Will County Judge Edward Burmila imposed the sentence Thursday. The 59-year-old Peterson faced a maximum 60-year prison term.
Jurors convicted Peterson in September in the 2004 death of Kathleen Savio. Neighbors found her body in a dry bathtub at her home with a gash on her head.
Peterson is also a suspect in the 2007 disappearance of his 23-year-old fourth wife, Stacy Peterson, but hasn’t been charged. Her disappearance is what led authorities to take another look at Savio’s death and reclassify it from an accident to a homicide.
Fascination nationwide with Peterson arose from speculation he sought to use his law enforcement expertise to get away with murder.
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