A Perfect Husband

by Aphrodite Jones

Elizabeth’s sister, Margaret Blair, gave interviews revealing that she had contacted Durham investigators just a few days after Kathleen Peterson’s death. Blair admitted to reporters that, while she didn’t want to alienate her nieces, she felt obligated to tell police about the strange coincidence between two deaths. Blair believed Michael Peterson was the last person to see her sister alive, and she assured reporters that she was acting out of concern, not animosity. When pressed about the subject, Margaret Blair admitted that she had once tried to gain custody of the Ratliff girls and explained that she had left the matter to “the will of God.”

  Newspaper reporters addressed the complex issue of Elizabeth Ratliff’s death, wondering whether or not any of that age-old information could ever make its way into the trial regarding Kathleen Peterson. In most instances, prior acts were not allowed to be brought before a jury. Even if the prosecutors found evidence that could implicate Michael Peterson in Elizabeth Ratliff’s death, such evidence probably wouldn’t be admissible.

  The inadmissibility of a prior act was a concept many people in Durham didn’t agree with. If a man had killed before, and that man was standing trial for yet another murder, most folks in Durham felt that was the kind of information that should be made known to a jury. But the American legal system didn’t work that way. At least, not as a general rule.

  Regarding the Elizabeth Ratliff death, however, things were more complicated. Her death came into a strange category that might prove to be the exception to the rule.

  There was already a famous case on the books in North Carolina that had proven to be an exception, which had set an unusual precedent, and it could provide the loophole that the Durham prosecutors might use. The past case involved Barbara Stager, a woman who had been charged with murdering her second husband in 1988. At the time, Barbara Stager was asserting that she had shot her husband accidentally while he was asleep in their bed.

  In that case, North Carolina prosecutors were allowed to introduce evidence of her prior act—because it showed her modus operandi. The two crimes were identical. Prosecutors showed the jury that Barbara Stager’s first husband had also died from an “accidental” gunshot wound while he was asleep in their bed. To everyone’s surprise, the jury convicted Stager of first-degree murder in the slaying of her second husband . . . and the verdict stood.

  But ultimately, the decision about the admissibility of any evidence on Elizabeth Ratliff was something that would be up to the trial judge. Until then, everyone was speculating, and any efforts that the Durham prosecution team might make toward discovering the truth of Mrs. Ratliff’s death would remain under wraps.

  DA Jim Hardin felt there was a good chance that the Ratliff evidence would be allowed in under 404 (b), a rule that covered the similarity of two crimes. It was the same rule that had been employed in the Barbara Stager case, and he was betting that if he could prove Ratliff’s death to be a homicide, the judge would allow the evidence in.

  With that in mind, Jim Hardin asked Detective Art Holland and Assistant DA Freda Black to start making calls to Germany, to do background work, hoping to see what they might discover. As they began to track down a long list of people, Holland was astonished to learn that the former army pathologist who had signed off on the Ratliff case, Larry Barnes, had not looked for any signs of foul play.

  Speaking to Barnes via phone, Art Holland was stunned when Larry Barnes admitted that all corpses sent to him at the Army’s 97th General Hospital, in Frankfurt, were routinely assumed to involve death by natural causes.

  Larry Barnes said that when he received Elizabeth Ratliff’s body, he was never informed by German police that it was a possible forensic case. Barnes explained that back in 1985, he had relied primarily on the “spot judgments” that were made by the German authorities at the scene. Barnes said he wasn’t ever trained in criminal work.

  During their phone conversation, Barnes referred to the 1985 autopsy report on Elizabeth Ratliff, which stated that she suffered “a bleeding to her brain.” But when further questioned by Art Holland, Barnes was forced to admit that he wasn’t qualified to provide any opinion. Barnes couldn’t say whether Ratliff’s bleeding was the result of a stroke, a blow to the head, or a fall down the stairs.

