Prosecutor opposes venue change for Scott Peterson
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Scott Peterson,, left, and his attorney Mark Geragos, seen in a court appearance last month.
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SAN FRANCISCO, California (Reuters) -- Prosecutors asked a judge Friday to deny Scott Peterson's request to move his upcoming murder trial from his hometown of Modesto in central California, saying it was Peterson's own lawyer who was generating the negative publicity in the case.
Peterson's attorney, Mark Geragos, last month asked a Stanislaus County judge to move the trial to another part of the state because people living in and near Modesto had a "lynch-mob mentality" whipped up by negative media coverage.
"The People strongly dispute the remainder of the defense's assertions of fact in the Motion of a Change of Venue," District Attorney James Brazelton wrote in a motion.
"The case does not concern any prominent public figures, mass murder, or community threats of race riots, and the defendant's ability to select a fair and impartial jury in this case has not been compromised."
Peterson, a former fertilizer salesman, was arrested last April on charges of murdering his wife Laci and their unborn son, whose disappeared on Christmas Eve 2002. He has pleaded not guilty.
Brazelton noted the heavy media attention to the case but said it has been largely fair. "For the most part, the media has attempted to portray this case in a factual format," he wrote. "A few 'tabloid' publications have exaggerated claims, or speculated on evidence but these publications are not accepted by the general public as legitimate news sources."
Geragos, who also represents singer Michael Jackson in unrelated child molestation charges, has said he would like Peterson's trial moved to the Los Angeles area where the attorney practices.
The district attorney also criticized Geragos for generating publicity about the case by speaking about it before he became Peterson's attorney as well after he took on the high-profile job.
"It would be absurd to reward the defense by granting a change of venue for their conduct that has caused much of the publicity of which they complain," Brazelton wrote.
Brazelton also argued that potential jurors across the state had the same general feelings about the case as did people in Stanislaus County so there was no reason to change venue.
The trial in scheduled to begin on January 26, but could be delayed, as have many past proceedings related to the case.
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