Peterson’s jury finally set
REDWOOD CITY — After almost three months of jury selection, Scott Peterson knows who will decide his fate.
Among the jurors are a former social worker who handled child abuse cases, an ex-Colma police officer once charged with assaulting a cop, and a woman whose first husband was killed while serving a prison sentence for murder. “There you are. You’re it,” Judge Alfred Delucchi said Thursday after the panel was settled. “Unless you’re dead, you’re it.” Read the story here.
Peterson juror profiles
Here are thumbnail sketches of the 12 jurors and six alternates selected Thursday for Scott Peterson’s murder trial. It took more than two months to select the jury of six men and six women. Opening arguments begin Tuesday before Judge Alfred Delucchi in San Mateo County Superior Court in Redwood City.
Juror 1
A white man, appears to be in his 30s or early 40s. He’s coached 500 children in youth sports, including a sheriff’s son. He said he hadn’t followed the case. “I couldn’t tell you what happened yesterday in the news,” he said during jury selection. Read more here.
No pact yet on license bill
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger met on Thursday with the Democratic Latino Caucus to discuss one of the thorniest issues before him - a bill that would allow illegal immigrants to obtain driver’s licenses. No agreement was reached on the governor’s chief concern - ensuring criminal background checks can be done on applicants - but both sides described the one-hour meeting as “fruitful.” “We all seemed very committed to addressing this issue, but we’re not there yet,” state Sen. Gil Cedillo, the author the bill, said after emerging from the meeting in the governor’s office. Read the story here.
A Model in Fighting People Smugglers
After the discovery in recent weeks of two major immigrant-smuggling safe houses in Los Angeles, federal officials say they would like to duplicate in Los Angeles the immigration enforcement measures used in this sprawling desert city. Immigration officials here talk about “a love affair” of cooperation with Phoenix police to tackle often-brutal smuggling rings. Armed with intelligence from police investigators, federal agents here often round up gang members who are illegal immigrants — many of them juveniles — for deportation. Read the story here.
