Drew Peterson pre-trial hearing: The videos

Recently, I spent an afternoon looking back at all the posts and threads from January 19-February 19th, 2010. You’ll remember that this is when Drew Peterson’s pre-trial hearings took place. The prosecution called over 60 witnesses to testify about not only the Kathleen Savio murder case, but Stacy Peterson‘s disappearance. Judge Stephen White used the evidence presented during these hearings to decide which if any hearsay evidence could be admitted in Peterson’s murder trial (the judge’s decision barring some testimony was overturned in April).

Specifically, I watched all the youtube video clips from the news during the hearings. One thing that struck me was that the formula for most clips is pretty much the same. A reporter gives a run-down of the day’s events and then Joel Brodsky gets some face time to refute the testimony and/or attack the witnesses’ credibility. Although Brodsky starts sounding like a broken record (especially after watching a few clips in succession) it certainly clears away any question of “media bias”. As far as the news goes, the coverage was undeniably fair.

A lot of the evidence presented had to do with the disappearance of Stacy Peterson. It’s highly likely that none of that testimony will be heard in the trial for Kathleen Savio’s murder. But it was presented at the pre-trial hearing in order to convince the judge that Drew made Stacy unavailable to testify, and so forfeited his right to confront, which cleared the way for her hearsay evidence (what she told her pastor, a friend and attorney Harry Smith about Drew killing Kathleen) to be admitted.

I don’t think any of us can predict exactly what will end up being presented in the upcoming trial–the defense is filing motions to bar as much as they can–but the videos are an excellent refresher on the State’s witnesses (at least those available in the Winter of 2010), and the evidence against Drew Peterson. I decided to embed all the videos in one post for easy viewing.  They are in chronological order.

There are a LOT of them so pace yourself!

Drew Peterson hearsay testimony begins

Stacy Peterson’s Uncle, former boss testify at hearsay hearing

Drew Peterson’s stepbrother testifies in hearsay hearing

Drew Peterson Hearsay Hearings: Day 17 – Walter Martineck and pathologist testify for defense

Rescueapet is atending the hearing today. Expect a full report this evening! I’ll update the comments section with anything I hear from her throughout the day.
~Facsmiley

Hearsay testimony to continue with retired Sgt. Patrick Collins

Stepbrother: Drew asked if I’d kill for him

January 21, 2010 By JOE HOSEY and DAN ROZEK

BOLINGBROOK — Drew Peterson’s stepbrother pieced together the accused wife-killer’s allegedly murderous schemes and revealed how he was supposedly roped into helping dispose of Stacy Peterson’s body. Morphey, whose father is married to Peterson’s mother, told his shocking tale from the witness stand on the second day of a historic hearing to determine what hearsay evidence will be allowed at Peterson’s murder trial. Peterson faces murder charges in connection with the March 2004 apparent bathtub drowning of his third wife, Kathleen Savio. Prosecutors are trying to prove he killed Stacy Peterson so she could not testify against him. Stacy Peterson vanished in October 2007. The state police believe she may have been slain and have named Peterson their only suspect in the case but have yet to make an arrest.

