Drew Peterson’s defense team hammered at inconsistencies in letters and statements made by Antonio Smith, the jailhouse informant turned star witness in the former Bolingbrook police officer’s trial on charges he tried to arrange a hit on Will County State’s Attorney James Glasgow.
On Thursday in Randolph County court, attorney Lucas Liefer pointed to more than a half-dozen jailhouse letters that Smith, 25, wrote to a former cellmate about their plans to leverage his willingness to wear a wire on Peterson to obtain early releases from prison and thousands in cash from federal authorities.
In the letters, Smith appears to discuss double-crossing the agents by tipping off Peterson and his lawyer to the wire after he felt authorities were lying to him about the deal.
“While I’m telling Drew, you’re telling (Peterson’s attorney Steve) Greenberg,” Smith wrote in an undated message to his former cellmate.
Smith previously testified he was lying to his inmate friend, who knew about the plan to record Peterson, in order to keep him from talking to anyone else about it.
Liefer also homed in on a common question about jailhouse informants and their reliability.
“Do you believe that an informant’s testimony can hold up in court?” he asked.
“With evidence backing what I say, yes,” Smith replied from the witness stand.
Lucas then introduced a letter Smith had written years earlier when he was cooperating with Menard Correctional Center officials in an investigation of a corrections officer.
“A confidential informant, also known as a confidential source, jailhouse snitch, is not credible to hold up in the court of law, because it is deemed as a conflict of interest, in that a confidential source or informant will say anything to benefit himself,” Smith said, reading from the letter.
“And that’s your belief?” Liefer asked.
“Yes,” Smith replied.
Peterson, 62, is serving a 38-year sentence for the murder of his third wife, Kathleen Savio. Glasgow led the prosecution in that case. Peterson is on trial for solicitation of murder and solicitation of murder for hire, which could add 60 years of prison.
Peterson’s fourth wife, Stacy, has been missing since 2007. After her disappearance, authorities reopened the investigation into Savio’s 2004 death, which was originally ruled an accident. The case was reclassified as a homicide, and in 2012, Peterson was convicted of Savio’s murder.
Prosecutors this week played recorded portions of Smith’s and Peterson’s conversations from November 2014.
“We listened to hours and hours of recordings,” Liefer said to Smith. “Can you refer to the specific date and time when Drew Peterson said, ‘Kill James Glasgow?'”
“No,” Smith said.
“Because he doesn’t say that, isn’t that true?” Liefer asked.
“Not in those words,” Smith said.
Liefer did not play any of the recorded conversations but instead focused on a series of letters Smith sent to his former cellmate. In the letters, Smith said he had reached deals with prosecutors to get early releases from prison, as well as $110,000.
He also focused on a letter Smith sent to an FBI agent prior to trial in which he asked to be given cash seized from notorious Boston mobster Whitey Bulger, and Smith wanted to start his life over on the outside.
“Will County hangs Drew Peterson so there’s no chance at him getting out. Randolph County gets a huge conviction. Attorney general looks good, and the FBI. I get another shot at life that I can’t afford to (expletive) up,” Smith said, reading from the letter to the federal agent.
Smith also offered to serve as an informant again for the FBI.
“If there’s ever someone you need me to try to get close to, to help a case, I’ll do it,” Smith said, reading from the letter. ” I know you’re probably laughing at this, but I’m dead serious. People thought I could never get Drew, but I went and got more than anyone thought I could do.”
If his release was not possible, Smith asked that the FBI at least give him enough money to serve his time comfortably.
“I never want to feel like I don’t have money to buy a bar of soap ever again,” he said, reading from the letter.
Twitter @mwalberg1
