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American Morning
Search for Laci
Aired January 10, 2003 - 09:34 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
PAULA ZAHN, CNN ANCHOR: Now we're going to turn our attention now to a story that's getting a lot of attention out on the West Coast. In California, there is a development in the search for a missing Modesto woman. Laci Peterson, you might remember, vanished more than two weeks ago. She was eight months pregnant at the time. Now, police have been using sonar, and they have detected an object that could be a body in the marina.
Laci's husband went fishing off that marina the day she disappeared. Let's turn to Rusty Dornin now, who joins us from Modesto, with the very latest on the investigation.
Good morning, Rusty.
RUSTY DORNIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Paula.
Police here are being very careful about this and not calling it a breakthrough. In fact, this information would not have even been released, but it leaked to the local media, and they had to release it. They say they're side-scanning sonar did detect an object that resembled a body. This is the same sonar they told us in a press conference yesterday afternoon could spot a tire at 300 feet, but they are really backing away from saying that this is a body.
Now, of course, there has been tremendous pressure to find out what is down there in the Berkeley Marina. That is where Scott Peterson told police he went fishing that day, Christmas Eve, when Laci Peterson disappeared. Rumors have been flying all week about a body being discovered in that marina. Police have been denying it all week. They even said there was nothing discovered yesterday afternoon. It wasn't until the early evening, they say, they did discover something.
While the pressure is on, of course, the family is anxious over this. Apparently, divers will not be able to go into the water today, because it's not safe.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CHIEF ROY WASDEN, MODESTO POLICE: The weather conditions won't permit it. Additionally, I don't understand the sea. I've never been out there. I guess the currents are fairly bad right now, so the timing between the weather and currents and the fatigue of the divers is not going to allow them to be down there today.
(END VIDEO CLIP) DORNIN: Police are just very tight-lipped about Scott Peterson, saying they're still trying to corroborate his whereabouts from Sunday through Tuesday of Christmas Eve. The family is still standing solidly behind him -- Paula.
ZAHN: Rusty, while the police department, you say, is backing away from reports that this could be a body in the marina, are they saying on the record it is not a body, or are they are just backing away from the report?
DORNIN: They're back -- they are saying it resembles a body, but they're not saying it is. They are saying that the currents are so heavy right now, and the divers were so fatigued and such that they cannot positively say it is.
But, on the other hand, Paula, we are hearing that the side- scanning sonars are very accurate and can detect objects from a very large distance. So it's very unclear at this point.
ZAHN: What a dreadful wait for the family. Rusty Dornin, thanks so much for the update.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
Aired January 10, 2003 - 09:34 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
PAULA ZAHN, CNN ANCHOR: Now we're going to turn our attention now to a story that's getting a lot of attention out on the West Coast. In California, there is a development in the search for a missing Modesto woman. Laci Peterson, you might remember, vanished more than two weeks ago. She was eight months pregnant at the time. Now, police have been using sonar, and they have detected an object that could be a body in the marina.
Laci's husband went fishing off that marina the day she disappeared. Let's turn to Rusty Dornin now, who joins us from Modesto, with the very latest on the investigation.
Good morning, Rusty.
RUSTY DORNIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Paula.
Police here are being very careful about this and not calling it a breakthrough. In fact, this information would not have even been released, but it leaked to the local media, and they had to release it. They say they're side-scanning sonar did detect an object that resembled a body. This is the same sonar they told us in a press conference yesterday afternoon could spot a tire at 300 feet, but they are really backing away from saying that this is a body.
Now, of course, there has been tremendous pressure to find out what is down there in the Berkeley Marina. That is where Scott Peterson told police he went fishing that day, Christmas Eve, when Laci Peterson disappeared. Rumors have been flying all week about a body being discovered in that marina. Police have been denying it all week. They even said there was nothing discovered yesterday afternoon. It wasn't until the early evening, they say, they did discover something.
While the pressure is on, of course, the family is anxious over this. Apparently, divers will not be able to go into the water today, because it's not safe.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CHIEF ROY WASDEN, MODESTO POLICE: The weather conditions won't permit it. Additionally, I don't understand the sea. I've never been out there. I guess the currents are fairly bad right now, so the timing between the weather and currents and the fatigue of the divers is not going to allow them to be down there today.
(END VIDEO CLIP) DORNIN: Police are just very tight-lipped about Scott Peterson, saying they're still trying to corroborate his whereabouts from Sunday through Tuesday of Christmas Eve. The family is still standing solidly behind him -- Paula.
ZAHN: Rusty, while the police department, you say, is backing away from reports that this could be a body in the marina, are they saying on the record it is not a body, or are they are just backing away from the report?
DORNIN: They're back -- they are saying it resembles a body, but they're not saying it is. They are saying that the currents are so heavy right now, and the divers were so fatigued and such that they cannot positively say it is.
But, on the other hand, Paula, we are hearing that the side- scanning sonars are very accurate and can detect objects from a very large distance. So it's very unclear at this point.
ZAHN: What a dreadful wait for the family. Rusty Dornin, thanks so much for the update.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
