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Scott Peterson pins hope for 'unlikely' appeal on duct tape DNA testing in pregnant wife's murder, expert says

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Scott Peterson pins hope for 'unlikely' appeal on duct tape DNA testing in pregnant wife's murder, expert says

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Twenty years after he was convicted for the murder of his wife and unborn child, Scott Peterson hopes that further DNA testing of evidence could win him a retrial — but a former California prosecutor with knowledge of the case said his chances are “unlikely.” 

In an order filed on July 24, a judge decided that a 15.5-inch piece of duct tape recovered from Laci Peterson’s pants at her autopsy on April 13, 2003, must undergo DNA testing. 

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Pure Gold Forensics, Inc. will conduct the test on the tape, along with more than a dozen physical pieces of evidence for which the judge granted testing. The order also states that “the DNA testing shall be conducted within 45 days of this order or as soon as practical.”

SCOTT PETERSON PROSECUTORS LAY OUT ‘OVERWHELMING EVIDENCE’ AGAINST KILLER’S NEW APPEAL IN 337-PAGE FILING

Convicted killer Scott Peterson appears in court on May 29. He is attempting to get a new trial. (KTVU)

The LA Innocence Project, which provides attorneys to exonerate the wrongfully convicted, announced earlier this year that it is picking up Peterson’s case. On Aug. 20, Peterson will speak out for the first time since his conviction in a new Peacock documentary, “Face to Face with Scott Peterson.”

Although Peterson’s attorneys have succeeded in having his death penalty overturned in favor of life imprisonment without parole, they have tried and failed multiple times to appeal his conviction. 

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Prosecutors disagreed with the latest appeal, taken up by the LA Innocence Project, and put together a 337-page court filing opposing his motion for DNA testing in May. 

SCOTT PETERSON PROSECUTOR ASKS JUDGE TO SLAM DOOR ON KEY TO KILLER’S LATEST APPEAL

Prosecutors said police recovered Laci Peterson’s hair from the teeth of these needle-nosed pliers, which they found on her husband and convicted killer Scott Peterson’s boat. (Superior Court of California, San Mateo County)

Attorney Neama Rahmani, the president of West Coast Trial Lawyers, said that although a judge has now signed off on the additional DNA testing, it is “unlikely” that the 51-year-old will get a new trial. 

Rahmani explained that another person’s DNA would have to show up on the duct tape or other pieces of evidence. 

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Peterson’s sister-in-law Janey Peterson, who will be featured in the upcoming Peacock documentary, believes that Laci had a fatal run-in with burglars after she witnessed their crime across the street from her Modesto home and confronted them, Fox News Digital previously reported. 

Laci vanished on Christmas Eve 2002, and her body washed up in the San Francisco Bay months later, not far from the body of her unborn son, Conner. Two strands of Laci’s hair collected from a pair of pliers on Peterson’s boat were a key piece of evidence used to convict him of her murder.

Police alleged Peterson used the boat to dispose of her body.

SCOTT PETERSON DEFENSE DROPS MOTION TO SEAL IN BID FOR NEW TRIAL AFTER PROSECUTORS NOTE FILES MOSTLY PUBLIC

Scott Peterson and Amber Frey pictured at a Christmas party on Dec. 14, 2002, before the murder of Laci Peterson and before Frey knew Scott was a married man. (Superior Court of California, San Mateo County)

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Peterson had claimed that he was fishing in the bay on the day Laci went missing — not far from where her badly decomposed body washed up onshore. 

“Peterson admitted to fishing [near] where the body was found — what are the chances unless he’s the unluckiest guy in the world?” Rahmani told Fox News Digital. 

“You go fishing, Laci stumbles upon some burglars. They kill her, they somehow know where Scott Peterson is, they drive 100 miles away to dump the body where he happens to be fishing — anything is possible, but that strikes me as very unlikely,” he continued. 