Stepbrother testifies

Morphey’s testimony mirrored an exclusive account he gave The Herald-News in March. In that interview, and in court Thursday, Morphey told how Peterson asked him, “Do you love me?’ and when Morphey said he did, continued with, “Enough to kill for me?” When Morphey said he could not live with himself if he killed someone, Peterson asked if he “could live with knowing about it,” to which Morphey replied, “I always assumed you killed Kathleen.” Morphey also told how Peterson dropped him off in a park with a cell phone for about an hour the night after Stacy was last seen alive. He said Peterson told him not to answer the phone when it rang. The phone rang twice, Morphey said, and both times the caller ID showed Stacy’s name. Peterson then picked up Morphey and brought him to the Peterson residence. The two men went inside, Morphey said, and carried a blue plastic barrel weighing about 150 pounds downstairs to Peterson’s sport utility vehicle. Distraught at the notion of aiding Peterson in the murder of his wife, Morphey attempted suicide by overdosing on tranquilizers. The state police interviewed him in the hospital and State’s Attorney James Glasgow granted him immunity for his testimony. Morphey also said Peterson confided that Stacy was cheating on him with two possible lovers, one of whom he wanted to frame for Stacy’s murder. Peterson asked him to drive Stacy’s car to Shorewood, where one of Stacy’s men lived, and leave the car there with the keys in the ashtray in an attempt to lead the cops there, Morphey said. He also said Peterson tried to get him to rent a storage locker in Romeoville. “He said he wanted it in my name, that he would pay me $200 up front to rent it and when that ran out, he (would give) me more money. Concerned about a decomposing body beginning stink, Morphey said he asked, “What about the smell?” but Peterson reassured him. “He said a sealed container, he said it would be air-tight,” Morphey said. “He said I should check it from time to time to make sure there was no odor.” “He’d leave the container there for six months until the smoke cleared and then he’d dispose of it,” Morphey said, and “If something happened to him, if he had a heart attack, to dump it in the canal.” Morphey said Peterson told him Stacy was demanding a divorce. She wanted Peterson out of the house in four days, was seeking custody of their two children along with the two born to Savio, who she adopted, and had her eyes on quite a bit of her old man’s assets. “She wanted half his pension, which meant he had to work for the rest of his life,” Morphey said. Peterson was also worried that if Stacy had custody of his kids, her brother, convicted sexual predator Yelton Cales, could get at them, Morphey said.

Drew Peterson: another hearing this friday

UPDATE July 8: Hearing rescheduled for Tuesday, July 14th.

NAME                 DATE     ROOM    TIME      CASE   
PETERSON DREW W     7  10  9  402     930     09CF001048
PETERSON DREW W     7  10  9  402     930     09CF001048

Drew Peterson will be in court again this Friday, July 10, for a motions hearing. At that time Judge Stephen White should rule on continued motions and hear any new ones.

At Peterson’s last hearing Joel Brodsky argued six motions before the judge. He asked that prosecutors be required to give more details about their theory of how Peterson killed Kathleen Savio as well as summaries of the 9,470 investigative reports provided to the defense. This was denied. The judge also denied the request that Peterson be allowed to retain evidence against him while he is in jail.

At the last hearing Judge White asked the prosecution to reveal if payment or other consideration was given to Paula Stark, Len Wawczak or Thomas Morphey in exchange for their testimony. He also agreed to enter an order forbidding the state from listening to recorded phone calls between Peterson and his attorneys; although John Connor, chief of the Will County State’s Attorney’s major crimes unit stated that prosecutors have not been listening in.

The prosecution was also asked to produce a list of the fifty witnesses most likely to be called to testify, from over 800 witnesses originally named.

Will County Circuit Court Schedule

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Peterson Grand Jury Ends

SOURCE:  GRAND JURY ENDS PETERSON PROBE

May 19, 2009

By JOE HOSEY

JOLIET — The grand jury investigating the fate of Drew Peterson’s last two wives wrapped up Tuesday with the testimony of potential star witness Thomas Morphey, a source said.

The grand jury’s 18-month term is set to expire Thursday, but the source said it finished two days early.

Charles B. Pelkie, the spokesman for the state’s attorney’s office, said he could neither confirm nor deny whether the grand jury, which was hearing testimony regarding the murder of Peterson’s third wife, Kathleen Savio, and the disappearance of his fourth wife, Stacy Peterson, as well as the apparently unrelated disappearance of Plainfield mother Lisa Stebic, was in fact done.

The grand jury indicted Peterson two weeks ago on first-degree murder charges in connection with Savio’s death, but no indictments are on file relating to either Stacy Peterson or Stebic’s disappearance, although they may be under seal.

Pelkie declined to comment on whether or not the grand jury has returned indictments in either Stacy or Stebic’s case.

PETERSON GRAND JURY HEARS WIRE TAP TESTIMONY

Thomas Morphey and Lenny Wawczak take a break from testifying.

