his client, "Keep your mouth shut. I do not want to hear one word from you." (To compare, remember when Blago's stellar attorney Ed Gensen withdrew after Blago went on his media tour, contrary to Gensen's advice?)

NO MORE PETERSON JAILHOUSE GAME-SHOWS
The audacity of Drew Peterson to make a jail house call to a radio station and suggest a "win a conjugal visit with Drew"! Drews antics from inside the county jail have been despicable and make a mockery of the judicial system. Drew is an idiot. This is the kind of behavior that taints the jury pool. What radio listener wants to hear Douchebag Drew try to score a date? Then, Brodsky's going to cry "Change of Venue" even though he's the one who caused the jury pool to be tainted!

I often say, "Don't talk about it, be about it." Brodsky has one job: convince a jury that Drew is not guilty as charged. If he successfully completes that job, he and Drew can write as many books and do as many interviews as they please. But until then, shut up. And boy do I hope that day NEVER comes...

Now Brodsky is only left to play the Create Your Own Circus on the Ringling Bros. website. But I do wonder, can Drew walk the tightrope in cuffs? He does claim to be such a celebrated officer and badass.

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Tamara at Drew Peterson Arraignment - Fox News Interview

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FOX CHICAGO'S JEFF GOLDBLATT MYSTERIOUSLY OBTAINS INVESTIGATIVE DOCUMENTS IN DREW PETERSON CASE

Exclusive: Papers Reveal Peterson Case

- Call it the case against Drew Peterson. It's been over three years since his third wife Kathleen Savio was murdered and a year and a half since his fourth wife Stacy disappeared. Tonight, for the first time, Fox Chicago News has obtained documents showing how prosecutors are building their case against the former Bolingbrook police officer.

The documents were stolen from an Illinois State Police car then photocopied and dropped off for anchor Jeff Goldblatt. Inside is information never before seen by the public including a timeline of what happened to Stacy, a list of 59 leads, and the police report from the night of Kathleen Savio's murder.

"I was shocked by what was in there, I was really, really shocked," said Charlie Doman, Kathleen nephew. Doman received a copy of the documents after the Post Office found the papers, saw the Savio name, and delivered them to his mom.

But he adds his life has changed for the worse ever since the State Police found out he had the information. At one point he contends troopers threatened him to get the paperwork back. He says, "The female State Police said at first they were going to kick my door in and search every piece of paper in my house until they find what they were looking for if i didn't give them right then and there."

Doman eventually returned his copy. But you can see why police wanted them. The timeline alone lays out in great detail what investigators think happened to Stacy Peterson and what Drew did with her body. According to the documents, they note Stacy was dead by 10:59 am on October 28th. That night, they describe Drew removing the body with his step brother Tom Morphey in a "large blue round plastic container weighing approximately 150 pounds with screw on top with clear plastic protruding from outside."

As for what Drew did with the body, the timeline indicates they believe he may have disposed of it in a quarry in the Bolingbrook area.

Fox Chicago News contacted the State's Attorney's office about the documents. A spokesman told us he was aware they were stolen but did not think our story would compromise their investigation.

Pamela Bosco, a spokeswoman for Stacy's family, said she's been told the case is still active and investigators are still gathering evidence. When we told her about the missing documents, she replied, "when we want to go to court on this, we want to make sure it is done correctly and im sure the prosecution and ISP know this is an important case."

This is an important case for Charlie Doman as well. He feels coming forward will help expedite the investigation although he admits he fears the State's Attorney and State Police will be upset with him. When Jeff Goldblatt asked Charlie how he would respond if they say this tarnishes their case, he replied, "I think they need to step it up a notch then."

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WORD ON THE STREET: TODAY DREW PETERSON TO BE SERVED WITH COMPLAINT FOR WRONGFUL DEATH OF 3RD WIFE, KATHLEEN SAVIO

At 10:30 tonight my phone started ringing from a number I didn't recognize. I didn't answer because, well, it was late! The phone kept ringing and ringing so finally, I answered. On the other end was a reporter (who shall remain nameless) who has been neck-deep in the Drew Peterson saga for years. The reporter wanted to know: Did I hear the news? Did I know anything? Could I confirm Drew Peterson was about to be sued for the wrongful death of wife #3, Kathleen Savio?

Kathleen Savio
Of course, I am not the attorney representing the Savio family for the wrongful death suit (and clearly I am not representing Drew Peterson) nor am I privy the latest development. To remind you, I did represent a member of the Savio family when he appeared before the Peterson grand jury. This was publicly reported so I am not sharing with you anything you didn't already know. You also know the grand jury proceedings are entirely confidential....

But I did read the story on NBC5's website and it looks like this report may be accurate. Article here.

