Drew Peterson, Accused Bolingbrook Wife-Killer, Told to Stay Put by Appellate Court

Accused wife-killer Drew Peterson’s latest plea to get out of jail again fell on deaf ears, as the appellate court shot it down last week and told him he’s not going anywhere.

Jailed since May 2009 on charges he murdered his third wife, Kathleen Savio, Peterson, 57, has been waiting on the appellate court to return a decision on what hearsay evidence can be used against him at trial.

The appellate court has been mulling over the matter for just shy of a year.

The murder charge in the Savio case stemmed from the then-40-year-old woman’s death in March 2004.

Savio was found drowned in a dry bathtub. At the time of her death, Savio and Peterson were embroiled in a contentious divorce. Still the state police quickly determined she died in a freak bathing accident and quickly closed the case.

But 3 1/2 years later, when Peterson’s next wife, the 24-year-old Stacy Peterson, vanished without a trace, the state police were forced to re-examine their investigation of Savio’s death.

Within a year and a half of Stacy’s disappearance, Peterson was up on a charge of murder in connection with Savio’s death.

Stacy Peterson remains missing, and the state police have publicly stated they believe she was the victim of a “potential homicide.” The state police also have publicly identified Drew Peterson as their sole suspect in the Stacy case, but have stopped short of actually charging him with harming her.

Peterson, a former Bolingbrook police officer who quit his job in the wake of Stacy’s disappearance rather than answer questions at an internal affairs inquiry, is being held at the Will County jail in lieu of a $20 million bond. His attorneys have tried without success in the last two years to get Peterson’s bond lowered while he awaits trial.

In recent weeks, it was learned that Hollywood star Rob Lowe would be playing the part of Drew Peterson in a Lifetime movie adaption of the  book Fatal Vows: The Tragic Wives of Sergeant Drew Peterson.