From NBC 5 News…

PETERSON GRAND JURY HEARS WIRE TAP TESTIMONY
By DICK JOHNSON

Updated 11:30 AM CDT, Thu, May 14, 2009

The former friends of Drew Peterson who allegedly wore wire taps to record potentially incriminating conversations with him are before a Will County grand jury today.

The grand jury is in its final two weeks of work toward a possible indictment in the disappearance of Peterson’s fourth wife, Stacy.

Also in front of the grand jury is Thomas Morphey, Drew’s stepbrother, who claims he helped carry a blue plastic barrel out of the Peterson home, which he now believes contained Stacy’s dead body.

Read the story at NBC Chicago News

BTW, Steve Carcerano also appeared before Grand Jury today.

MAY 15 UPDATE: Mike Robinson also testified at yesterday’s Grand Jury.

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Drew Peterson on trial: Who will be called to testify?

Joel Brodsky is back in town and one can only assume that Monday he will be getting around to dealing with his client, Drew Peterson, who currently sits in isolation in the medical unit of the Will County Adult Detention Facility.

Peterson is scheduled for an arraignment hearing on May 18, for the murder of his third wife, Kathleen Savio.

It’s anyone’s guess when the case will actually go to trial, but when it does who do you think will be called up as witnesses? The following is a list I put together but maybe you can think of more…or reasons why some of these people might not be called.

1. Michael Baden, M. M.D.
   Forensic Pathologist
   He analyzed Kathleen Savio’s remains November 16, 2007 at the request of her relatives. He concluded she died after a struggle, and her body was placed in the bathtub where she was found.
2. Bill Belcher Jr.
   A witness for Kathleen’s first autopsy, March 1, 2004
3. Dr. Larry W. Blum
   Forensic pathologist who performed autopsy of Kathleen on November 13, 2007. Concluded in his report that the actual cause of Kathleen Savio’s death was drowning and that the legal manner of death was homicide. “Dr. Blum’s forensic report renders his expert opinion that this is a homicide,”
4. Bob Brenczewski
   Will County Chief Deputy Coroner
5. Mike Calcagno
   BBPD Chief in 2004 said he felt for Kathleen and gave her his personal cell number
6. Steven Carcerano
   A friend and former neighbor of Drew and Kathleen. Discovered Kathleen’s body.
7. James B. Carrol
   Drew Peterson’s Uncle and executor of the estate of Kathleen Savio
8. Victoria L. Connolly
   Drew Peterson’s 2nd Wife
   Said that during their marriage an increasingly controlling Peterson told her he could kill her and make it look like an accident.
9. Charlie Dastych
   DuPage County’s Chief Deputy Coroner
   Reviewed Kathleen’s autopsy report at CBS 2′s request. “The injuries that are noted in the autopsy report definitely indicate there is evidence of suspicion that could be looked at at a different level,” Dastych said. “Evidence of a possible struggle.”
10. Bob Deel
    ISP crime scene technician.
    Deputy Coroner Mike VanOver: “Bob Deel was asked by me if he thought there was anything hinky here, and stuff like that, and if we should be doing something different, and I was told no.”

Drew Peterson: Where is the Love?

Drew Peterson cutting down ribbons honoring his missing wife on Sunday.

Recently, I came across a Facebook comment from Tom Morphey‘s sister, Sue Cathcart. She wrote, “The entire Morphey family is anxiously awaiting SOMETHING to put this murderer away! It is incomprehensible that Drew is walking around a free man, destroying the lives of his innocent children and mocking the justice system. I pray for some closure for Kathleen & Stacy’s families, and normalcy for the Morphey family. Thanks to everyone who has encouraged and supported my brother, Tommy, during this difficult time for him.”

Sue isn’t the only person to come forward in support of Tom Morphey, the man who claims to have helped his brother move a blue container from Drew Peterson’s house the night that Stacy Peterson went missing. Tom’s brother, John Morphey, has also spoken publicly in defense of his brother. He’s described Tom as a man with a past of drug and alcohol abuse, but also as a man who has worked hard to clean up. He describes his brother as trusting and loyal saying “He’s loyal to a fault. Put it this way: His sophomore year of high school, he was playing football [at Hinsdale South High School] and one of the guys on his team picked up the ball and ran the wrong way. Tom blocked for him.”

