Lacey Peterson, 27, disappeared on Christmas Eve 2002, and her husband, Scott Peterson, was charged with murder days after her body was found months later.
But law enforcement officials don't always wait until a body is discovered before filing murder charges, as in the case of missing Texas real estate agent Suzanne Simpson and Massachusetts real estate executive Anna Walsh. . FOX News contributor and former Washington DC homicide detective Ted Williams explained why investigators sometimes pursue charges before a body is discovered.
Simpson's husband, Brad Simpson, remains behind bars on suspicion of murdering his wife of 22 years, as authorities continue to search for Simpson, a 51-year-old mother of four who disappeared more than two months ago. Unlike the Peterson case, law enforcement did not wait for Suzanne's body to be found before charging Simpson with murder.
“Murder is like a puzzle,” Williams told FOX News Digital. “Investigators are forever putting the pieces of the puzzle together, and when they feel there is enough evidence, whether it's circumstantial evidence or physical evidence, they move on.”
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Missing Texas mother Suzanne Simpson is pictured with her husband Brad Simpson. (Facebook/Suzanne Simpson)
Still photo of Scott Peterson and Laci Peterson from the documentary series “American Murder: Laci Peterson.” (Courtesy of Netflix)
Laci Peterson was seven and a half months pregnant when she disappeared from the Modesto home she shared with Scott on Christmas Eve 2002. As a result, the search for the mother became widespread. Four months later, in April 2003, a pedestrian found the decomposing body of a fetus in San Francisco Bay, and authorities discovered Lacey's body in the bay the next day.
Within a week of the discovery, authorities arrested Scott Peterson and charged him with two counts of capital murder for the murders of his wife and unborn child.
“I think in the case of Scott Peterson, they were still gathering evidence. … They wanted to wait, they had time. And as they were gathering evidence, they were still collecting evidence. We were able to build a very specific case against Son,” Williams said.
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The former homicide detective explains why, in cases like Peterson's, law enforcement waits until a body is discovered before filing murder charges, and says that charging individuals too soon can be a challenge. The risks were explained in detail.
“Investigators have to get it right the first time,” he said. “When a person is charged with murder, they go to trial, and if it turns out that they actually committed the murder after they are acquitted, they cannot, by definition in this country, be prosecuted a second time,” as double jeopardy. ”
Double jeopardy refers to the Fifth Amendment provision that prohibits a person from being prosecuted twice for the same crime.
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Scott Peterson (left) was convicted of murdering his wife and unborn child. (Reuters/Lou DeMatteis LD/MR, California Department of Corrections)
Williams said investigators needed to gather enough evidence to sustain a murder charge, given there was only “one shot fired.”
“That's important… investigators recognize that the evidence has to be strong to proceed with a murder charge,” he added.
“The prosecution knows they're only taking a bite out of the apple,” Williams said. “Even if a jury comes back and finds the person not guilty of murder, and then finds evidence that the person did in fact commit the murder…double jeopardy in our country… “Because…the jury can't do that.” Give that person another try and he'll get away with murder. ”
In a separate homicide investigation in Massachusetts, Anna Walsh, a mother of three young children and a real estate professional working in Washington, D.C., disappeared on New Year's Day 2023 and was reported missing days later. Her body was never recovered, but her husband, Brian Walsh, was charged with murdering his 39-year-old wife.
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Brian and Anna Walsh toast their wedding day at L'Espalier Lounge on Monday, December 21, 2015 in Boston, Massachusetts. (Obtained by Fox News Digital)
Anna Walsh holds her three children in an October 2022 Instagram post. (Anna Walsh/Instagram)
Williams explained why, unlike in the Peterson investigation, authorities in both the Simpson and Walsh cases did not wait for the victims' bodies to be found before charging the suspects with murder.
“As time goes on, if investigators find a body or realize that they may never find a body, but believe there is enough physical evidence to move forward, they “We will move forward and turn it over to the investigator, and that prosecutor will decide whether to move forward with charges,” he said.
On December 3, Brad Simpson was indicted on two counts. first degree felony – Murder and aggravated assault with a deadly weapon causing serious bodily injury to a family member. He was also charged with two additional counts of tampering with a corpse, tampering with physical evidence, and possession of a prohibited weapon.
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Suzanne and Brad Simpson allegedly got into an argument after a night out at the Argyle in San Antonio, Texas.
“In the case of Suzanne Simpson, it appears that investigators have found physical and circumstantial evidence that indicates she is no longer here, and as a result, they have moved forward,” Williams said.
Suzanne Simpson's DNA was reportedly found on a “reciprocating saw” that Brad Simpson is accused of hiding, according to indictment records obtained by Fox News Digital. and KABB report. Authorities say there has been no sign that Suzanne has been alive since her husband allegedly assaulted her on October 6, which was confirmed by her cell phone records, financial records, and family, friends and co-workers. said.
Neighbors reportedly witnessed Mr. Simpson assault his wife on the night of his disappearance, and then reportedly heard screams coming from the nearby woods, while the couple's 5-year-old child is a school counselor On the night of Oct. 6, her father “pushed her against a wall and (physically) punched her in the face inside the residence, injuring her elbow'' and “according to the affidavit.'' They got into a fight and turned off their mother's phone.”
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Tuesday, November 12, 2024, at the home of Suzanne and Brad Simpson in San Antonio, Texas. Suzanne Simpson disappeared under suspicious circumstances. (Kat Ramirez, Fox News Digital)
track down investigators Simpson's unusual behavior in the days after his wife disappeared included turning off his cell phone, driving around with suspicious items in the back of his truck, going to the garbage dump, and cleaning his truck at a car wash. actions were included.
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“There are key points and commonalities,” Williams told FOX News Digital. “All of these cases…occurred in different jurisdictions, and those jurisdictions treat murders differently, but all homicides…are based on evidence that investigators have developed over a long period of time. ”
FOX News' Audrey Conklin contributed to this report.
