Michael Peterson

The son of a career military officer, Michael Peterson moved with family several times during his childhood. To pass the time while traveling, he became an avid reader. He became a fervent fan of Ernest Hemingway and wanted to be a celebrated novelist in the same vein. He graduated from Duke University in 1965 and got a analyst job a government think tank. His research led him to strongly favor the Vietnam War and shortly after wards, he enlisted in the Marines. He saw combat in Vietnam and won a purple heart. Upon returning to the United States, he became a government consultant and married his first wife, a school teacher. They had two children. He lived overseas for much of their marriage. While they lived in Germany, he became close with a friend of his wife's, a widowed neighbor named Elizabeth Ratliff. But in 1985, Ratliff died of a fall down the stairs in what was ruled an accident. Peterson ultimately became the guardian of Ratliff's two children. in 1983, During this time, he wrote a novel, "The Immortal Dragon", which became a best-seller. His second novel, "A Time of War: A Bitter Peace", also scored success. Peterson won considerable wealth from those successes.During the late 1980's, the mixed family moved to North Carolina. In addition to his work as an author, Peterson became a columnist for a local newspaper, writing an opinion column. However, his next novels were less successful and his marriage failed. In 1997, he fell in love with a longtime neighbor, Kathleen Hunt Atwater, who was also divorced and a successful executive at Nortel. Their marriage at first seemed idyllic. Both were active in community affairs, and in 1999 Michael Peterson ran for Mayor of Durham. His campaign started off well, but his credibility was undermined when it was revealed that his purple heart medal was the result of an automobile accident in Japan, not in combat as he had claimed. He lost badly. Their financial situation deteriorated in 2000 as Peterson's writing career declined. Michael Peterson began to stray and spend time on adult web sites. Things got worse when Kathleen was slated to be laid off from her well-paying job. Then, on December 9, 2001, she was found dead at the bottom of the staircase in their home by Michael. He claimed that she had fallen accidentally and he discovered her too late to save her. But police were suspicious of the great amount of blood at the scene. Subsequently, they discovered Michael Peterson had a very large life insurance policy, enough to solve his financial debts. They also learned that Kathleen had stumbled upon her husband's computer files with their proof of his infidelity. And a tip from a relative pointed out that Kathleen Peterson's death greatly resembled the death of Elizabeth Ratliff 16 years earlier. Armed with this evidence, prosecutors charged him with murder. The ensuing trial created headlines throughout the region. After a few days of deliberation, the jury returned a verdict of guilty and he was sentenced to a term of life in prison. He maintains his innocence to this day.