Tom’s friend Walter Martinek says, “He’s a down-to-earth person. He’ll give you the shirt off his back. I can’t say nothing bad about him. His past is his past. From when I moved into the neighborhood six years ago, I’ve never seen no problems whatsoever.”

These people have all come forward in support of a man who Drew Peterson’s defense is trying to paint as someone with “severe mental illness, drug and alcohol addiction“; someone who lies and hallucinates; a man who thirsts so much for approval that he’ll admit to knowing about and being involved in the murder of his sister-in-law. Yet, there are people who will stand up to vouch for and defend Tom Morphey.

So, where are Drew Peterson’s supporters?

Drew Peterson Lies on the Air About Visiting a Storage Facility.

Drew Peterson at WIND 560.

Yesterday, while we were all waiting to see Thomas Morphey speak on Good Morning America, Drew Peterson and Joel Brodsky did a radio interview at WIND 560 am, with Geoff Pinkus and Amy Jacobson.

My hat is off to Jacobson and Pinkus, who went after Drew with some very direct questions, including some about the storage locker that Thomas Morphey claims Drew wanted him to rent the day before Stacy Peterson disappeared. You need to listen to this audio clip from the show.

I was very interested to hear Drew at first deny that the visit had occurred and then under the urgings of Jacobson and his attorney, do a complete 180 and admit that indeed he had visited such a facility with his step-brother, but only to inquire about renting a unit, and only to store tires. Not in any way did he want Tom to put the unit in his name, so that Drew could store a corpse there. No. No way. Absolutely not!

UPDATE:  Geoff Pinkus has got four audio segments from the show available on his site now. They are good!

UPDATE: From a new ABC story
A spokesperson for the Will County State’s Attorney Office responded to the allegations by Brodsky saying that, “Mr. Brodsky has no first-hand knowledge of our investigation and no concept of whom we deem credible or not. Our investigation is focused on the disappearance of Stacy Peterson and the murder of Kathleen Savio.  We fully expect to bring one of those cases to a successful conclusion in the very near future.”.

Has Tom Morphey Run Away to Join the Media Circus?

This is a little concerning. Just how much is Tom going to talk…and what will he say?

Do you think Tom should be speaking out publicly about the events surrounding Stacy’s disappearance? Give us your opinion by taking the poll at the end of this post.

Chris Cuomo, the reporter who interviewed Tom Morphey for tomorrow’s Good Morning America appearance, hosted a Twitter chat this morning about the interview. Scroll down the comments on this thread to see what Cuomo had to say.

Preview of Morphey’s appearance on Good Morning America.

**********************************

Tom Morphey will appear on Good Morning America Monday.

Peterson’s stepbrother wanted on TV news shows
March 13, 2009

By JOE HOSEY jhosey@scn1.com

Thomas Morphey laid low for nearly a year and a half and watched his stepbrother Drew Peterson make the rounds of various TV news shows.

Now Morphey, who says Peterson pulled him into a sinister murder plot against his will, is taking his turn on the small screen.

Tom Morphey, Drew Peterson’s stepbrother, has come clean about what happened in the time around the disappearance of Drew’s fourth wife, Stacy Peterson in October 2007.

Morphey jetted out to New York on Thursday to tape an interview on “Good Morning America.” It is the first TV appearance for Morphey since he went public with his story that Peterson not only asked him to commit murder, but roped him into disposing of his wife’s body. The show will air Monday morning.

Peterson’s wife, Stacy Peterson, vanished in October 2007. State police consider Stacy, who is Peterson’s fourth wife, to be the victim of a “potential homicide” and named Drew Peterson their sole suspect.

State police also are investigating the mysterious, March 2004 bathtub homicide of Peterson’s third wife, Kathleen Savio. State police first found nothing fishy about Savio’s death, but got another shot at it after Stacy vanished.