In a surprising turn of events, the Los Angeles Innocence Project is taking on the case of Scott Peterson, who was convicted of murdering his wife back in 2004. His case was one of the early 2000’s most notorious murder cases. Now, it appears it is back in the headlines.

The LA Innocence Project claims to have "newly discovered evidence" supporting Peterson’s claim that he did not murder his wife Lacey, who was pregnant at the time of her death.

The Los Angeles Innocence Project has taken up the notorious case of convicted wife killer Scott Peterson in new court filings, ABC News was first to report on Thursday. The group is seeking new evidence from the original trial.

Laci Peterson, who was 27 years old and eight months pregnant, disappeared on Christmas Eve in 2002. Her body was found in San Francisco Bay in April 2003.

Scott Peterson, 51, was arrested and charged with first-degree murder in the death of his wife and second-degree murder in the death of their unborn son. He was convicted in 2004 and sentenced to death in 2005. He was later sentenced to life in prison without parole.

Attorneys with the LA Innocence Project claimed that Scott Peterson's state and federal constitutional rights were violated, including a "claim of actual innocence that is supported by newly discovered evidence," according to the court filings.

"New evidence now supports Mr. Peterson's longstanding claim of innocence and raises many questions into who abducted and killed Laci and Conner Peterson," the filings state.

The case dates back to Christmas Eve 2002, when Laci Peterson, who was 27 years old and eight months pregnant, disappeared. Her body was later found in San Francisco Bay in April 2003. The focus turned to Scott Peterson, which led to his arrest and conviction. He was originally sentenced to death, but his sentence was later commuted to life imprisonment without parole.

The LA Innocence Project brings a fresh perspective to Peterson’s case. The organization's attorneys seek to unearth "dozens of items" from the original investigation that could prove that he did not commit the murder.

His attorneys are seeking dozens of items they say they could not locate after reviewing the trial files from his prior counsel "after a thorough search," according to the filings. The items include evidence from the investigations into a December 2002 burglary of a home across the street from the Petersons' in Modesto in Stanislaus County, Laci Peterson's missing Croton watch, and a van fire in the Airport District on Dec. 25, 2002, according to the filings. They are also seeking documents from interviews with several witnesses.

Paula Mitchell, the director of the LA Innocence Project, said she found "deficiencies" while reviewing the discovery of Scott Peterson's case and sent a letter to Stanislaus County District Attorney Jeff Laugero on Nov. 14, 2023, "seeking informal production of numerous specific items of post-conviction discovery," according to a declaration included in the filings.

During Peterson’s trial, the prosecution put forth a mixture of circumstantial and forensic evidence tying him to the crime. Prosecutors highlighted the scent-sniffing dogs that traced Laci’s scent to the Berkley Marina, where Scott had claimed to be fishing on the day that she vanished. The implication was that Laci was on the boat before her death. A single hair that was believed to belong to Laci was found on a pair of pliers on the boat. The prosecution contended that this suggested that her body was transported on the boat, since she had never seen the boat while she was alive.

The state’s case also included planter pots found in the marina that matched broken pots from a storage unit that was in Scott’s name. The prosecution intimated that these pots were used to weigh down Laci’s body in the water.

Scott Peterson’s affair with Amber Frey was also a point of contention. Frey’s wiretapped phone conversation that showed he had lied about being married. This seemed to suggest that Peterson's motive for murdered his wife was so that he could be with Frey.

Other than the hair on the boat, there was no other physical evidence tying Peterson to the crime.

As the LA Innocence Project delves deeper into this high-profile case, there will likely be much speculation about their findings. If the organization discovers exculpatory evidence that results in a reversal of the verdict, it would certainly be one of the most significant developments in a prominent murder case.