At the time Peterson’s wife disappeared, the then-30-year-old was carrying out an affair with massage therapist Amber Frey. 

“A lot of it was ‘were his actions the actions of someone who lost his wife and unborn child,’” Rahmani recalled of the case. “The guy shows no remorse when she disappears, doesn’t help in the search, doesn’t participate in any of the visuals. He’s trying to get out of his marriage, he’s having an affair, he’s racked up debt — I feel that there is plenty of evidence that implicates Scott Peterson.”

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Prosecutors said these photographs of a smiling Scott Peterson were taken during a vigil for Laci Peterson on New Year’s Eve in 2002. Jurors found at the end of his trial in 2004 that he killed her days later. She was more than 8 months pregnant with their son. (Superior Court of California, San Mateo County)

That said, Rahmani said that for the LA Innocence Project to be picking up Peterson’s case, they must “believe there is something here.”

The LA Innocence Project did not respond to Fox News Digital’s requests for comment, but provided the following statement earlier this year: 

“The Los Angeles Innocence Project filed motions in January asking the Court to order further discovery of evidence and allow new DNA testing to support our investigation into Mr. Peterson’s claim of actual innocence… We have not commented on our motions, and we will continue to present our case in court — where it should be adjudicated.”

Rahmani also remarked that Peterson’s trial lawyers who defended his case “still believe he’s innocent.”

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Scott Peterson was convicted of killing his pregnant wife, Laci Peterson, inset.

“I’m not saying that it’s impossible that Scott Peterson was wrongfully convicted,” he conceded. “[But] there’s a ton of circumstantial evidence.”

Rahmani also said that the upcoming Peacock documentary could sway public opinion in Peterson’s favor. 

“PR matters a lot,” he said. “Scott Peterson, for a while, was one of the most hated men in this country… [But] public opinion can make a difference one way or another — [the documentary] could sway things potentially in his favor.”

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“R. Kelly went down because of a documentary, Britney Spears came out of a conservatorship because of a documentary,” Rahmani continued. “The court of public opinion matters a lot. Every prosecutor in this country is elected or appointed by someone who was elected.”

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Montana

Montana Lottery Powerball, Lotto America results for March 2, 2026

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The Montana Lottery offers multiple draw games for those aiming to win big.

Here’s a look at March 2, 2026, results for each game:

Winning Powerball numbers from March 2 drawing

02-17-18-38-62, Powerball: 20, Power Play: 2

Check Powerball payouts and previous drawings here.

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Winning Lotto America numbers from March 2 drawing

03-08-17-24-34, Star Ball: 06, ASB: 02

Check Lotto America payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Big Sky Bonus numbers from March 2 drawing

06-12-19-29, Bonus: 11

Check Big Sky Bonus payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Powerball Double Play numbers from March 2 drawing

21-28-58-65-67, Powerball: 25

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Check Powerball Double Play payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Millionaire for Life numbers from March 2 drawing

28-41-42-50-55, Bonus: 02

Check Millionaire for Life payouts and previous drawings here.

Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results

When are the Montana Lottery drawings held?

  • Powerball: 8:59 p.m. MT on Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday.
  • Mega Millions: 9 p.m. MT on Tuesday and Friday.
  • Lucky For Life: 8:38 p.m. MT daily.
  • Lotto America: 9 p.m. MT on Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.
  • Big Sky Bonus: 7:30 p.m. MT daily.
  • Powerball Double Play: 8:59 p.m. MT on Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday.
  • Montana Cash: 8 p.m. MT on Wednesday and Saturday.
  • Millionaire for Life: 9:15 p.m. MT daily.

Missed a draw? Peek at the past week’s winning numbers.

This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a Great Falls Tribune editor. You can send feedback using this form.

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Nevada

EDITORIAL: Nevada still vulnerable as tourist downturn continues

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EDITORIAL: Nevada still vulnerable as tourist downturn continues


Strip gaming executives can put their best spin on the numbers, but local tourism indicators remain a major concern. Casino operators seeking to draw more people through the door still have much work to do.

