Paul Beaty / AP file

Joel Brodsky, left, and Steven Greenberg, attorneys for Drew Peterson, conferred outside the Will County Courthouse in Joliet, Ill., in more cooperative times during Peterson's murder trial Sept. 6, 2012.

Drew Peterson, the ex-cop convicted of killing his third wife and whose fourth wife mysteriously disappeared, was in an Illinois courtroom Tuesday hoping for a new trial, but the proceedings were overshadowed by a vicious spat among members of the legal team that lost his murder trial last year.

The hearing recessed late Tuesday afternoon and was to resume Wednesday morning. If the judge rejects the request for a new trial, Peterson, 59, a retired Bolingbrook, Ill., police sergeant, could be sentenced immediately for the murder of his third wife, Kathleen Savio, who died in 2004.

Peterson — who first became famous after his fourth wife, Stacy Peterson, vanished in 2007 — could face up to 60 years in prison for his conviction in September.

Peterson's current lawyers argue that their former colleague Joel Brodsky — Peterson's lead trial counsel — botched his defense, justifying a new trial. Before the hearing Tuesday in Will County, Brodsky vigorously disputed that contention.

"I fought for five years defending Drew Peterson, very skillfully so," Brodsky told reporters.

Brodsky in particular disputed Peterson lawyer Steve Greenberg's  argument that it was his decision alone to call Stacy Peterson's divorce attorney during the trial. The attorney, Harry Smith, testified that Stacy Peterson told him that Drew Peterson killed Savio and that he warned his client that she had to tell someone. 

"Not only did they support (calling Smith, but) they realized it was the only move we could make, and I even have emails from Greenberg not only approving Smith being called, but actually suggesting a question or two that I ask him," Brodsky said.

The enmity between the lawyers is so deep that Brodsky withdrew Tuesday from representing Peterson in a in a wrongful death civil suit filed by Savio's sisters. After the retrial hearing, a second judge will hear that suit.

The lawyers' dispute threatened to overshadow the possibility that Peterson himself could be called to the stand, NBC 5 of Chicago reported. And even Greenberg acknowledged that it was a thin reed on which to base a decision to overturn Peterson's conviction.

"We're definitely facing an uphill battle today," Greenberg said. 

NBC Chicago: Drew Peterson returns to court to request new trial

"But I'm confident," he added. "I know the law is on our side. I know the facts are on our side. ... Some people say it's a cold day in you-know-what when things happen. Well, it's cold today, so maybe it will happen."

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This story was originally published on Tue Feb 19, 2013 8:16 PM EST

AFP - Getty Images file

Stacy Ann Peterson

Though Drew Peterson was tried and convicted of murdering Kathleen Savio, the former police sergeant's missing fourth wife had a constant presence during the trial.

"They tried keeping her out of that courtroom, and eventually two profound statements were made by her, and that's what did it," said Pamela Bosco, a spokeswoman for the family of Stacy Peterson, who vanished in October 2007. "They sealed his fate."

Prosecutors suspect Drew Peterson killed sandy-haired Stacy Peterson because she could finger him for Savio's death, but her body has never been found and no charges have ever been filed.

Stacy Peterson told friends and family that she woke up Feb. 29, 2004, in the middle of the night to find her husband gone. Kathleen Savio's body was found March 1, 2004, in the bathtub of her home, blocks from the Petersons' Bolingbrook, Ill., home. Stacy Peterson later told friends and family her husband asked her to lie about seeing him return home with women's clothing that did not belong to her.

Judge Edward Burmila barred any mention of Stacy Peterson's disappearance during the trial, but jurors heard from her through the testimonies of Rev. Neil Schori and attorney Harry Smith.

Read more about the case at NBCChicago.com 

Schori said Stacy Peterson told him Drew Peterson disappeared from their home around the time of Savio's death. Smith testified that Stacy Peterson called him days before her disappearance and "wanted to know if, in my opinion, the fact that he killed Kathy could be used against him."

Illinois State Police declared Drew Peterson a suspect in Stacy Peterson's disappearance on Nov. 9, 2007, the same day they formally launched an investigation into Savio's 2004 drowning death and a judge signed an order to exhume Savio's body.

Drew Peterson contends his fourth wife ran off with another man and is still alive.

Savio family: 'Stacy, you are now next for justice'

"Stacy's case is next, no matter what," Bosco told reporters Thursday after a seven-man, five-woman jury found Peterson guilty in Savio's death. "We still have to pay the price for Stacy. I still believe that's around the corner."

Stacy Peterson's sister, Cassandra Cales, said the family is in constant contact with police and hopes someone will come forward with new information. "This is the first step," Cales said.

James Glasgow, Will County state’s attorney, told reporters outside the Joliet courthouse that prosecutors plan to review the evidence in Stacy's disappearance and "aggressively" seek to charge Peterson if possible.

See previous NBC News stories on the case

"Obviously the longer any person is gone, the easier it is to prove that they haven't just simply run away and that they are deceased," Glasgow said. "October 28 of 2007 is way in our rear-view mirror now, so we're going to look at that case and assess it as it stands today. If we feel confident that we can go forward, we will be doing so."

Savio learned in 2001 that Drew Peterson was having an affair with Stacy Cales, a 17-year-old hotel clerk at the time.

Drew Peterson and Savio were granted a divorce on Oct. 13, 2003, and he married in Stacy on Oct. 18 when he was 49 and she was 19. They had two children, Anthony and Lacy.

