We want to hear from you! The steps sit just beyond the darkened opening on the right side of the kitchen in the photograph above. Colin Firth plays the writer in a new HBO Max limited series. On the flip-side, Petersons former sister-in-law, Candace Zamperini, said during the hearing in 2017 that shell always see him responsible for her sisters death. Defense attorney David Rudolf talked toOxygenabout Michaels current living situation: He is living in Durham Im not sure why hes living in Durham, but he is. Todd and Clayton are Michael Peterson's sons from his first marriage to Patricia Peterson. She also stood by Michael Peterson when suspicions were raised during his trial about the death of their friend Elizabeth Ratliff in 1985. As seen in The Staircase, Michael Peterson admitted to his family and The Staircase documentary filmmaker Jean-Xavier de Lestrade (streaming on Netflix) that he was bisexual when evidence of male pornography was found on his computer. Hes in a ground floor apartment with no stairs that was really important accommodation.. As shown in the miniseries, Assistant District Attorney Freda Black (Parker Posey) quit law and started working as a cleaner in the decade following Michaels conviction. Sue remained supportive of Peterson through his trial, incarceration, and release. And according to .css-16acfp5{-webkit-text-decoration:underline;text-decoration:underline;text-decoration-thickness:0.125rem;text-decoration-color:#d2232e;text-underline-offset:0.25rem;color:inherit;-webkit-transition:all 0.3s ease-in-out;transition:all 0.3s ease-in-out;}.css-16acfp5:hover{color:#000;text-decoration-color:border-link-body-hover;background-color:yellow;-webkit-transition:all 0.3s ease-in-out;transition:all 0.3s ease-in-out;}Newsweek, Peterson entered a relationship with an editor on the 2004 documentary The Staircase, and the two dated from 2011 to 2017. After Michaels release, Bill moved back to Reno, Nevada, where he lives with his family and works as a practicing partner in a full-service local firm. Their mom had been Elizabeth Ratcliff, the family friend who'd died falling down the stairs in Germany decades before Kathleen Peterson, per Cosmopolitan. Her death was investigated by the U.S. military police in Germany at the time and an autopsy concluded she had died from an intracerebral hemorrhage. Still, she agreed to meet with Juliette Binoche and told Vanity Fair that her relationship with the actress was an unexpected happy ending to my painful story.". Clayton and Todd chose to live with their mom, while Martha and Margaret moved to North Carolina with Michael. 'The Staircase' Ending Explained: What Is the Truth? According to him, Michael waited three hours to call 911 while Patty was having a heart attack. During filming, Peterson began dating one of the documentary editors, Sophie Brunet. While the multi-part true-crime docuseries "The Staircase" might not be the gold standard of the genre like it once was at the time of its 2004 debut, it's become the go-to source for the strange case of Michael Peterson, a North Carolina novelist who may or may not have murdered his second wife, Nortel executive Kathleen Peterson. The prosecution suggested that Michael killed his wife after they got in a fight supposedly initiated by Kathleen's discovery of more than 2,000 explicit images of men on Michael's computer in addition to emails in conversation with a young male escort he was planning on reuniting with after meeting a few months prior. Following his release from prison, Michael Peterson, 78, has written two books detailing a behind-the-scenes account of his trial, imprisonment, and life after jail. The case that dominated such a large part of his life still haunted him, however. He currently lives in Baltimore, Maryland, where he works as an engineer. The Staircase follows Michaels more than decade-long legal battle toward freedom and paints a portrait of the Peterson family both before and after Kathleens death. Kathleen was apparently bludgeoned to death after a medical examiner noticed several lacerations on her scalp. However, Caitlin's opinion changed after she saw her mother's autopsy photographs that depicted horrific injuries. Despite now believing his father to be guilty, he still considers The Staircase to be nonsense.. Luckily for them, Firth has received rave reviews. As The News & Observer noted, the former columnist's Alford plea was distinctly tied to the charge of manslaughter, which means that Peterson asserted his opinion of his innocence while simultaneously accepting charges (via Metro). No, not that staircase. Kathleen left early; Michael stuck around. In 2019, he toldDr. Philthat Elizabeth fell down the stairs after suffering a stroke. Peterson's sons have always stood by their father, who has maintained his . They took care of each other.. There, Patty Peterson worked for the U.S. Department of Defense for 35 years as an elementary school teacher. Socialites, Addresses Netflix Series Based on Her Crimes, Harrison Ford Is Returning to TV After 26-Year Absence in, 'The Staircase' : The True Story Behind HBO Max's True Crime Series, Revisit PEOPLE's 2002 Conversation with Michael Peterson, Whose Wife's Death Inspired HBO Max's 'The Staircase', The First Trailer for Scripted HBO Max Adaptation of 'The Staircase' Starring Colin Firth Is Here, Man Sentenced to Life for Murdering Wife Who Searched 'What to Do if You're Husband Is Upset You're