A Perfect Husband
Page 30
The letter mentioned owl attacks, stating that the neighbors had seen “owls hunt at night.” The letter gave eleven “points of evidence” that supported the theory of an “owl strike,” noting that the number and shape of the wounds to Kathleen’s head were consistent with talon marks.
“We have owls in our neighborhood that have been out there for years,” Pollard wrote, “and were indeed out there, on the night Kathleen Peterson was found dead.” Larry Pollard told the district attorney that the reopening of the investigation regarding Kathleen’s death was “morally, legally, and ethically, the right thing to do.”
Jim Hardin sent a reply to the letter, stating firmly, and politely, that the owl theory was “not credible.” To the Herald-Sun, Hardin would not only squelch the validity of the theory, the DA would call the owl attack concept “one of the most ridiculous things I’ve ever heard.”
Unexpectedly, the hardworking prosecutor had been named one of the top “Ten Lawyers of the Year” by Lawyers Weekly USA. The esteemed publication gave Hardin the nod, specifically because of his brilliant and undeterred work in the five-month trial against Michael Peterson.
Nick Galifianakis would tell Herald-Sun reporters that the “owl theory” was not going to go away. He hoped to try to convince a judge to exhume Kathleen Peterson’s body, to test her scalp for “owl DNA.” Both Galifianakis and Pollard were planning to file a “motion of appropriate relief.” They would claim that, if their owl theory could gain the attention of a local judge, theoretically, a new trial could be ordered for Michael Peterson.
In courthouse circles, the owl theory drew grins from people. Certain skeptics would speculate about mysterious owls, pointing out that there were no owl feathers, no path of blood left behind. Others would call wildlife experts to discover that owls had rarely been known to attack humans. Any rare attacks that did occur happened only during nesting season, in the spring and summer months.
When the owl theory became public, Caitlin Atwater was not quite as angry as other members of the family. She found a moment of humor in it, and took it in stride, unlike her aunt Candace, who had written a scathing letter to the Herald-Sun, furious that the paper would dignify such nonsense by printing stories about an owl.
“No bird, animal, reptile, or alien from outer space attacked my sister,” Candace wrote. “A man, not an owl, flew across the Atlantic and is tied to the awful deaths of two dearly missed women.
“Please do not dignify any further efforts to try to portray what happened to my sister as anything other than cruel murder,” Candace insisted. “Please use your journalistic influence to support solutions and safe havens for women who suffer from domestic violence.”
Caitlin might have still been too young to understand the harsh reality of her existence. She had never seen Michael hit her mother; she didn’t really want to think about it. She had known him to throw temper tantrums, had watched Michael once hit Margaret with a camera case—it was a swipe he took at Margaret Ratliff—really, no big deal. It was something Michael would do, just strike out for little reasons, for stupid things, but he wouldn’t really physically hurt anyone. It was more like an attempt to humiliate someone....
Of course Caitlin was a survivor. She would find the strength to carry on. She still had Fred’s shoulders to lean on, as well as her aunts, uncles, and cousins. And Caitlin still had her friends, plus her schoolwork at Cornell. She believed in herself and was determined to succeed, to make her mom proud. She would no longer speak to her former brothers and sisters, who had mocked her during the trial, who had taken a wrong turn somewhere. Clayton, Todd, and the Ratliff girls still believed in Michael’s story and protested his innocence to the media. The brothers and sisters she once had were forever gone from her life. She hoped that one day they would find truth, that they would open their hearts and minds.
In a hearing before Judge Hudson, in January 2004, Caitlin Atwater won a victory regarding her civil lawsuit: the criminal judgment against Michael Peterson would be binding in her wrongful-death suit. For the pain and suffering Michael had caused her mother, for taking her mom’s life, Caitlin would be awarded monetary damages. The amount would be determined at a later date. However, Thomas Maher had taken over as counsel for Peterson’s appeal, and Maher would argue to the court that if he was able to get the murder verdict overturned, the acquittal might negate the civil ruling as well.
For all it might be worth, Caitlin would have to wait for Michael’s lengthy appeal process to come to an end before she could collect any compensation whatsoever. And as it happened, Michael Peterson had already filed a request to be declared “indigent.” Because that request had been granted, Caitlin stood to gain no compensation directly from him, but she still would be entitled to the proceeds from her mother’s $1.45 million life insurance policy.
Caitlin would not let herself become upset by any court ruling, by a crazy owl story, or by her stepdad’s mockery of the legal system. She wanted to remember the good times, the times when she played as a child in the wooded neighborhood of Forest Hills. She recalled many happy times, growing up in the Peterson house, and told a funny story about a night when a bat flew over her head. It happened back in the summer of 2000, when she felt something swoop over her ear in the middle of the night.
Caitlin had run over to Margaret and Martha’s room, and the three girls were freaking out, running all over the house, realizing that bats were flying all around them. They laughed about it later, but at the time they were frightened, finding bats everywhere—in the hallway, on the stairs. The creatures seemed to be coming in through the vents. She recalled Michael catching a few bats in a shoe box and taking them outside. She remembered how zany she and her sisters felt; they had huddled together in one room and had put towels under the doorway, hoping that no dark-winged attacker could possibly squeeze through.
The next morning, when the exterminator arrived to find that the Petersons had a whole bat colony living in their attic, no one could believe it. The family was told that the creatures had built-in radar systems, and, unless the entire house was evacuated and exterminated, the bats would keep flying back.
Caitlin would look back on it and remember her mother’s laughter. She recalled the jokes they all made about their crazy family, about having bats in their belfry. It seemed like an eternity had passed since that hot summer day, when a colony of bats, like the evil that lurked in the Peterson mansion, could no longer call the place home.
