After spending more than 15 years on death row, Scott Peterson was resentenced Wednesday to life in prison without the possibility of parole for the murder of his wife. Laci Peterson was eight months pregnant with the couple’s son, Conner, when she was killed on Christmas Eve in 2002 in a murder that gripped the nation. A judge sentenced Scott Peterson to 15 years to life for Conner’s murder, to be served concurrently. Peterson, 49, has been in limbo since the California Supreme Court reversed his death sentence in August last year due to improper juror screening.

Stanislaus County District Attorney Birgit Fladager said earlier this year she would not seek to reinstate the death penalty after consulting with Laci Peterson’s family. The process, she said, would have been “simply too painful to endure once again.” Speaking at the hearing, Laci’s mom, Sharon Rocha, said, “ Your evil, self-centered, unforgivable, selfish act ended two beautiful souls. And for what reason? There was no reason, other than you just didn’t want them anymore.” A defense attorney for Peterson said Wednesday that his client had wanted to speak at the Wednesday hearing, but the judge blocked it, given that the sentence was preordained.