Lauri Peterson Details Her Son's Attempted Murder Charges and Why She Thinks He's Innocent
The RHOC alum's son, Joshua Waring, is in jail following a 2016 arrest in California.
The Real Housewives of Orange County alum Lauri Peterson is standing by her son, Joshua Waring, who has been in jail since 2016 after he was arrested for attempted murder. The former RHOC star appeared on Megyn Kelly TODAY on Thursday where she detailed her son's lengthy issues with drugs including heroin, and the law, which culminated in that 2016 arrest after a shooting in Costa Mesa, California. Josh was charged with three counts of attempted murder and is currently awaiting trial, but maintains his innocence. His mom agrees he didn't commit the crime, claiming there doesn't seem to be evidence that points to his guilt.
Appearing on the show with Josh's defense attorney Joel Garson, Lauri opened up about the case. Josh has been accused of a shooting at a "flop house" in which one man was shot and survived. Another man, in her opinion a possible suspect, was on the scene that night — and Lauri and Joel maintain he could be the shooter. Lauri and Joel also share that there is still a question about which car is the one belonging to the shooter. However, the prosecution, Megyn noted, does maintain they have evidence that points to Josh's guilt.
Among several reasons they cited for his innocence, Lauri noted, "My son was tested immediately [for gun shot residue]... he had no [gun shot residue] on him whatsoever... They did not test [the other possible suspect]."
Lauri further shared on TODAY that while she "struggles" with her decision to only financially aid her son for rehab-related purposes and not legal issues as he waits to see what will happen next in this case, being incarcerated did eventually help him get clean.
"So because Josh found the strength and resilience and he was able to without any help; he hasn't been given any rehabilitation. Nothing but strength from himself. He's really invested himself into this case and studied," Lauri noted. "And it's really given him a purpose. So the silver lining is he is sober."
Back in 2015, Lauri confirmed to The Daily Dish that she had adopted Josh's daughter, Kennedy, and she, along with her husband, George, were busy raising her. She opens up more about that in the video above.
Below, Lauri opens up more from that vintage interview about her life after RHOC.
