(Credit: Netflix)

For as long as humans have existed, we’ve always been obsessed with hearing true crime stories, which serve as stark reminders of our mortality. Centuries ago, people would gather to watch people get burnt at the stake or hanged; these days, we switch on Netflix, YouTube, a podcast, or open a book and discover the gruesome details of a stranger’s final moments; the more unbelievable, the better.

The morbid fascination with true crime comes as no surprise. Our fascination with terrifying stories is why the horror genre is so beloved; when the tales are real, we often become even more invested in discovering exactly why, where, and how events went down.

Netflix has made many true crime documentaries and reimaginings, some considerably more tasteful than others. Some people believe that true crime, even in its more respectful forms, is a signal of disrespect to the victims – why are we viewing these real and tragic stories as entertainment? Yet, it doesn’t look like the rate of true crime documentaries being made at the moment will slow down anytime soon.

The streaming service released an American Murder: Laci Peterson earlier this month, detailing the story of the tragic disappearance of a pregnant woman, Laci Peterson, whose body, along with the remains of her unborn child, Conner, were found on the beach of San Francisco Bay in 2002. Her husband, Scott Peterson, was eventually arrested and sentenced for murder. He was given the death sentence, although this was later changed to give him life in prison.

Despite being found guilty, he maintains his innocence, even though there is a considerable amount of evidence that suggests he knows how Peterson’s body ended up on the shore, her head and limbs missing from her torso. There was an instant media frenzy when the incident was reported, with people seemingly invested in the story of a young expectant mother’s Christmas Eve disappearance, whose husband responded strangely when interviewed.

According to many sources, such as police officers and interviewers, Peterson never seemed distraught by Laci’s disappearance, even referring to her in the past tense before her remains were discovered. People were suspicious, and when it emerged that he had been engaging in an affair behind Laci’s back, hatred for Peterson only mounted.

The woman he had been seeing, Amber Frey, was a massage therapist under the impression that Peterson was a widower. She didn’t want to bombard him with questions about his past during the early stages of the relationship, but she soon realised he had been lying to her when she saw a news article about Peterson’s missing wife. It didn’t take her long to contact the police and tell them everything she knew about Peterson, instantly suspicious of his involvement.

She secretly worked with the police to covertly record conversations with Peterson, and this was used as crucial evidence in the case. Peterson’s lies were laid out in front of detectives, but still, he claimed he was innocent.

Luckily, enough evidence was found to convict Peterson of murdering his pregnant wife, namely the fact that when Laci and Conner were discovered, Peterson was nearing the Mexican border, having changed his appearance. He had items like knives, ropes, thousands of dollars of cash, a shovel and other incriminating items in his car.

The Netflix documentary about Peterson’s murder aims to put more of the focus on her, with her family and friends contributing interviews.