DREW MAY BE SERVED WITH A WRONGFUL DEATH SUIT! WOOHOO!

O.J. SIMPSON'S CIVIL SUIT REVISITED

Let's go back to the infamous O.J Simpson murder case. O.J. was accused of killing his ex-wife Nicole Brown Simpson and her friend, Ronald Goldman, on June 12, 1994.

The families of both victims sued O.J.; the Browns sued on behalf of Nicole's children in a survival suit for assault and battery of Nicole and the Goldmans sued for the wrongful death of Ronald. (Essentially, the jury did not have to determine if O.J. was responsible for the wrongful death of Nicole - this was a Brown-family decision in an effort to protect her children.)

Regardless, after the jury acquitted O.J. in the criminal case, a separate jury was picked for the civil case. In the criminal case, a unanimous verdict of all 12 jurors was required to find O.J. guilty; however, in the civil case, only 9 of the 12 jurors were required to determine whether he was liable. Also, the burden of proof in a criminal case is "beyond a reasonable doubt" which is far higher than the burden of proof in a civil case which is "preponderance of the evidence." In short, on February 4, 1997, the civil jury found O.J. liable and awarded the Brown and Goldman families a total of $33.5 million in damages against O.J.

WHY THE FILING NOW? TIME IS RUNNING OUT FOR KITTY'S FAMILY TO SUE DREW!

There is no statute of limitations for prosecutors to charge Drew Peterson in any of the alleged murders of wives Kathleen Savio and Stacy Peterson, there are time constraints on filing a civil suit. In the O.J. case, O.J. was arrested immediately after the murders; however, in this case, Drew has yet to be arrested and charged in either case.

Illinois' wrongful death statute of limitations:
“Every such action shall be commenced within 2 years after the death of such person but an action against a defendant arising from a crime committed by the defendant in whose name an escrow account was established under the "Criminal Victims' Escrow Account Act" shall be commenced within 2 years after the establishment of such account.”

Is the filing too late?:

Notice the statute says only “2 years after death.” Kathleen was found dead in her bathtub in 2004 from what was originally called an accidental death. However, Dr. Michael Baden had her body exhumed in November 2007 and ruled her death a homicide.
Option 1: The amended cause of death as homicide in November 2007 gives the family until November 2009 to file.
Option 2: The clock ran out 2 years after Kathleen’s death, which would have been 2006. The reclassification of cause of death is irrelevant for the purposes of the statute of limitations. ( I presume Drew Peterson will first attack the plain language of the statute and use this argument.)
Option 3: The family set up the escrow account less than 2 years ago, so the statute of limitations has not run out.
Option 4: The Savio family has the statute of limitations figured out and it will not be an issue.  I figure this is the answer!

HOW DOES THIS AFFECT THE PROSECUTION’S POSSIBLE INDICTMENT OF DREW?

In the Simpson case, the civil case was tried after the criminal case. Here, however, Will County prosecutors are being accused of dragging. Seems like Kitty's family has no choice but to file now. Time is of the essence in the civil case. The family does not get the benefit of time.

Maybe this filing will force the State’s Attorney to hurry up and indict Drew. What’s taking so long? With the filing of a civil suit, this allows the civil attorneys access to materials the prosecutors may have wanted to keep all for themselves. What if Joel Brodsky files his appearance on the civil case?  He'll then get documents that he was not able to previously obtain!

Come on, State's Attorney Glasgow, indict Drew already!

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DREW PETERSON'S STEP-BROTHER TALKS, DREW CONFIRMS DETAILS

Drew Peterson's step-brother, Thomas Morphey (Sun Times)

This morning, Drew Peterson's step-brother, Tom Morphey, spoke to Good Morning America about the days before Stacy Peterson went missing. Video here. As we all know, a response from Drew was expected.  In fact, he had an interview arranged with the local radio station to discuss Morphey's interview immediately after it aired.

 DREW CONFIRMS MORPHEY IS CREDIBLE

Joel Brodsky, Drew's attorney, has made numerous statements about Tom Morphey, all of them dismissing his credibility because Morphey has had substance abuse issues in the past.  Regardless of what Brodsky says, today Drew confirmed Morphey's credibility. 

In the ABC interview, Morphey explained that Drew offered him $2000 to rent a storage locker to store a sealed container inside. Drew confirmed this account today! He told the radio that he did ask Morphey to visit a storage locker with him "to store extra tires."  Article here.   Drew dug his own hole by confirming Morphey's account of Drew's request to visit the storage locker.  Drew also confimed the location of the storage locker - that it was along the highway 53 - the highway that has long been suspected as the route Drew took to dispose of Stacy's body.  Drew is now putting together the timeline and the circumstantial evidence against him in his own case.  

