In April 2019, an extensive News & Observer story by Andrew Carter reported that Michael had written an e-book titled Behind the Staircase to exonerate himself, with any profits going toward charity. 'The Staircase' has put Kathleen Peterson in the spotlight. Toni Collette's emotional portrayal is bound to create even more interest in the real Kathleen Peterson. Kathleen was dead by the time first responders got there. By the time Michael and Kathleen became a couple, his two daughters and Kathleens daughter from her first marriage, Caitlin Atwater, were already good friends. $.5.99 / minute. And it speaks to our desire for clarity. He's currently behind bars in California's San Quentin prison. Kathleen is an acclaimed Contact Center consultant and recognized industry visionary. She confronted Michael about cheating on her, there was an argument, and he beat her to death with a fireplace implement, they alleged. It has been theorized that a Barred Owl attacked Kathleen. The family had sold the Cedar Street showplace, reportedly the largest house in Durham. The gripping HBO Max true crime series The Staircase follows the 2001 death of Kathleen Peterson. Kathleen worried that she would lose her own $145,000-a-year job amid the downsizing, the AP reported. If Michael received any money for the literary effort, it would have to go toward a $25 million award Caitlin Atwater won against him, he said. The defense, led by David Rudolf the same lawyer who represented NFL player Rae Carruth in his murder trial had some impressive courtroom drama to offer, too. However, SBI expert Duane Deaver claimed "based on the blood spatter on her husband's shorts and shoes, the wearer was standing directly over Kathleen Peterson when she was killed," via The News & Observer. Peterson subsequently ended up raising Ratliffs young daughters, alongside his own two sons, as Ratliffs husband had died previously. At addition, she enrolled in Duke University's engineering school. Pop-culture phenom. Also in 2019, Michael Peterson made a two-part appearance on Dr. Phil. Michael continues to live in Durham, North Carolina, having moved into a two-bedroom condo, via The Independent. Life Coach, Psychic, Relationships, Tarot Kathleen Peterson. As noted by the publication, it was suggested that, while waiting for a work email on the night of her death, Kathleen could have discovered Michael's secret correspondence and the illicit imagery. During the trial, evidence suggested she was hit with a fire poker after a heated argument about Michael Petersons closeted sexuality. As one of their friends told CBS News in 2003, "They had all the appearances and trappings of happiness. The Shocking True Story Behind 'The Staircase', 35 Classic Photos from the Academy Awards, Your Privacy Choices: Opt Out of Sale/Targeted Ads. In the first 911 call, Michael Peterson frantically tells the operator that Kathleen is "still breathing" and urges them to hurry. Located in the Forest Hills neighborhood of Durham, the house boasts a patio with an outdoor fireplace, a library, a game room, five bedrooms, and five-and-a-half bathrooms, not to mention the pool where Michael claimed to be during what he alleged was his wifes accidental fall down the stairs. We know she had one biological daughter, Caitlin Atwater, two adopted daughters, Martha and Margaret Ratliff, and two step-sons,. Todd Peterson, 25, was at the house when the police came but refused to talk to them, according to Forensic Files. Ashlie Chandler. It was in 1986 that Kathleen first met novelist Michael Peterson. Or Kathleen was upset because Michael was seeing other people outside the marriage. Kathleen's autopsy later concluded that the manner of her death was homicide, due to "multiple blunt force impacts to [the] back of the head." He also explained that after Kathleens death, he engaged legal help immediately a move that raised suspicion at the time only because his son insisted upon it, calling in Michaels lawyer brother, Bill Peterson. For nearly 20 years, the mystery surrounding Kathleen Peterson's death has only grown, especially in the wake of Michael's trialwhere he was found guilty, but later managed to walk free . Theres no question that [Peterson] did it, she said. Nortel had forced her to lay off some well-liked employees, according to an AP account from May 22, 2002. It was revealed during the trial that Kathleen was the only owner of their mansion and car and that Michael may have been enticed by her $1.8 million life insurance policy. Perhaps he was trying to delete some files. While he'd been outside smoking his pipe, his wife of 14 years had taken a fall down the stairs. Within days, the police arrested Michael Peterson, and prosecutors charged him with first-degree murder. Until next time, cheers. A novelist couldnt have written Petersons story any better, full of outrageous twists as it is. Kathleen Peterson Born: February 21, 1953 Birthplace: Greensboro, North Carolina, USA Death: December 9, 2001, Durham, North Carolina, USA (lacerations to skull) Bio: Michael Peterson's Second Wife Olivia DeJonge Born: April 30, 1998 Birthplace: Melbourne, Australia Caitlin Atwater Born: April 27, 1982 Birthplace: North Carolina Charnel house. A great deal of the first eight episodes of the Netflix documentary series The Staircase were set at the Peterson home. The value of Kathleens Nortel stock had dropped from more than $2 million at its peak to $50,000. I walked away with less of an opinion of what happened than when I went into it, Sophie Turner, who plays Ratliffs daughter Margaret, told ABC, with Firth echoing her sentiment. But, as the prosecution