  As soon as DA Jim Hardin heard the news about the American authorities and their misjudgment, he gave Art Holland and ADA Freda Black the green light to leave for Germany right away. When they arrived in Frankfurt region, Holland and Black would locate Elizabeth’s old neighborhood in Graefenhausen. Amazingly, most of her close friends and neighbors were still there. The first person they sat down to chat with was Elizabeth’s former nanny, Barbara O’Hara, who had a new last name, Malagnino. The conversation started off warmly, Freda Black being a down-to-earth woman, and Barbara explained that she wound up marrying the taxi driver, Salvatore, the man who helped her on the day she discovered Liz’s body. Barbara’s memories of Margaret and Martha clearly showed how much she loved and cared for the girls. She had tried to keep in touch with them over the years, but her efforts were futile. The girls had no memory of her, and Michael Peterson didn’t seem to want her in their lives anymore.

  After much hemming and hawing, Barbara Malagnino admitted that for years she had suspicions about Mrs. Ratliff’s death. The former nanny was not willing to name names, but she had always wondered why the German authorities had been in such a rush on the day Liz died. She had spoken to Amybeth Berner, Barbara admitted. The two of them had discussed an intruder theory. Amybeth had pointed out that Liz still had her boots on, which was unlike her. The two surmised that Liz might have been followed into the house, that she had to have been running away from somebody. At the time, Barbara wasn’t willing to believe that Michael Peterson had anything to do with the death, but she was surprised when the American authorities ruled Elizabeth’s death an accident.

  Barbara seemed uneasy when she talked about Michael Peterson. She seemed somewhat afraid of him. She was unwilling to give the complete details, but she had severed her ties with Michael not long after he became guardian to Elizabeth’s girls. Apparently, she didn’t like Michael’s parenting style. It wasn’t that Michael had been abusive, but Barbara muttered something about Michael being rough on the girls. She said he had a hard time potty training Martha, had punished the girls for little things, and he had become reclusive with them, not bringing them out into the community as much.

  After Elizabeth’s death, Barbara thought Michael had become withdrawn, and Amybeth had agreed. The two women had talked at length about the accident, but Barbara Malagnino couldn’t say, for sure, what she really thought had happened. In her heart, she believed it wasn’t an accidental fall. She talked about the large amount of blood in the stairwell, and she told Freda Black that if she was needed, she would be willing to testify. It was clear that the former nanny felt uncomfortable talking about Peterson, but Barbara felt it was her duty to tell the truth. Deep down, Barbara always knew the day would come when the question of Elizabeth’s death would arise.

  While in the Frankfurt region, Art Holland and Freda Black were treated very well by German authorities. The German police said they would be willing to reopen the case, if, in fact, the remains of Elizabeth Ratliff were to prove that a homicide had taken place. The two North Carolina law officials were surprised at how at ease they felt in the foreign country. The German people were so helpful and friendly; most folks were willing to cooperate. Holland and Black were impressed by people’s memories of Elizabeth. They found that recollections of Elizabeth Ratliff seemed fairly fresh and vivid.

  Even though they were not used to the language barrier and sometimes had to rely on German translators, Holland and Black were able to quiz a number of people who knew Elizabeth Ratliff very well. They found it was not difficult for these people to communicate about Liz. While many folks had fond memories of Liz and her girls, they were saddened by her sudden death; some people had questions and concerns that had never been answered.

  Holla
nd and Black were collecting all the evidence they could.

  As they spent more time in Germany, Art Holland and Freda Black learned that people never understood why Liz died so young. Liz wasn’t much of a drinker; Liz wasn’t one to use drugs. No one understood how Liz could have taken such a tragic fall. Beyond that, people were curious as to why Elizabeth left her girls to Michael and Patricia Peterson. Some folks recalled that Michael was the person who orchestrated Elizabeth’s last will and testament; they believed Michael had even written the will up for Liz, just weeks after George died.

  The relationship between Elizabeth Ratliff and Michael Peterson was quite odd. The two of them were unusually close friends.

  Of greatest interest to Holland and Black was their interview with Tom and Cheryl Appel-Schumacher, who, after contacting a lawyer, had agreed to talk to the North Carolina authorities to clear up any misjudgments on their part. Tom and Cheryl recalled the wonderful party that Liz had thrown them. They talked about her depression and how, in the days before her death, Liz seemed to finally be getting over the loss of her husband. They admitted that they helped clean up the blood in the staircase on the day of Elizabeth’s death, believing her death was an accident. They couldn’t remember for sure, but they thought that Michael Peterson had helped them with the cleanup.

