Peterson's lawyer tells of steamy message

Text shows missing wife was having affair, he says

By Matthew Walberg
Tribune reporter
Published January 17 2008

Drew Peterson's attorney said Wednesday that a racy message sent to Stacy Peterson's cell phone in September shows she was having an affair and lends credence to the theory that the missing woman left her husband for another man.

The cell phone -- which attorney Joel Brodsky said Stacy replaced and gave to her teenage stepson shortly before she vanished Oct. 28 -- allegedly contained the text message sent from the Sprint Nextel Web site at 9:47 a.m. Sept. 20.

In the steamy, two-sentence message, the anonymous author referred to Stacy as "my love" and thanked her for their wild physical activity the previous evening, according to a transcript provided to the Tribune by Brodsky. The media tastefully edited the text. I am not the media. The message read "my love you are one hot little bitch thank you for riding me like a bucking bronco last night" Know what? I'm not buying it. He knew every move she made, and with four kids, two being so young, she didn't have the time or energy, even at 23. Not only that; the vulgarness of the text reeks of Drew Peterson.

State police have named Drew Peterson, 53, a former Bolingbrook police sergeant, a suspect in his 23-year-old wife's disappearance and have assigned dozens of agents to the search. Her relatives say they believe she would not have left without her children, and have said Stacy told them she was seeking a divorce and feared for her life.

Drew Peterson has said she left him for another man."Drew would like whoever sent this message to come forward," Brodsky said. "And if they find out who sent it and that person is gone, then it's likely that he and Stacy are together.

"Brodsky said his client turned over the phone to state police Dec. 20 after discovering the message "locked or stored somehow" in the device. A private detective hired by Peterson tracked the message to the Sprint Nextel site.

On Jan. 3, authorities obtained a search warrant seeking information that might identify the sender, according to a copy of the warrant.

Charles Pelkie, spokesman for Will County State's Atty. James Glasgow, declined to comment on the warrant and referred questions to police. State police Trooper Mark Dorencz would not reveal whether investigators were able to identify the sender.

Pam Bosco, a spokeswoman for Stacy Peterson's family, said police told her they have followed up on all of the missing woman's phone records, and at this point do not believe she was having an affair.

Sprint Nextel spokesman Dave DeVries said anyone can use the company's Web site to text-message Sprint Nextel subscribers without being required to log in or open an account. He said he did not immediately know whether it was possible to find the source of such a message.

Brodsky said his client was not the author. "We're hoping [investigators] can trace the message," he said. "We wouldn't be that stupid to ask them to trace a message that would lead back to Drew. Don't be so sure of that yet, Joel.

"The lawyer downplayed the idea that the text message might cast more suspicion on Peterson by providing another possible motive for Stacy's disappearance. "You can have all the motives you want -- motives don't make you guilty," he said.

Meanwhile, a friend of Drew Peterson's was released Wednesday from the Will County Adult Detention Facility after posting 10 percent of a $50,000 bail after he was accused of beating his ex-girlfriend and her friend, then allegedly threatening a witness.

Michael J. Robinson, 34, of Bolingbrook was charged with felony intimidation, misdemeanor battery and domestic battery, according to police and court documents.

Robinson was with the two women in an apartment complex elevator about 3:30 a.m. Monday when he quarreled with his ex-girlfriend, 32, over a phone call and began choking her, said Bolingbrook police Lt. Ken Teppel. When her friend, age 40, tried to intervene, Robinson allegedly punched her in the face, authorities said.

Robinson dragged his ex-girlfriend and the friend into the apartment of a third woman and again tried to choke the ex-girlfriend, Teppel said, and when the friend tried to separate them, Robinson punched her in the face several times, knocking her to the floor. Robinson left, and when police arrived, they saw bruises and cuts on the friend's face, Teppel said.

Bolingbrook police sought a warrant for Robinson's arrest on battery charges, but given his friendship with Peterson, Glasgow referred the case to state police, Teppel said. He said the charge of witness intimidation was not lodged by his department. Court records show the intimidation charge was lodged after Robinson was accused of calling the third woman and threatening to hurt her if she spoke to investigators. Drew DID teach him everything he knew.

Robinson has a lengthy history of arrests on a variety of charges, including a 1993 conviction for unlawful delivery of a controlled substance for which he was sentenced to 4 years probation.

His friendship with Peterson came to light after Ric Mims, a one-time friend of the former sergeant, told the National Enquirer that Robinson provided Peterson with a cell phone after police seized his old one as part of a search warrant. Mims said Peterson and Robinson behaved suspiciously, communicating in handwritten notes. Peterson said the only note passed contained his cell phone number.

Peterson could not be reached for comment Wednesday but said last week he has known Robinson for nearly two decades. "He was just a kid on the street that I befriended, tried to keep him out of trouble," Peterson said. Drew fancies himself another Dirty Harry. He says Mike Robinson was a 'kid on the street', and refered to Stacy and her family as 'street rats'. I think cushy Bolingbrook is far from the harsh reality of the south side of Chicago.

mwalberg@tribune.com