Pregnant', Patrick Schwarzenegger Was 'Almost Speechless' at Colin Firth's Transformation for 'The Staircase', S.C. Dad Sentenced to Life in Prison After Jury Finds Him Guilty of Murdering His 5-Year-Old Son, Juror Who Helped Convict Scott Peterson Is Accused of Hiding Bias Against Him, Paving Killer's Path to Retrial, N.C. Man Sentenced to Death for 'Atrocious' Murder of Teen Daughter Who Was Tortured for 22 Hours, Before He Murdered Pregnant Wife, Mo. With The Staircase, de Lestrade embarked on a project that took him 15 years to finish, with the final episodes of the documentary coming out only in 2018. By taking the plea, he admitted that the prosecution had enough evidence to secure a manslaughter conviction. In 2017, Michael submitted an Alford plea to voluntary manslaughter. Three episodes in, the series-runners drop a major bombshell: Peterson was the last person to see another woman who was found dead at the bottom of a staircase in Germany in 1985. Michael Peterson listens as his defense attorney David Rudolf makes opening statements in Peterson's request for a new trial on December 6, 2011, in Durham, North Carolina Advertisement The original Staircase docuseries is largely told from Peterson's perspective, and there is an undeniable appeal to witnessing him in action. Kathleen was the first woman to attend Duke University's School of Engineering and throughout her marriage to Michael Peterson, she worked for Nortel, a telecommunications company. Our product picks are editor-tested, expert-approved. Get the latest scoop directly in your inbox. She said: "My mother and Mike had an absolutely loving relationship and there is no way that either of them would ever wish any sort of harm on the other one.". Todd was the first person to see Michael after Kathleen died, as shown in the first episode of HBO Max's new series. Taking a cue from O.J. In Michael Peterson's case, however . Michael and Patty, along with their young boys, reportedly resided in Germany for quite a while around the 1980s, where they befriended their closeby neighbors, George and Elizabeth Ratliff. He also opines that by agreeing to pay, he would be admitting to murdering Kathleen. Black died in 2018, at age 57 of end-stage liver disease. But she never let her own feelings affect the course of editing.". The writer produced a memoir in 2009 called Behind the Staircase, and a sequel Beyond the Staircase. In 2002, Caitlin filed a civil wrongful death lawsuit against Michael. Michael and Patty split up in 1986. However, it was nearly a very different ending. Peterson was convicted of first-degree murder in connection with Kathleens death, and spent nearly a decade behind bars. First off, in 1985, Peterson was the last person to see yet another woman alive just before she died from head injuries from falling down a staircase. They didnt really care whether he did it or not, Rudolf said Friday at CrimeCon in New Orleans. Michael and Patricia parted after she died due to a massive heart attack in July 2021. The docu-series follows Petersons trial for the murder of his wife Kathleen. The company had also begun massive layoffs at the same time and Kathleens job security seemed tenuous at best. His cell was a far cry from the sprawling mansion he formerly called home, which was put on the market just 20 days later for $1.175 million. Peterson was released while awaiting a new trial but ultimately decided not to take any chances (even with that oh-so-veritable owl theory in his arsenal) and in 2017 entered an Alford plea, whereby asserting his innocence but admitting the evidence would likely lead to a guilty verdict. As the later episodes of "The Staircase" covered, Peterson was eventually granted a retrial hearing in 2011 after it was discovered that Duane Deaver a blood-spatter analyst for North Carolina's State Bureau of Investigation who had testified under oath at Peterson's initial trial that evidence pointed towards his guilt had covered up evidence in other trials that would've benefited the defense. Michaels wife was found lying in a pool of blood at the bottom of a staircase in the couples residence. They were companions, Clayton told News & Observer. HBO Max's latest true crime series, The Staircase, chronicles the lengthy saga of Michael Peterson, an author who was convicted of killing his wife, Kathleen, who died on the stairs in their Durham, N.C. home in December 2001. "I've always believed he did not do this, and I always will.". Sentenced to life in prison for the murder of Kathleen Peterson, Michael was granted a new trial in 2011 when it was brought to light that a key prosecution witness had given misleading information under oath. His guilty plea notwithstanding, Michael still asserts that he did not kill Kathleen Peterson. Since Michael cant profit from his crime, the proceeds from the books sales go to charity. Rudolf said he agreed to participate in the documentary because the filmmakers had won an Academy Award in 2001 for Murder on a Sunday Morning, about a 15-year-old boy wrongfully accused of murder. His moms cancer battle. Despite being found guilty of murder, in 2011, Peterson was granted another trial which was set to take place in 2017. Margaret was already interested in pursuing a career in film when her family was approached by Lestrade and his crew. Is Riley Keough Singing in Daisy Jones & The Six? Elizabeth Ratliffs death had a huge impact on her youngest daughter, Martha (Odessa