Stacy Peterson was reported missing Oct. 29, 2007, a day after she failed to show up at a relative's home.

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Stacy's family said they never will give up hope.

"I love you and I miss you," Cales said when asked what she wanted to tell her missing sister, "and I'm never going to give up hope in finding you."

"We miss you," Bosco said, choking back tears. "This man has to pay for Stacy."

NBC News' Jim Gold contributed to this report.

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M. Spencer Green / AP

Marcia Savio, stepmother of Kathleen Savio, cries outside the Will County Courthouse in Joliet, Ill., on Thursday after former Bolingbrook police officer Drew Peterson was found guilty of murder. At right is Kathleen Savio's half-brother Nicholas Savio.

With tears falling and arms raised in vindication, Kathleen Savio's stepmother called Drew Peterson's guilty verdict justice for her daughter after years of waiting.

"Finally, somebody heard Kathleen's cries!" Marcia Savio yelled to cheers from a crowd of onlookers. "Twelve people did the right thing, thank God. She won today. It's her victory."

After 14 hours of deliberation, a seven-man, five-woman Will County jury found Peterson guilty of murdering his third wife in a bathtub in 2004. As the verdict came down, gasps were heard throughout the courtroom, and Savio's family immediately hugged each other, shedding tears of joy.

Check NBCChicago.com for more on Drew Peterson case

"This is better than the White Sox winning the World Series," Savio's brother, Nick Savio, told reporters after the verdict came down.

In a statement read through tears, Nick Savio said his sister received justice after a "very long time." He said he hopes and prays Savio's children never forget her.

The Chicago Tribune via AP file

Kathleen Savio is shown in an undated photo provided by the Will County State's Attorney.

"Although we cannot have Kathleen back, we hope she can now rest in peace and that she knows she has had her day and justice has finally been served," he said.

"Stacy, you are now next for justice," he cried, referring to Peterson's fourth wife, Stacy Peterson, who went missing in 2007.

AFP - Getty Images file

Stacy Peterson is seen in an undated photo provied by the Illinois State Police.

Savio's father, Henry, told reporters he never thought this day would come but now that it has, "I know it would make her happy as well if she was here."

Drew Peterson found guilty of killing third wife, Kathleen Savio

Through the tears of joy, an edge of anger emerged from Savio's family toward Peterson and his attorneys.

"I don't see you laughing now," Nick Savio said of Peterson, "so why don't you go with your clown defense team who made fun of this whole trial and go have a cigar with them while you're rotting in jail."

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A pastor provided dramatic testimony in the Drew Peterson trial on Thursday, telling the court that the former Illinois police officer coached his fourth wife to lie about the death of his third wife.

Rev. Neil Schori testified that in a conversation in August 2007, Stacy Peterson told him what she saw the night Kathleen Savio died.

He said the former suburban Chicago police officer's fourth wife once tearfully recounted to him how her husband mysteriously disappeared from their home around the time of his third wife's death, then later coached her about how to lie to investigators.

"She was very scared," Schori said about Stacy Peterson.

He testified that the slender, blond 23-year-old pulled her legs up and hugged her knees nervously as she told him Drew Peterson warned her police would approach her to interview her and coached her for hours about how she should lie to them.

Related story: Man arrested after mouthing expletive to Peterson

See the original report  |  More from NBCChicago.com

She did lie to investigators, he said, after Savio's body was found in a dry bathtub at her home just blocks from the Petersons' house. Schori didn't go into detail about the lies, but they apparently involved Peterson's whereabouts.

Earlier in the trial, witnesses testified that investigators let Drew Peterson, of Bolingbrook, Ill., sit in on an interview with Stacy Peterson. He sat next to his visibly shaken wife, his arm around her shoulder and hand on her knee, and corrected at least one of her answers, according to those witnesses.

Defense attorney Joe Lopez blasted Schori for not coming forward sooner, or stopping Stacy from going home.

"She told you she lived with a murderer and you let her go back to the house?" Lopez said.

Prosecutors say they could be in a position to rest their case against Drew Peterson shortly after court resumes Friday morning.

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The announcement came Thursday afternoon following a decision to not call Kathleen Savio's divorce attorney and after Judge Edward Burmila barred testimony from a crime scene investigator.

Divorce attorney Harry Smith was expected to testify about conversations he had with Drew Peterson's ex-wife before her 2004 drowning death. But calling Smith was a big gamble the prosecution ultimately decided not to take.

Back in June, Burmila said Smith must testify about "inculpatory" statements, leading the defense to believe Savio lied under oath.

"This is a home run for us," attorney Joe Lopez said at the time. "If this pans out it looks to us like she lied under oath and if that's so we will be free to argue she is a perjurer and a liar."

Prosecutors wanted state's attorney investigator Dave Margliano to tell jurors about a pair of receipts found in Peterson's home they say show the defendant was seeking an alibi for the weekend Savio died. Burmila ultimately barred that testimony.

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Prosecutors have no physical evidence and are trying to build a compelling circumstantial case — one that will lead jurors to conclude Peterson must have killed Savio.

Her death was initially ruled an accident but was reclassified a homicide after Peterson's fourth wife, Stacy Peterson, went missing in 2007. Peterson is a suspect in her disappearance but hasn't been charged.

Peterson has pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder in Savio's death. If convicted, he faces a maximum prison sentence of 60 years.

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