Peterson Friends Paint Sympathetic Portrait

Scott Peterson’s defense today portrayed him as a kind and thoughtful man and appealed to any sympathy a jury might have for his family in an effort to save his life.

A longtime friend spoke warmly about Peterson’s “positive impact” on those around him.

Joan Pernicano, a longtime family friend, testified in the penalty phase of Peterson’s murder trial that she has been worried about Peterson’s mother, Jackie.

“I watched her health deteriorate,” she said.

Jackie Peterson has severe respiratory problems and cannot go anywhere without a portable oxygen tank, worn in a blue satchel slung over her shoulder.

Janey Peterson, a daughter-in-law of Jackie Peterson and her husband, Lee, described Peterson’s kindnesses toward her and talked about photos of family celebrations. She was so overwhelmed by memories of better times that she broke down in tears, unable to speak.

Peterson also wept, using a white handkerchief to wipe away tears.

Janey Peterson is to resume her testimony after the lunch break.

Earlier in the morning, the jury that convicted Peterson heard from Aaron Fritz, who met Peterson in high school, where they took Advanced Placement physics and chemistry together. Friends for 17 years, they also played golf and did volunteer work in Tijuana, Mexico.

Fritz spoke about driving in Peterson’s Jeep Wrangler to deliver clothing and food to poor people in Tijuana and admiringly of his friend for going to senior homes to help residents and, on occasion, reading to children with disabilities.

The testimony followed that of Peterson’s father and others Wednesday as the defense tried to persuade a jury to choose life in prison, not the death penalty, for Peterson, convicted last month of killing his pregnant wife, Laci, and their unborn son.

If Peterson is sentenced to die, Fritz said, “that would be a horrendous tragedy, a terrible loss of a friend.”

“Scott has had a positive impact on a lot of people,” Fritz said.

The morning testimony received mixed reactions from court watchers.

“I thought he was a very strong witness for the defense and brought out many qualities that would have been helpful in the guilt phase,” said Robert Talbot, a law professor at the University of San Francisco. During that part of the trial, “all we heard about was Scott Peterson’s obsession with sex and pornography, and his treatment of Amber Frey,” with whom he had an affair.

Jim Hammer, a legal expert, disagreed.

“The point is that at some point in Scott Peterson’s life, everything changed and he became a liar and a cheater and killed his pregnant wife and dumped her body in the bay. So trying to paint him as a Jesus figure is dangerous and risks a backlash,” Hammer said.

As many as seven witnesses were to testify on Peterson’s behalf today.

Defense lawyer Pat Harris, in his opening remarks Wednesday, urged the jury to show mercy to the former fertilizer salesman from Modesto.

The defense strategy is to call about 20 witnesses, including relatives, friends, co-workers, employers, teachers and neighbors to humanize Peterson — a man prosecutors have vilified as a liar, philanderer and brutal murderer of his 27-year-old pregnant wife.

Laci Peterson disappeared Dec. 24, 2002, about a month after her husband began an affair with Fresno massage therapist Amber Frey.

Her body washed ashore in San Francisco Bay about four months later, about a mile from where Peterson claims he went fishing the day she disappeared.