Young). The Staircase airs on Thursdays on HBO Max and Sky Atlantic. He lives in Durham in a house without a staircase by Chege Karomo - on May 06, 2022 in People Netflix Michael Peterson is the subject of one of Netflix's most riveting and polarizing true crime documentaries, The Staircase . RELATED: 'The Staircase' Ending Explained: What Is the Truth? Kathleen, the familys breadwinner, had deferred much of her income to purchase Nortel Networks stock and though its value once totaled almost $2.5 million, the 2001 crash whittled it down to about $50,000 by the time of her death. She didnt like the idea of being a character in Campos miniseries and felt betrayed by the showrunner. He was granted a new trial in 2011, after a judge determined that a key prosecution witness lied on the stand during the original trial. ViaThe Independent, The Associated Press reported Michael moved into a two-bed condo in 2018. I couldn't afford to live in Paris, and my children and grandchildren were in America." In Lestrades docuseries, she speaks at length about her mental health issues. who was found dead at the bottom of their staircase in their Durham, North Carolina home on December 9, 2001 as well as the aftermath. All the evidence added up to a guilty verdict and on October 10, 2003, Michael was sent to prison for life without the possibility of parole. To boot, the couple was in severe credit card debt, to the tune of $100,000. Sophie and Michael were together from 2004 to 2017. Much like Peterson and Brunet, he was also not happy with the fictional adaptation of his docuseries and claimed that Campos misinterpreted facts in a way that paints him as an unethical filmmaker. Returning to the Scene of the Crime. However, back in 2002, streaming hadnt been invented yet, and young Margaret had no idea just how much her life would be in the public eye in the following decades. Send us a tip using our anonymous form. a livestream that has since been uploaded to YouTube, Margaret co-produced a documentary feature titled, he was also not happy with the fictional adaptation of his docuseries, The Best Korean Dramas on Netflix Right Now, 10 Best Reality Competition Shows Returning In 2023. Although Peterson is out of prison and was granted a manslaughter charge as opposed to the original murder charge that he served nearly eight years in prison for, he maintains his innocence in all matters related to the case. Created by Antonio Campos, the eight-episode long miniseries stars Colin Firth and Toni Collette as novelist Michael Peterson and his second wife, Nortel executive, Kathleen Peterson. Colin Firthwill play the main subject Michael Peterson; the role was originally slated to be played by Harrison Ford. They married in 1965 and moved to Durham, North Carolina. After her death, German officials concluded that Ratliff died of a cerebral hemorrhage which led to her falling down the stairs. "We made plans to live in Paris. Here's everything we know about what happened to Michael Peterson after HBO Max's The Staircase. He Lives in a House Without a Staircase. And the fact that another woman very close to Peterson was also found dead at the bottom of a staircase 16 years before Kathleen. . Instead of the trial actually happening, a judge reduced the novelists charges to manslaughter thanks to entering an Alford plea, which essentially states that while he doesn't admit to the crime, he does admit that the state as sufficient evidence to charge him. Before going AWOL, however, he changed his mind about his dads involvement in Kathleens death. After serving in the Vietnam War, he began to write novels and newspaper columns about his experiences following his honorable discharge in 1971. Elisa Guimares is a feature writer at Collider. Rudolf said,"To suggest I assisted [Pfeiffer] with any interviews, that would be as much fiction as it is that a criminal defense lawyer is allowed in a Grand Jury proceeding. During Petersons trial, he testified that the blood spatters surrounding the spot in which Kathleen had died were consistent with a person being beaten to death. Peterson's defense attorney David Rudolf told Oxygen in 2019 that Peterson is currently living in Durham in a ground floor apartmentso no staircase. Hearst Magazine Media, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Before that, she ran twice for District Attorney, in 2006 and 2008, but never got the job. Skyler Caruso is the Editorial Assistant of PEOPLE Digital. Michael and Patty became even closer post-trial. Michael's late wife Kathleen will be played byToni Collette. However, it will be exclusively available onHBO Max. Stalk It: Michael Petersons former house, featured in The Staircase, is located at 1810 Cedar Street in Durham, North Carolina. They settled in 2007 for $25 million, but it is possible that Michael never paid the full amount considering how much strain the trial put on his finances. After Michael and Pattys divorce, they went to live with Michael and Kathleen, whom they called mom, in the United States. He stated Kathleen Peterson was aware of his interest in men and his first wife, Patricia Sue, was also there to support Michael Peterson's bisexuality claims. Folks can sign up for HBO Max for a monthly rate of $14.99. The True Story Behind Netflix's New Docuseries Bad Vegan, The Tinder Swindler True Story: Everything to Know About Netflix's New True Crime Documentary, Anna Delvey, German Con Artist Who Scammed N.Y.C.