Scott Peterson has been released from California's death row

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Scott Peterson has been released from death row more than two years after the California Supreme Court overturned his death sentence for killing his pregnant wife two decades ago, corrections officials said Monday. Last week, Peterson was transferred from San Quentin State Prison, north of San Francisco, to Mule Creek State Prison, east of Sacramento. The new photo, taken Friday, shows Peterson, 50, compared to his previous clean-shaven look. degrees of murdering their unborn son, whom they were going to name Conner, by dumping them in San Francisco Bay on Christmas Eve 2002. The state Supreme Court overturned that conviction in August 2020 after finding that potential jurors were improperly disqualified for saying they personally disagreed with the death penalty but would be willing to follow the law and impose it. A state judge is now considering whether Peterson deserves a new trial after separate judges said his jury may have been tainted by a biased jury. At the time, Peterson was largely held at San Quentin for the month-long hearing process, in part so that he would have better access to his attorneys.

Last week, Peterson was transferred from San Quentin State Prison, north of San Francisco, to Mule Creek State Prison, east of Sacramento. A new photo taken Friday shows Peterson, 50, sporting a graying head of hair compared to his previous clean-shaven look.

The jury handed down the death penalty after finding Peterson guilty of the first-degree murder of Lassie Peterson, 27, and the second-degree murder of their unborn son, whom they were going to name Conner, by dumping them in San Francisco Bay on Christmas Eve 2002.

California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation via AP

The state Supreme Court overturned that conviction in August 2020 after finding that potential jurors were improperly disqualified for saying they personally disagreed with the death penalty but would be willing to follow the law and impose it.

A state judge is now considering whether Peterson deserves a new trial after judges separately said his jury may have been tainted by a biased jury.

Peterson has been largely held at San Quentin during this month-long hearing, in part to give him better access to his lawyers.

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