WHY WASN'T TOM MORPHEY PREVIOUSLY CALLED BEFORE THE GRAND JURY?

Clearly, prosecutors knew of Morphey and the information he had to offer because he was offered immunity immediately after Stacy disappeared. In fact, Morphey was also placed into protective custody for a few months.  So why hasn't he been called before the grand jury?

I do not think prosecutors forgot about Morphey.  Prosecutors are building a timeline and a theory of the case.  Maybe they do not want to get locked into Morphey's story if other witnesses have a different account of what happened.  Or, since prosecutors may fear Morphey's credibility is an issue, maybe they are seeking other corroborating evidence of Morphey's account (the cell phone pings, video of Drew at certain locations) before bringing Morphey before the grand jury.

Regardless, prosecutors must be jumping out of their skin at the fact that Morphey spoke publicly.  They should have secured the confidentiality of his testimony by calling him before the grand jury.  Now, this interview can be used to impeach anything else he says that may be remotely contradictory. 

There is, however, a silver lining in every cloud.  So while prosecutors may have been fuming at Morphey's interview, they now have Peterson corroborating the request for the storage locker along the Highway, just days before Stacy's death.  This is huge.

WHAT'S TAKING SO LONG FOR DREW TO BE CHARGED?

It seems like every day someone is asking me, "Why hasn't Drew been charged yet?"  The reason is simple: murder does not have a statute of limitations.  There is no rush for the State's Attorney to charge him.  In fact, once they do, Drew will be taken into custody and will most likely demand trial.  That means the state will only have 120 days to try the case.  If, however, prosecutors prolong the grand jury proceedings, they can interview each witness, and build their case slowly.  The goal is to be 100% prepared so that when he is charged, they are essentially ready to go to trial and in 120 days they will just be tying up loose ends while Brodsky is up to his eyeballs in evidence. There is no rush!

As I shared with you in the Casey Anthony case, it is difficult to charge a murder without the body.  Many people thought I was defending Casey; however, that's not the case.  A dead body proves the person is, in fact, dead.  Like it or not, there may be a juror that could have thought Caylee was really kidnapped (this was before her body was found) or that Stacy Peterson did run off with another man. 

As for the alleged murder of Katheen Savio (Drew's 3rd wife), the problem with that case is that the IL State Police botched the investigation from the very beginning.  It took an independent exhumation of the body several years later to determine that her death was not accidental but a homicide.  My suspicion is that the murder of Kathleen Savio may never get charged because of their initial failure to properly investigate the case. 

Prosecutors are investigating two murders - one of a woman whose investigation was destroyed in the very beginning (Kathleen Savio) and the other of a woman who is still missing.  Prosecutors have not had it easy in either case but Drew's loose lips are a blessing in disguise.

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JOEL BRODSKY: THE BEST THING THAT EVER HAPPENED TO DREW PETERSON - HE CONTINUES TO DAMAGE HIS CLIENT'S ALREADY-TERRIBLE IMAGE

Last November, I discussed how an attorney must be very conscious of not only their client's image but of how their own image can adversely affect their client. Blog here.

Yesterday, Joel Brodsky addressed the media (yet again) in response to Drew Peterson's step-brother's recent interview. Article here. Thomas Morphey told the media several days ago that he believes he unknowingly helped Drew carry Stacy's body in a blue barrel out of the Peterson home. Drew Peterson's step-brother Tom Morphey (courtesy of Sun Times)

Brodsky felt the need to give an opinion: "A person like that has fantasies—they are delusional. They can create things for whatever reason, they can twist facts or circumstances to meet their own needs. So you can't really take a person like that at their word." Interestingly, Brodsky previously said, "But Tom Morphey is a very ill (ph) man with all his multiple psychiatric hospitalizations and his problems with alcohol and his multiple suicide attempts. There's no question that he is a very disturbed person."

Brodsky previously suggested "“Maybe she [Stacy] fell in with bad people ... I'm not saying it happened, but it certainly starts creeping into your thoughts as a possibility.”

What Brodsky is attempting to do is poison the jury pool with doubt that Drew actually killed Kitty and Stacy.  Instead, Brodsky is poisoning the image of Drew that is already tarnished. 

So why do I say Brodsky is the BEST thing that happened to Drew? Well, while Brodsky is running his mouth and holding press conferences, the state's attorney is grinding away and building a case against Drew.  That's perfect; we would not want it any other way! Keep in mind, we know cocky Drew will demand a "speedy trial" - that means the state must put on their case within 120 days. They are using the grand jury for trial prep while Brodsky is buying new suits for his next presser.

Here's some more on this issue at the Stacy & Kitty blog.

(On a side note, the new girlfriend, Kristina Raines, allegedly moved out of Drew's home, yet again.)

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