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Laci Peterson, 27, disappeared on Christmas Eve 2002 and her husband, Scott Peterson, has been charged with her murder. It was only days after her body was found months later.
Law enforcement officials do not always wait to find a body before charging them with murder, such as in the cases of missing Texas real estate broker Suzanne Simpson and missing Massachusetts real estate executive Ana Walshe. Ted Williams, a Fox News contributor and former Washington, D.C. homicide detective, explains why investigators sometimes pursue cases before a body is discovered.
Meanwhile, authorities are still searching for Simpson. A 51-year-old mother of four who disappeared more than two months ago, her husband Brad Simpson remains behind bars. Accused of murdering his wife of 22 years, unlike the Peterson case, law enforcement did not wait to find Suzanne’s body before charging Simpson with murder.
“A murder is like a mystery,” Williams told Fox News Digital. “Investigators are forever putting together the pieces of the puzzle. And when they feel like they have enough evidence – circumstantial evidence or physical evidence – they start to move forward.”
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Susan Simpson, Missing Texas Mother Pictured with her husband, Brad Simpson. (Facebook/Susan Simpson)
Scott Peterson and Laci Peterson in stills appearing in the documentary series “American Murder: Laci Peterson.” (Courtesy of Netflix)
Laci Peterson was seven and a half months pregnant when she disappeared on Christmas Eve 2002 from the Modesto home she shared with Scott. This sparked a widespread search for the mother-to-be. four months later In April 2003, a pedestrian found the decomposing body of her unborn son in San Francisco Bay. And officials found Laci’s body in the bay the next day.
Within a week of discovery Authorities have arrested and charged Scott Peterson with two counts of murder in the deaths of his wife and unborn son.
“I think in Scott Peterson’s case, they’re still gathering evidence. . . . They want to wait. And they have time on their side. and while gathering evidence They were able to make a concrete case against Scott. Peterson did. Williams said
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This former homicide detective explains why in cases like Peterson’s, law enforcement officials may wait until a body is found before pursuing murder charges. It details the risks involved in charging people too quickly.
“Investigators have to get it right the first time,” he said. “Once a person is charged with murder, it will be prosecuted. And if found not guilty and later found to have actually committed murder That person cannot be charged a second time because of what we have established in this country. It’s like a double threat.”
Double jeopardy refers to a clause in the 5th Amendment to the United States Constitution. This prohibits anyone from being prosecuted twice for the same crime.
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Scott Peterson (left) was convicted of the murders of his wife and unborn son. (REUTERS/Lou Dematteis LD/MR California Department of Corrections)
Williams said investigators must gather enough evidence to pursue murder charges. Where they only had “one shot”
“That’s the key. . . . Investigators recognize that the evidence in a murder trial has to be strong,” he added.
“Prosecutors realize they only got one bite of the apple,” Williams said. “If the jury comes back and finds that person not guilty of murder, And later they found evidence that showed that the person actually committed murder . . . because of the double danger in our country … They can’t try people. can do that again, that person must be free from killing.”
In another murder investigation in Massachusetts, Ana Walshe, a mother of young children, Three people and a real estate professional working in Washington, D.C., disappeared on New Year’s Day 2023 and were reported missing a few days later. Although her body was never recovered, her husband, Brian Walshe, has been charged with the murder of his 39-year-old wife.
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Brian and Ana Walshe toast on their wedding day at the lounge of L’Espalier in Boston, Massachusetts. On Monday, December 1, 21 Nov. 2015 (Received from Fox News Digital)
Ana Walshe holds her three children in an October 2022 Instagram post. (Ana Walshe/Instagram)
Williams explains why. The officers in the Simpson and Walshe cases are no different from the Peterson investigation. Therefore, they did not wait to find the victims’ bodies before bringing murder charges against the suspects.
“In a period of time If investigators realize that they will not find or accompany the body. But they believe they have enough physical evidence to move forward. They will move on. And they will present that to the prosecutor, and that prosecutor will decide whether or not he or she wants to proceed with the case,” he said.
On Dec. 1, 3 Brad Simpson was indicted against two people. first degree misdemeanor – Murder and aggravated assault with a deadly weapon resulting in serious injury to a family member. He is also charged with tampering with a corpse, two additional counts of tampering with physical evidence and possession of a prohibited weapon.
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Susan and Brad Simpson got into an argument after a night out at The Argyle in San Antonio, Texas.
“In the case of Susan Simpson, it appears investigators have obtained physical and circumstantial evidence that shows she is no longer here. and therefore So they moved on,” Williams said.
Suzanne Simpson’s DNA was reportedly found on a “reciprocating saw” where Brad Simpson was allegedly hiding. According to a transcript of the complaint obtained by Fox News Digital. and KABB reporting– Authorities say there has been no sign that Susan is alive since her husband allegedly attacked her on Oct. 1, 2020, and this has been confirmed by cell phone records. Her financial records, family, friends, and co-workers
Neighbors reportedly saw Simpson attack his wife the night she disappeared. Screams were later heard coming from the nearby woods, while the couple’s 5-year-old child told a school counselor that on the evening of Oct. 1, Sept. 6, her father had been accused of “Pushed her mother against the wall. hit her mother in the face and attacked his mother’s elbow in their home” and also “turned off his mother’s phone because they were arguing,” according to the affidavit.
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Suzanne and Brad Simpson’s home in San Antonio, Texas on Tuesday, November 1, Oct 12, 2024 Suzanne Simpson disappeared under suspicious circumstances. (Kat Ramirez for Fox News Digital)
Investigators followed up. Simpson’s unusual behavior in the days after his wife disappeared including turning off the phone Driving with suspicious items in the bed of the truck Going to the garbage disposal point and cleaning his truck at the car wash center.
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“There is a common theme and theme,” Williams told Fox News Digital. And those jurisdictions handle murder differently. But all murders are based on evidence . . . that investigators over time can pick up.”
Fox News’ Audrey Conklin contributed to this report.
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