  The Appel-Schumachers were horrified that Elizabeth’s death might be deemed a homicide. They insisted that they had not been suspicious at the time. They said they never, in a million years, would have suspected Michael of any wrongdoing. They saw Elizabeth and Michael as nothing more than friends, and they considered Michael and Patricia to be caring and loving people.

  The Appel-Schumachers saw their role in the cleanup of the blood as a necessary act. They had not wanted Liz’s girls to have any memory of bloody walls. They hoped that they hadn’t interfered with justice; they were just doing what was best for the girls.

  As they spoke to Holland and Black, the Appel-Schumachers were clearly upset by the details of Kathleen Peterson’s death. Like Barbara, they said they would be willing to come to America to testify in the case against Michael Peterson. The Appel-Schumachers promised they would cooperate in any way. But they felt sick to their stomachs to hear about Kathleen in the stairwell with all that blood . . . it was worse than déjà vu.

  Before they left the Frankfurt region, Art Holland and Freda Black would have a most alarming conversation with a former neighbor of Elizabeth Ratliff’s, a woman from Graefenhausen by the name of Karin Hamm. The neighbor needed to use a translator, but she eventually gave Holland and Black a written statement that said she had seen Michael Peterson “running down the street” away from the Ratliff residence, the night before Elizabeth was found dead.

  Forty

  Back in the States, another eerie coincidence was making headlines. An award-winning film crew, which had won an Oscar for a documentary called Murder on a Sunday Morning, was busy working with David Rudolf and Michael Peterson on developing a documentary for ABC television. The crew, which had flown in from France, told Durham reporters that they’d already spoken to Judge Orlando Hudson Jr., who would be presiding in the Peterson case, as well as DA Jim Hardin. The French crew was asked about the strange connection between the title of their previous film, given the fact that Kathleen Peterson was found dead, allegedly murdered on a Sunday morning. But the film crew found none of that to be amusing.

  The award-winning crew, Maha Productions, was given special permission to tape court hearings and the trial proceedings, and were allowed to clip a microphone to David Rudolf. Judge Hudson was in favor of having the documentary made—feeling that it would not compromise the Peterson trial in any way. Having been assured that the documentary would not be aired until after the trial verdict and sentencing, the judge was convinced a documentary would have educational value.

  The fact that Kathleen Peterson was alleged to have been murdered on a Sunday morning, turned out to have no particular relevance to the film crew, which would work, almost exclusively, with Michael Peterson and his attorneys, David Rudolf and Thomas Maher. From the outset, it seemed obvious that the documentary filmmakers believed in Rudolf’s abilities to convince a jury that there was no real evidence against Michael Peterson. Everyone in the Peterson camp believed strongly in his innocence, and Maha Productions would be given complete access to the accused murderer and his immediate family. They would be allowed to follow Peterson’s defense team around for months prior to his trial.

  In late October 2002, with Peterson’s trial date of May 2003 still way off in the distance, Caitlin Atwater filed a wrongful-death suit that sought compensation for “the pain and suffering of Kathleen Peterson” caused by Michael Peterson’s fatal assault. The civil matter would be pursued separately from Peterson’s criminal trial. It alleged that Michael Peterson did intentionally, maliciously, and willfully assault his wife, causing her death.

  Peterson publicly responded to the civil suit by stating how “saddened” he was about his family being ripped apart. He told reporters that the Durham police had chosen to provide Caitlin with only part of the evidence, which had resulted in a “predictable” action. Peterson felt sorry for Caitlin’s pain, the loss of her mother, and her “precipitous” action. He also felt sorry for his other four children, who, having lost a mother, had now lost a sister as well.

  Caitlin Atwater’s attorney, Jay Trehy, reported that the wrongful-death lawsuit would remain under seal until Michael Peterson’s criminal proceedings were concluded. The attorney said that the suit he filed on Miss Atwater’s behalf would show “clear and convincing evidence” of malice and wanton conduct on the part of Michael Peterson. However, to avoid complications, the attorney was not at liberty to discuss any possible motive, or the way in which the alleged murder occurred.

