Laci Autopsy Report Sealed

A California coroner has completed autopsies on Laci Peterson and her unborn son, but the results were sealed and no cause of death was announced.

A spokesman for the Contra Costa County sheriff has said the cause of death may never be known.

"You're going to have great difficulty ensuring the cause of death," forensic pathologist Dr. Robert Lawrence told CBS Affiliate KOVR-TV Correspondent Gloria Gomez.

Lawrence cited the condition of Laci's remains and reports that parts of her body are still missing in making that assessment.

Police have not said how they think Peterson was killed, nor have they revealed any of the evidence against her husband, Scott.

Scott Peterson is being held without bail on two counts of murder and could face the death penalty if convicted. He's pleaded innocent. He was arrested last month after the remains of his wife and unborn son were found along San Francisco Bay.

The autopsy report could be unsealed at a May 27th hearing. News organizations are seeking the release of other documents, too, including search warrant affidavits.

The tension between the media's role and the justice system had already surfaced in the case. Last week, a judge kept arrest and search warrant records sealed pending a higher court ruling that arrived hours later preventing them from being released to the media.

Scott Peterson's lawyer argued that the records be sealed, saying elements of "a voodoo-like investigation" could harm his client's defense on murder charges.

The lawyer, Mark Geragos, said he hasn't seen the records, but suggested they could include references to "psychics and voice stress analyzers, all of which are totally inadmissible. If any of these things make their way into applications for search warrants and arrest warrants," he said, it would be prejudicial to Peterson.

Geragos has vowed he would not only show beyond a reasonable doubt that Scott Peterson didn't kill his wife and unborn son late last year, but would prove his innocence and "find out who did this to Scott's wife and Scott's son."