Michael Peterson, best-selling novelist, on trial for the murder of his wife, Kathleen.
(Courtesy of The News & Observer)
Kathleen Peterson became the first woman to earn a master’s degree in engineering from Duke University.
(Courtesy of Fred Atwater)
Kathleen and her first husband, Fred Atwater, celebrate as newlyweds.
(Courtesy of Fred Atwater)
Kathleen in her younger days, visiting Disney World.
(Courtesy of Fred Atwater)
Kathleen with her daughter Caitlin, on a camping holiday.
(Courtesy of Fred Atwater)
Margaret and Martha Ratliff in Germany, dressed European style by their mom, Elizabeth.
(Courtesy of Amybeth Berner)
Amybeth Berner and Michael Peterson’s first wife, Patricia, enjoy a fine dining establishment with their children in Paris.
(Courtesy of Bruce Berner)
Amybeth Berner, George Ratliff, and Carol Durham, at a get-together at the Berners’ house in Germany.
(Courtesy of Bruce Berner)
Former nanny Barbara O’Hara, Martha Ratliff, Amybeth Berner, Margaret Ratliff, and Bruce Berner, as they enjoy a meal at Elizabeth Ratliff’s table. (Courtesy of Bruce Berner)
The entrance gate to the Peterson mansion on Cedar Street. (Author′s photo)
The Peterson mansion swimming pool, where Michael Peterson claimed to have been sitting as his wife died inside their home. (Author′s photo)
Caitlin Atwater, daught
er of Kathleen Peterson, fought for justice for her mother. (Yearbook photo)
Michael Peterson on trial for first-degree murder in Durham. (Courtesy of Robert Olason)
Todd Peterson, Margaret Ratliff, Martha Ratliff, and Michael Peterson.
(Courtesy of Robert Olason)
Lead defense attorney David Rudolf.
(Courtesy of Robert Olason)
Bill Peterson, Michael Peterson, friend and supporter Doug Hinds, and attorney Kerry Sutton. (Courtesy of Robert Olason)
DA Jim Hardin, ADA Freda Black, and defense attorney Thomas Maher, who would continue to represent Michael Peterson after his conviction. (Courtesy of Robert Olason)
Judge Orlando Hudson, Jr.
(Author′s photo)
Lead Detective Art Holland of the Durham Police works with CSI outside the Peterson mansion.
(State′s exhibit)
Of the two crystal wineglasses from the night in question, neither contained Kathleen’s fingerprints, but Michael Peterson’s fingerprints were visible.
(State′s exhibit)
Investigators surmised that the wine had been poured down the sink, to make it appear that Kathleen Peterson was drinking heavily the night she died.
(State′s exhibit)
The back stairwell in the Peterson house remained boarded up and covered with blood for almost two years. (State’s exhibit)
Kathleen Peterson’s scalp reveals deep gashes and strange pitchfork-like patterns. (State’s exhibit)
Kathleen’s blood-soaked body the night her husband ″discovered″ her at the bottom of the stairs.
(State′s exhibit)
The lacerations on Kathleen’s face were considered evidence of a struggle. (State′s exhibit)
The shoe print from Michael Peterson’s sneaker appeared on the back of Kathleen Peterson’s sweatpants. (State’s exhibit)
The blood spatter on Michael Peterson’s athletic shoe appears to show drops of blood that fell vertically, perhaps dripping from an object. (State′s exhibit)
A close-up of the bloodstains, with small drops of blood spatter, on the inside of Michael Peterson’s shorts.
(State′s exhibit)
A Diet Coke can showed traces of blood and unidentifiable mixed saliva. (State′s exhibit)
A model replica of the Peterson staircase used by bloodstain expert Duane Deaver.
(State′s exhibit)
Elizabeth Ratliff as she appeared upon her exhumation in 2003, 18 years after her death. (State′s exhibit)
Medical examiners were shocked to see the condition of Elizabeth’s corpse, complete with flesh, fingernail polish, and makeup. (State′s exhibit)
The legs of Elizabeth Ratliff reveal the perfect condition of her wedding gown and stockings. (State′s exhibit)
Elizabeth Ratliff’s scalp shows lacerations similar to the ones suffered by Kathleen Peterson.
(State′s exhibit)
Diagrams of the scalp lacerations to Elizabeth Ratliff.
(State′s exhibit)
Diagrams of the scalp lacerations to Kathleen Peterson.
(State′s exhibit)
Amybeth Berner testifies about her suspicions against Michael Peterson in Elizabeth Ratliff’s death.
(Courtesy of Robert Olason)
Famed forensic expert Dr. Henry Lee concluded that Kathleen Peterson’s death was ″inconsistent with a beating.″
(Courtesy of Robert Olason)
Michael Peterson exchanged e-mails with former male escort ″Brad″ (center) in an attempt to arrange a paid homosexual encounter. Here, ADA Freda Black questions Brad’s attorney, Thomas Loflin III. (Courtesy of Robert Olason)
Candace Zamperini, Kathleen’s sister, holds a replica of the alleged murder weapon. (Courtesy of The News & Observer)
Caitlin Atwater being comforted by her aunt, Lori Campell, while waiting for the final arguments to close.
(Author′s photo)
Local residents bought all of the contents of the Peterson mansion during an estate sale in November 2003.
(Author′s photo)
Michael Peterson’s mug shot. He was sent to the Nash Correctional Institution to serve the rest of his life in prison.
(Courtesy of the North Carolina Department of Corrections)
Some names have been changed to protect the privacy of individuals connected to this story.
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Copyright © 2004 by Aphrodite Jones
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