Disclaimer: This article contains mentions of murder. Reader discretion is advised.
Drew Peterson‘s case returned to the court this year as the former police sergeant from Bolingbrook, Illinois, is seeking a new trial to get his conviction overturned. In 2012, Peterson was found guilty of the 2004 murder of his third wife, Kathleen Savio. In addition to that, he is the prime suspect in the disappearance of his fourth wife, Stacy Peterson, who has been missing since 2007. As the family fell apart, the convicted murderer left behind young kids from his multiple marriages.
With Savio, Peterson had two children, Tom and Christopher, reported ABC News. He had two other kids, a boy and a girl, with Stacy. Per NBC News, Peterson’s adult son, Stephen, from another marriage took custody of the four kids. Prior to Peterson’s conviction, Stephen had issued a statement on behalf of his half-siblings, who had then believed that their father was innocent. According to the outlet, he said, “We know him better than anyone else in the world and we know he is not guilty.”
Drew Peterson’s children: What does the convicted murderer’s son believe?
Peterson currently serves a 38-year prison sentence for the murder of Kathleen Savio. However, he received another 40-year sentence as he was found guilty of murder-for-hire, according to A&E. Meanwhile, Stephen raised the four children, reported CBS News. He opened up about his father’s crimes in an interview on the show Monster in My Family in 2017.
According to CBS News, Stephen initially thought his father was innocent. However, he eventually came to believe that Peterson killed his third wife. Stephen also thinks that his father probably also killed Stacy, who is still missing. In the aforementioned documentary, Stephen also added, “I’m not Drew Peterson’s son, I’m Steve,” as he wished to “reinvent himself” years after the verdict.
Over the years, several shows dug into the infamous case, including CNN’s Married to a Murderer: The Drew Peterson Story.