Gun charges against Peterson dropped

JOLIET, Ill., Nov. 21 (UPI) -- Retired officer Drew Peterson says he was relieved when a judge in Will County, Ill., dropped gun charges against him unrelated to his wife's disappearance.

The former Bolingbrook Police sergeant said he was pleased to avoid a potential prison sentence following Circuit Judge Richard Schoenstedt's decision to dismiss two unlawful use of a weapon charges, the Chicago Tribune said Friday.

"It's a big relief, of course," Peterson said after the judge's ruling Thursday. "You know, there's potential to put me away in prison for this, and I didn't want to go. So it's a very happy day."

The 54-year-old had been charged with possessing a modified assault rifle that violated state law. The rifle with a too short barrel was found by police during the search for Peterson's fourth wife, Stacy, who went missing at age 23 on Oct. 28, 2007.

The Chicago Sun-Times said Schoenstedt dismissed the charges against Peterson, a key suspect in his wife's disappearance, after prosecutors failed to give his defense lawyers internal investigative documents.

Prosecutors in the case have already vowed to appeal the dismissal of the charges against Peterson, who has also come under scrutiny regarding the 2004 death of his third wife, Kathleen Savio.