**‘Scott Peterson: The New Evidence’ Docuseries Accuses Police of Destroying Evidence: The Explosive Claims in Part 2**

A&E’s two-part docuseries *Scott Peterson: The New Evidence* has reignited one of America’s most infamous murder cases with a series of startling allegations. In Part 2, which premiered Friday, July 17, 2026, legal experts and the Los Angeles Innocence Project (LAIP) argue that the Modesto Police Department not only fixated on Scott Peterson from the outset but actively mishandled, suppressed, and even destroyed evidence that could have pointed to alternative suspects in the 2002 murders of his pregnant wife Laci Peterson and their unborn son Conner.

The episode continues the central thesis introduced in Part 1: that investigators decided Scott was guilty early and shaped the entire case around that belief. Part 2 goes further, presenting what the LAIP calls a pattern of investigative failures so severe they may have denied Scott a fair trial.

**The Medina Burglary: The Lead That Was Ignored**

One of the most significant claims centers on a burglary at the home of Laci and Scott’s neighbors, the Medinas. On the morning of December 24, 2002—the same day Laci disappeared—Steven Todd and Donald Pearce burglarized the Medina residence after the family left town around 10:30 a.m. Scott had left for a boat trip at 10:08 a.m.

The state has long maintained the burglary occurred on December 26. Scott’s former defense attorney Mark Geragos argues police changed the date because a December 24 burglary would have created reasonable doubt. “If it has happened on the 24th, it’s the definition of reasonable doubt,” Geragos states in the docuseries.

Legal expert Chris Pixley reveals that the LAIP identified nine new witnesses (known only by initials) who connect Laci’s disappearance to the burglars. Former Detective Ninette Toosbuy calls the failure to investigate the robbery “investigatively negligent,” suggesting police dismissed it because they already believed they knew who killed Laci.

Two neighbors also reported their homes being scoped out for burglaries on December 23, making a December 24 robbery highly plausible.

**Eyewitnesses Who Saw Laci With the Burglars**

The LAIP theorizes that Laci confronted the burglars while they were robbing the Medina home and was killed as a result. Seven witnesses reported seeing a suspicious van linked to the burglars on the day she vanished. One witness described a pregnant woman being pushed into the van by a man who appeared homeless.

In one of the episode’s most emotional moments, Pixley speaks with eyewitness Diane Jackson, who says she called police after seeing the van outside the Medinas’ home. Jackson expresses her belief that Scott is unlikely to be the killer because the burglary was happening at the same time Laci disappeared.

**The Burning Van and Destroyed Evidence**

On Christmas Day 2002, police found a burning van in an alleyway just a mile and a half from the Peterson home. The investigation into the van fire was closed without any connection being made to Laci’s case. A stain on a mattress inside the van was tested; while the state claimed it was not blood, one test detected potential male DNA and could not rule out female DNA.

The LAIP argues the van fire, like the Medina burglary, should have been treated as potentially related to Laci’s disappearance. Instead, Toosbuy notes that evidence from the burglary was destroyed while the Laci investigation was still ongoing. She describes the timing of that destruction as “suspicious.”

Another ignored lead came from corrections officer Xavier Aponte, who in 2003 reported a recorded inmate phone call. In the call, Adam Tenbrink told his brother Shawn that he had heard Laci saw Steven Todd and his accomplices committing the burglary and that they threatened her. Police kept no record of Aponte’s tip, and the defense never received the information during Scott’s trial.

**Dog Scent Evidence and the Timeline of Conner’s Death**

The docuseries also challenges two pillars of the original prosecution. Scent dogs were used to track Laci, with police claiming a dog picked up her scent in the Airport District. Forensic expert Maneek Sinha points to possible cross-contamination—one handler accidentally gave a dog Scott’s slipper instead of Laci’s—and notes that dog scent evidence has contributed to wrongful convictions. Despite its questionable reliability, it was among the only forensic evidence presented at trial.

Even more consequential is the revised timeline of Conner Peterson’s death. At trial, Dr. Greggory DeVore testified that Conner died on December 24 based on 1984 studies. Using more recent research, an LAIP doctor concluded Conner most likely died between December 28, 2002, and January 5, 2003. Pixley calls this finding devastating to the state’s case. After December 24, Scott was under constant surveillance by police and the media. If Conner died later, Scott could not have been responsible.

**A Pattern of Prosecutorial Misconduct?**

The LAIP does not stop at the police. It accuses the Stanislaus County District Attorney’s Office of a broader pattern of abusing defendants’ rights. The docuseries highlights the case of defense attorney Frank Carson, who was prosecuted for murder in a case lacking forensic evidence after clashing with then-DA Birgit Fladager—the same prosecutor involved in Scott’s case. Carson was acquitted in 2019 and later won a $22.5 million civil settlement. Pixley suggests that a DA’s office willing to target a disliked attorney would have little hesitation in aggressively pursuing Scott Peterson.

**A Different Theory of Laci’s Final Hours**

Part 2 closes by reconstructing Laci’s last morning. Her final known contact was a phone call with her mother on the night of December 23. The next morning, neighbor Karen Servas found the Petersons’ dog wandering with its leash on around 10:18 a.m.—after Scott had already left for the marina. Fifteen eyewitnesses reported seeing Laci walking the dog after Scott’s departure.

The LAIP’s theory is stark: Laci returned home, noticed the suspicious van across the street, confronted the burglars, and was taken. Once she had seen their faces, the theory goes, the criminals could not simply let her go.

Whether these claims will ultimately free Scott Peterson remains unknown. What *Scott Peterson: The New Evidence* makes clear is that two decades later, serious questions about the original investigation refuse to die. Part 2 leaves viewers with a troubling possibility: that the pursuit of one suspect may have allowed the truth—and the real killers—to slip away.