The Nevada Gaming Control Board released January gaming numbers Friday. The news was underwhelming. The state gaming win was down 6.6 percent from a year earlier. The Strip took the largest hit, an 11 percent drop. But the gloomy returns were spread throughout Clark County: Downtown Las Vegas was off 5.2 percent, Laughlin suffered a 3.3 percent decline and the Boulder Strip dipped by 7 percent.

For the current fiscal year, gaming tax collections are up a paltry
2.1 percent, below budget projections.

The red flags include more than gaming numbers. Recently released figures for 2025 reveal that visitation to Las Vegas fell nearly 8 percent from 2024, which represented the lowest total since the pandemic in 2021. Traffic at Reid International Airport fell more than 10 percent in December and was down 6 percent for the year. Strip occupancy rates fell 3 percent in 2025.

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To be fair, this is not just a Las Vegas problem. International travel to the United States was down
4.8 percent in January, Forbes reported, the ninth straight month of decline. Travel from Europe fell 5.2 percent, and passenger counts from Asia fell 7.5 percent. Canadian tourism cratered by 22 percent.

No doubt that President Donald Trump’s blustery rhetoric has played a role in the decline, but there’s more at work. International tourism has been largely flat since Barack Obama’s last few years in office. But domestic travel has held relatively steady although it is “starting to cool,” according to the U.S. Travel Association. Las Vegas hasn’t been helped by high-profile complaints last year about exorbitant Strip prices for parking, bottled water and other staples. Casino operators responded by offering discounts, particularly for locals, and they’ll need to continue those policies into 2026.

The tourism downturn has ramifications for the state budget, which relies primarily on sales and gaming tax revenues to support spending plans. “Nevada’s employment and economic challenges reflect deep structural factors that extend beyond cyclical economic fluctuations,” noted a recent report by economic analyst John Restrepo. “The state’s extreme concentration in tourism and gaming creates unique vulnerabilities.”

The irony is that state and local politicians have been talking for the past half century about “diversifying” the state economy. In recent years, that effort has primarily consisted of handing out millions in tax breaks and other incentives to attract businesses to the state. A dispassionate observer might ask whether that approach has brought an adequate return on investment.

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New Mexico

New Mexico Livestock Board accused of abuse of power in rancher, inspector feud

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New Mexico Livestock Board accused of abuse of power in rancher, inspector feud


LAS VEGAS, N.M. — The approaching desert dusk did nothing to settle Travis Regensberg’s nerves as he and a small herd of stray cattle awaited the appearance of a state livestock inspector with whom he had a 30-year feud.

This was Nov. 3, 2023, and, as Regensberg tells it, the New Mexico Livestock Board had maintained an agreement for almost a decade: Livestock Inspector Matthew Romero would not service his ranch due to a long history of bad blood between the two men. False allegations of “cattle rustling” had surfaced in the past, Regensberg said. 

A dramatic standoff that evening, caught on lapel camera video, shows Regensberg at the entrance gate of his ranch. Defiant, Regensberg says anyone but Romero can pick up the stray cattle he had asked state livestock officials to pick up earlier in the day. Romero, who is backed up by two New Mexico State Police officers, directs Regensberg to open the gate or he will be arrested.

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Travis Regensberg, rancher and contractor, practices his throw on a roping dummy in his barn in Las Vegas, N.M., on Feb. 17, 2025.



Unlawful impound?







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A small herd of Travis Regensberg’s cattle eat feed on his property in Las Vegas, N.M.

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The history

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Travis Regensberg takes a bag of feed out to his cattle followed by his dog Rooster in Las Vegas, N.M., on Feb. 17, 2025.



‘A matter of principle’







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Travis Regensberg gathers his rope while practicing his throw on a roping dummy in his barn in Las Vegas, N.M., on Feb. 17, 2025.


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