Friends, family have given up hope

They believe they're looking for a body now.

Nobody scours the woods, peering behind bushes or watches divers bob in a retention pond for somebody who is alive.

"We all know she's dead. She wouldn't leave her kids," said volunteer Jim Murray, 38, who spent Thursday traipsing through an overgrown field in Bolingbrook looking for signs of 23-year-old Stacy Peterson. "If we thought she was alive, we wouldn't be out here."

Peterson was last seen Oct. 28. Authorities on Thursday still classified the case as a missing person -- not criminal -- investigation.

But they also have started looking again at the death of one of her husband's three ex-wives, whose death in a bathtub three years ago was ruled accidental and are considering exhuming the body.

A coroner's jury said Kathleen Savio's drowning death was accidental, even though no water was found in the tub. But this week the Will County coroner added to speculation about the case when he said Savio's death should instead have been ruled "undetermined."

"Certain aspects of Kathleen Savio's death raised concerns for me, as well," Will County Coroner Patrick O'Neil said.

On Thursday afternoon, it appeared likely county state's attorney's office would have her body exhumed.

"What we're doing now is taking a look at what is legally required to move forward with the exhumation of a body and talk to the appropriate family members," said Charles Pelkie, a spokesman for the office. "We need to talk to the appropriate family members. We have heard they would agree to go ahead with this and we want to talk to them."

The Illinois State Police would not comment on whether there has been any indication Peterson is alive, such as use of her cell phone or credit cards. It has, though, said officers with cadaver dogs have conducted several ground searches and a search of a retention pond near the Petersons' home.

And Thursday, the agency that has used dogs, divers, ATVs and an airplane in the search, announced it has started coordinating efforts with a private search organization, Texas EquuSearch.