pointed out in the trial, Kathleen was actually the sole owner of the house and the car. At a news conference, Michael said, "Accepting this Alford plea has been the hardest thing I've ever done," via ABC11, as he had hoped to clear his name. Michael Peterson was a writer, and many said he has the kind of ego which craves the spotlight. Michael hadnt generated any income in two years, and Kathleen was the mainstay. During their 22-year marriage from 1965 to 1987, the pair welcomed two sons, Clayton and Todd. Another important element of Michael's case focused on blood spatter found at the scene. Friends of Liz Ratliff, who lived on the same German military base as Michael and his first wife, testified about the bloodiness of the scene of her demise. Balius paid $640,000 for the house in 2004 and did renovations before placing it back on the market in 2007. Netflix acquired the series in 2018, once again reigniting fascination around the case. Michael Iver Peterson "Mike" to his friends is a 78-year-old novelist and decorated military veteran who once ran for mayor of Durham, North Carolina. In court and on camera, Peterson initially presented his marriage to Kathleen as an enormously happy one, but prosecutors unearthed evidence that he had been secretly seeing men and that the couple had argued about it shortly before her death; they also found a trove of male pornography on his laptop, which they used to further cast scrutiny on his claims of being content in the marriage. Born Kathleen Hunt on February 21, 1953, she graduated first in her class from J.P. McCaskey High School andreports Indy Week"became the first female student accepted into Dukes engineering school." Their marriage, a second for both, seemed happy. Forensic expert Henry Lee gave a live in-court splatter demonstration to refute some of the blood evidence against Michael. She had been drinking and was wearing floppy shoes, so she probably tripped, Michael told police. By then, one of Michaels books, A Time for War, had made its way onto the New York Times bestseller list and generated enough cash to pay for the Colonial Revival-style house containing the now-famous staircase. However, Michael Peterson himself didnt return home after his release. But nothing could have prepared the family for what would happen shortly before Christmas in 2001. Information which may sway your opinion about how Kathleen Peterson died one way or another Kathleen was Director of Information Services at the Canadian firm Nortel Networks Corporation when she died. Kathleen Peterson's autopsy showed. Fk2 0yl0S] n[IEz T "She's a survivor and in no trouble, but the stress is monumental there.". Michael also told the News & Observer that well-to-do friends from his and Kathleens napkin-ring and place-card days had deserted him. As the case rolled along, more shocking facts would surface. Price Point: What does $235,000 get in Triangles housing market today? It was ruled in 2004 that Atwater and her biological father would be awarded the $1.5 million life insurance policy in Kathleen's name, which was initially would go to Peterson, WRAL reports.. "Poor Kathleen is undergoing the tortures of the damned at Nortel. According to the show's director, Jean-Xavier Lestrade, this relationship had no influence on how Brunet edited the series. Police responding to N.C. 55 late Tuesday night found two people who had been shot. The couple renovated and resold the house to a New York psychic medium by the name of Biond Fury for $1.3 million in 2008. Hosts with the most. Kathleens career as a telecommunications executive was thriving, and Michael had received a half-million-dollar advance on a book deal. May 5, 2022, 9:41 AM PDT. Licensed Professional Counselor providing individual mental health therapy to adolescents and adults. By all reports, Michael and Kathleen enjoyed a close, happy marriage and were sought-after guests on the local social scene. It came out that a leg injury he said happened during battle actually came from a car accident. However, when he called back minutes later, he claimed that she was no longer breathing. Police believed it was a fireplace blow poke that someone took outside to hide, leaving bloodstains on the door. Per the publication, some reports have suggested that Michael Peterson was the last person to see Elizabeth alive, but Michael's lawyer pointed out inconsistencies with this theory. Furthermore, Jones said, a substantial amount of damning evidence was never included in the documentary. Then 68-years-old, Michael was released from prison pending a new trial, and after posting a $300,000 bond, via The News & Observer. Apex is losing its only movie theater. Within this hair, microscopic feathers were found along with wood splinters and cedar needles. Ever since Kathleen Peterson was found at the bottom of a staircase in 2001, her mysterious death has been the subject of much media attention. Although Michael was still married with four children of his own, the new couple merged their families in 1987. But when paramedics arrived on the scene 10 minutes later, Kathleen was dead - and it appeared to them that she had been dead for far longer than just a few minutes. Homicide detectives were called to the Peterson residence. Lived In Santa Ana CA, Irvine CA, Corona CA. They noted that Michael was wearing shorts and a T-shirt. Evidence collected from 1810 Cedar Street included Peterson's computers, pieces of wood from the stairwell, swabs of . According to Cosmopolitan, barred owls are native to the area and known to attack joggers with some frequency. 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