Drew's Lawyer Flip Flops on New Judge

Brodsky: We're not concerned one bit about body found in river

Prosecutors in the murder case against former police officer Drew Peterson got their wish when a new judge was appointed Thursday.  Peterson's defense attorney quickly said he'd ask that the new judge be replaced, too, but then changed his mind and said he won't object to the new judge.

The Will County state's attorney earlier this week had asked that Will County Judge Richard Schoenstedt be removed from the case against Peterson because of prejudice.  Peterson's lawyer, Joel Brodsky, challenged the prosecution's efforts to get Schoensted taken off the case, and appeared ready to fight new appointment of the new judge, Carla Alessio Policandriotes.  He didn't say why he wanted to argue against the appointment, or why he changed his mind and decided to accept it.

Peterson is charged with killing his third wife, Kathleen Savio.  His defense team has filed a motion to have Peterson's $20 million bond reduced to somewhere between $100,000 and $500,000, but that hearing has been delayed until Friday.

Peterson is charged in Savio's 2004 drowning. Savio's case was initially ruled an accident but was reopened after Peterson's fourth wife, Stacy, disappeared in 2007.

Police discovered a badly decomposed body in the Des Plaines River on Wednesday. While the find has in no way been connected with Peterson's case, police had previously combed the area several times, looking for leads into Stacy Peterson's disappearance.  Asked whether they were worried about the find, Brodsky said, "We are not concerned with that one bit ... You can speculate why."

The "why" Brodsky wants us to speculate on is that Drew maintains Stacy ran off with another man. 
 

Copyright AP - Associated Press
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