By Debbie Emery - Breaking Celebrity News Reporter

The cold-hearted murder of his pregnant wife and their unborn baby made Scott Peterson one of the most hated men in America, and now the convicted killer is appealing his death sentence, claiming he did not receive a fair trial.

The automatic appeal was filed on Thursday to the California Supreme Court, eight years after he was found guilty by a San Matteo jury for the murder of Laci Peterson, and their unborn son, Conner, reported CBSNews.com.

In the appeal, Peterson's lawyer argued that the overwhelming publicity the trial received, incorrect evidentiary rulings, juror misconduct and other errors deprived him of a fair trial, claiming investigators never directly proved "how, where or when" the murder occurred.

Peterson claimed that Laci was killed sometime in the morning of December 24, 2002 after he left their Modesto home to go fishing in the San Francisco Bay. Prosecutors believe she was suffocated in her home but his attorney claims there is no evidence to support that.

Noted death penalty lawyer Cliff Gardner, who filed the 423-page document Thursday, said that the case generated such intense publicity almost from the moment the mom-to-be disappeared that he was deprived of a fair trial.

"Before hearing even a