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Peterson Still Maintains He Did Nothing To Wives

Juror On Kathleen Savio's 2004 Inquest Apologizes For Coroner's Ruling

(CBS) Four months to the day after Stacy Peterson disappeared, her husband, Drew Peterson, appeared on national television and continued to deny any involvement in her disappearance or the homicide of his third wife.

Sources tell CBS 2 that two of Drew Peterson's children were subpoenaed to testify before a grand jury on Thursday, but the hearing was postponed.

It's not clear if Peterson's second live interview on the "Today" show had anything to do with the postponement.

Recently, speculation has surrounded the death of Drew Peterson's third wife, Kathleen Savio. In the interview, Peterson questioned the results of a new autopsy on Savio, which concluded that her death was a homicide.

Savio was found dead in a dry bathtub in March 2004. An autopsy immediately following her death ruled it an accidental drowning.

"It was kind of shocking. We believed for the last four years that the death was accidental. That was with a fresh autopsy, and now all of a sudden, there's a new autopsy with an old body, let's say, and it's been ruled a homicide," Peterson said. "I'm kind of suspicious."

When asked about remarks by Savio's family that she might have been killed and her death made to look like an accident, Brodsky said the conclusion that Savio's murder was covered up was far from certain.

"That's assuming that the second coroner's report is correct," Brodsky said. "We have two conflicting coroner's reports, only one of which has been released, and the only one that's been released is the one that says it's an accident."

The investigation into Savio's death was reopened and her body was exhumed after Stacy Peterson's disappearance. Illinois State Police say Stacy Peterson, who has not been seen since Oct. 28, 2007, is likely dead in a homicide. They have also named Drew Peterson, a former Bolingbrook police sergeant, as a suspect in the case. He has not been charged with any crime.

From the beginning, Drew Peterson has maintained that Stacy Peterson ran off with another man.

When Lauer asked Peterson about the "controlling element" of his relationships with Savio and with Stacy Peterson, and that his wives feared him, Peterson replied: "I controlled my family. I think more people in America should control their family."

Stacy Peterson's stepsister, Kerry Simmons, took time out from planning a weekend benefit for Stacy to watch Matt Lauer interview Drew Peterson Thursday morning on live TV. She believes that Stacy Peterson was murdered on the day she was last seen.

"I don't think she ever left the house that day because he lost control of her," Simmons said.

Simmons says her stepsister had finally summoned the courage to take her kids and leave her husband. She believes that's what likely caused Peterson to snap and ultimately reassert his control.

"She is no longer with us so he still has control really," Simmons said. "She never really was able to leave and take her kids."

Seeing Drew Peterson talk of control made Simmons almost lose control.

"I wanted to break the TV," she said. "If I could have reached in there and grabbed him…" she said.

But Drew Peterson, the only suspect in the disappearance of Stacy Peterson maintains his innocence in the face of what even his lawyer concedes are a suspicious set of circumstances surrounding the death of his third wife, and the disappearance of his fourth.

Lauer also discussed a radio program where Peterson planned to participate in a contest called, "Win a Date with Drew," which was going to appear as part of a January appearance with radio host Steve Dahl. The contest was later canceled.

On the issue, Brodsky said it reflected the typical sense of humor of those involved in the criminal justice field.

"Some of those things – what we've discovered is defense lawyers, cops, investigators, police officers, prosecutors – as kind of a coping mechanism, we develop this kind of perverse sense of humor," Brodsky said. "We never meant to insult anybody. It's just the sense of humor that outside our, kind of like, little field, it's just not appreciated or understood."

Peterson said in the time since Stacy Peterson's disappearance, his only regret was "letting Geraldo Rivera in my house." Drew Peterson invited Rivera for an interview not long after Stacy Peterson's disappearance, but later accused Rivera of coaching his answers.

Brodsky said he remained confident that Peterson would not be arrested in the case. But Peterson said he was prepared to be arrested and go to prison.

"I'm prepared for anything," Peterson said. "My main concern about anything is my children, and once all my ducks are in line for their well-being, I'm OK."

"I think people might find that strange, Drew, that an innocent man would say, 'As long as my kids are OK, it's OK that I spend the rest of my life in jail," Lauer said.

"It's not OK, but psychologically and physically, as long as my children are OK, I'm OK," Peterson replied.

Also Thursday, a member of a coroner's jury that ruled Savio's death was an accident apologized.

Jim Pretto told the ABC program "Good Morning America" that there was not enough evidence presented in 2004 to back up claims by the woman's family that she had been murdered.

Pamela Bosco, a spokeswoman for Stacy Peterson's family, spoke with CBS 2 about the Drew Peterson interview.

"Every time he gets up there, he says nothing," Bosco said. "You can't comment on nothing. Our energy is better invested in the investigation than in Drew's antics."

She also said the family remains hopeful about the investigation, and they have information on which they cannot elaborate that comforts them.

No one from Savio's family was immediately available for comment Thursday.

Earlier this week, a judge ruled that several pieces of Peterson's property seized by investigators last year must be returned, including several guns. But on Wednesday, Peterson's Firearm Owner's Identification license was revoked by the State of Illinois.

The rest of Peterson's belongings will be returned within 30 days, provided he does not object to the use of photographs of the items should they ever be used in court.

Stacy Peterson's family is holding a fundraiser Sunday March 2 to aid in their search. The event will be held at 115 Bourbon Street, 3359 W 115th Street, in Merrionette Park, at 1 p.m. Ticket information is on the FindStacyPeterson.com Web site.

CBS 2's Mike Puccinelli, Kristyn Hartman and the Associated Press contributed to this report.

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