Judge Approves Review of Convicted Killer’s Counsel

An Orange County Superior Court judge granted the request of an Irvine mother Friday by appointing a second public defender to review whether she had adequate counsel when she was convicted of her live-in boyfriend’s murder.

Sentencing for Judy Valot, who was convicted of second-degree murder in a case based on four drops of blood--the body has never been found--has tentatively been delayed until June 30. Valot, 42, faces 15 years to life in prison for slaying Peter Theriault, 51.

Valot, 42, will meet with a new attorney before returning to court June 16 for a status conference, when Judge Frank F. Fasel may be asked to consider a request for a new trial.

Valot, a forklift operator for Ford Motor Co. in Commerce, was arrested in December 1998 after making what police said were conflicting and erratic statements about Theriault’s disappearance.

Deputy Dist. Atty. Debora Lloyd said Theriault, a maintenance worker at the same company, was last seen Dec. 2 in Lake Elsinore. He returned to Irvine from that trip with Valot, who became angry because she believed that Theriault was having an affair, the prosecutor said.

Lloyd argued that Valot shot Theriault in the home they shared and then hid his body in the desert. Witnesses testified that Valot was seen in the Mojave Desert the night of the victim’s disappearance.

Investigators never recovered Theriault’s body or a murder weapon. Several drops of Theriault’s blood were found in the garage of Valot’s home and the tailgate of her pickup truck.

Throughout the trial, Valot maintained that Theriault told her in early December that he was leaving her and would not return until she moved out of the house.

A crime scene investigator testified that there were no signs of gunshots or a struggle in the couple’s home.

The appointment of new counsel before sentencing in a murder case is uncommon, said Bob Goss, a senior assistant public defender. He said the issue of whether a defendant received adequate counsel is commonly raised, but usually as part of an appeals action.

Goss said Valot would be appointed counsel from the alternate public defender’s office, a second branch of the public defender’s office used to avoid potential conflicts of interest.

Times staff writer Richard Marosi contributed to this report.