  The wrongful-death lawsuit, Caitlin’s attorney insisted, was not an attempt to taint the criminal case against Peterson in any way. However, Todd Peterson was publicly enraged by the filing of the civil suit, telling a Herald-Sun reporter that Caitlin had been “poisoned” by a one-sided presentation of facts by police and prosecutors.

  “If she was interested in the truth,” Todd said of Caitlin, “she would have waited until all the facts had come out at trial before making her mind up about what happened to our mother.”

  Todd was quoted as calling Caitlin’s lawsuit a “transparent attempt” to prejudice their father’s trial, and he felt that Caitlin’s legal action was “inexcusable.”

  The same day the wrongful-death suit was filed, October 30, 2002, attorney Jay Trehy had knocked on Michael Peterson’s front door at 9:00 A.M. Trehy was at the Cedar Street house to supervise a moving company to collect all of Caitlin Atwater’s belongings and remove them from the Peterson home. The move took about two hours, and Caitlin, who was about to enter a Durham County courthouse that afternoon, had decided it best to keep her distance.

  She would recall her sadness on that day. Having just turned twenty, Caitlin would normally consult her mother about difficult and trying matters. Caitlin had done a lot of soul-searching before reaching her decision to file suit, and she felt that her mom would have wanted her to take action, that her mom would have wanted her to know the truth.

  In terms of Michael and Todd’s accusations that she had abandoned her family, Caitlin would remind reporters that Michael had essentially “disowned” her months before, when Peterson stood in a court of law and asserted that Caitlin Atwater deserved no insurance benefits from her mother’s Prudential policy.

  Caitlin and her attorney, Jay Trehy, were conducting an investigation of their own, looking at financial records, checking in with Durham prosecutors, in order to pursue the case. Because of all the stress, Caitlin had taken a leave of absence from her studies at Cornell.

  There were too many questions to be answered.

  For one thing, Fred Atwater had discovered that Kathleen’s Prudential life insurance policy, which she obtained as an executive at Nortel Networks, s
till had his name listed as the beneficiary. Apparently, Kathleen had never signed the paperwork—filled out by Peterson in 1997 after their wedding—that would officially designate Michael Peterson as the sole beneficiary.

  Nobody was sure why Kathleen had failed to sign the papers. There was rumor that a call had been placed to Nortel just months before Kathleen’s death—that someone was trying to discover the facts regarding her life insurance. There was some technicality that needed to be figured out, and Fred Atwater had become fully aware of it.

  It seems there had been a second policy, which Fred and Kathleen had been paying into for Caitlin’s college fund, and the payout of half of that policy was made in late 2000 to Kathleen Peterson. Fred had looked at all the insurance papers at the time—he was trying to advise Caitlin—and was totally against the switch of her assets into a high-tech company. Fred felt his daughter was gambling with her future. But Caitlin had been convinced by Michael and her mother to take half the proceeds that had built up—$40,000—and purchase Nortel Networks stock.

  Fred Atwater recalled that he was nervous about the Petersons juggling half of Caitlin’s college fund. As it happened, just months after the purchase, Nortel stock plummeted from something like $80 a share to about $2 a share. In the year 2001, Caitlin asked her mom to sell her Nortel stock at that crazy low rate—losing most of her $40,000 investment.

  It was not long after Kathleen’s death, when Fred Atwater studied Kathleen’s life insurance policies, that he realized that Kathleen had failed to sign the paperwork to designate Michael her beneficiary. Fred was usually not a superstitious man, but he felt Kathleen’s oversight may have been an omen. In any case, the fact remained that Michael Peterson, while mentioned in the 1997 insurance policy, was not legally designated as the recipient of the $1.45 million dollars.

  Paperwork had been filed in 1997, designating Michael Peterson as beneficiary, but the papers were unsigned. While Peterson’s attorneys were asserting that it was clear the Michael should get the money, it would become a matter for the courts to rule on, and it would be tabled until after the criminal proceedings were heard.