deceased's injuries were "inconsistent with a fall down a set of stairs", "Margaret and Martha Ratliff wrapped their arms around each other and mourned". A+E Networks EMEA Expands its FAST Footprint with Amagi, A+E NETWORKS EMEA AND BBC STUDIOS TO MAKE PODCAST-INSPIRED TV SERIES EVIL GENIUS WITH AWARD-WINNING COMEDIAN AND PODCASTER RUSSELL KANE FOR SKY HISTORY, A+E NETWORKS EMEA ANNOUNCES BRAND REFRESH FOR THE HISTORY CHANNEL ACROSS EMEA, COSMO earns three awards at the Promax Global Excellence Awards. She was found by her children's nanny, Barbara Malagnino, who sought help from Patty shortly after making the grim discovery. When Elizabeth Ratliff died in 1985, Michael became the guardian of her two children. Or anyone else for that matter-NO ONE knows exactly what someone has in their home-their own or someone elses) he then went into self-preservation mode-his mind took him back to what happened with Elizabeth Ratliff and so he carried Kathleen or even helped guide her up the stairs, if she was still conscious, telling her he would help her and not to worry, however after climbing a certain amount of stairs, he then ended up heaving her down the stairs. Netflix's 'The Staircase': How did Elizabeth Ratliff really die? According to the second autopsy, seven deep lacerations on Elizabeth's head - just like those found on Kathleen's - were concluded to have been sustained as a result of blunt force trauma. ( Note: Ratliff's cause of death at the time was listed as natural causes by "spontaneous intracranial hemorrhages." During Michael Peterson's 2003 trial, Ratliff's. There was a substantial amount of blood around the staircase, Witness Cheryl Appel-Schumacher testified during Petersons 2003 trial that the blood reached all the way up the staircase. Fear of this realization getting out, Michael possibly grabbed and shook Liz, his anger finally caused him to push her hard and she fell down the stairs to her demise. After her passing, Michael adopted Elizabeth's two daughters, Martha and Margaret. As per reports, Elizabeth often had dinner with the Petersons, and Michael would stay back to clean up or tuck her little girls to bed, which is precisely what they unwittingly did on her last evening alive. Elizabeth's Ratliff's sudden death in November 1985 became of great significance in the case against Michael Peterson during his trial for the murder of his second wife, Kathleen Peterson. The coroner determined that she fell down the stairs after the brain bleed caused her immediate demise. Jean-Xavier de Lestrade's The Staircase alludes to the haunting center of novelist Michael Peterson's infamous murder case. Peterson also worked as a newspaper columnist for The Herald-Sun, where his columns became known for their criticism of police and of Durham County district attorney James Hardin Jr., who would later prosecute Peterson for the murder of his second wife, Kathleen. When the prosecution learned of Elizabeth's death and identified the coincidence that she, too, had died as a result of falling down the stairs, they called for her body to be exhumed from the grave in Texas where she was buried. Peterson claimed he had received one Purple Heart after being hit by shrapnel when another soldier stepped on a land mine, and the other when he was shot. Learning is part of the journey at A+E Networks EMEA and youll be offered personal and professional development opportunities throughout your career with us. Elizabeth's Ratliff's sudden death in November 1985 became of great significance in the case against Michael Peterson during his trial for the murder of his second wife, Kathleen Peterson. But they need to put themselves in their shoes, think if you already came from a broken home, wouldnt you try to believe in every last possibility that your parent could not do something so horrific, even if similar circumstances also involved that parent many years before? But as Michael, again could not have this harmful information that could ruin his reputation get out, he flew into a rage again striking Kathleen as she was headed out the door, thus leaving the drops of blood on the porch which was what initially led to the owl theory (an owl latched onto Kathleens head with its sharp talons-crazy I know). In her opinion, the seven lacerations on her head indicated blunt force trauma. The two were buried side by side after Ratlitt died. She also remembered the copious amounts of blood near the staircase at the scene of Elizabeth's death. Elizabeth now feeling frustrated and not wanting to continue being alone with 2 small children told him she was going to go tell his wife that her daughter Margaret was Michael's daughter (as you can see the incredible similarities between she and Michael as well as his boys Todd & Clayton with Patty) https://flic.kr/p/JR7p1K The documentary offers an intimate depiction of defense preparations for the trial. After Michael and Patricia divorced in 1987, Clayton and Todd lived with Patricia, and Margaret and Martha stayed with Michael, who then moved to Durham, North Carolina. Investigators exhumed her grave in Bay City, Texas. Elizabeth Ratliff Autopsy - 4 Autopsy Report -- Elizabeth Ratliff All Rights Reserved. Michael, a Vietnam War vet, bonded with Elizabeth's husband George, who was a captain in the military. On November 25, 1985, Elizbeth Ratliff was found dead at the bottom of her staircase in an eerily similar way to the way Kathleen Peterson was found on December 9, 2001. The SBI cited the bloodstain analysis given in the fourth case as the reason for firing Deaver. T he death of Elizabeth Ratliff was brought into the Peterson case. [4][37][38], In November 2012, de Lestrade released a sequel, The Staircase 2: The Last Chance, which premiered at the International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam. [2] The Staircase, a 2022 miniseries featuring Colin Firth and Toni Collette, also covers the murder case and its aftermath. Our people are our strength, and our differences are celebrated. The cause of death was blunt force trauma to the head. 'The Staircase': Where Are Michael Peterson and His Family Now? - Collider Sign up forOxygen Insiderfor all the best true crime content. After receiving permission from Elizabeth's mother and sister, authorities went ahead with the exhumation. But two years after George's death, as if the Ratliff family hadn't suffered enough trauma, Elizabeth too was found dead - at the bottom of the staircase at her home in Germany. Personalities shine at A+E Networks EMEA. Get an all-access pass to never-before-seen content, free digital evidence kits, and much more! Elizabeth Ratliff, shown in the Netflix docu-series "The Staircase.". I believe that Patty suspected Michaels infidelity with Liz, and with the girls left to Michael, this probably only reinforced her suspicions. After seeing much of The Staircase on Netflix and seeing Michaels narcissistic and cocky personality I believe he tried to make her believe she was crazy to think that or try to make up a story, as that was what he did for a living so it would be easy for him to come up with excuses easily. 2023 Cinemaholic Inc. All rights reserved. Regina Green, an old family friend of Peterson pointed out in "The Staircase" how much Ratliff and Petersons first wife Patricia looked alike. In her opinion, the seven lacerations on her head indicated blunt force trauma. I feel here is where things took a turn. After knocking Kathleen out (with what exactly, there are so many possibilities-afterall if all your kids were no longer living at home, would they be able to identify what things were or werent missing? [1] In 2017, Peterson submitted an Alford plea to the reduced charge of manslaughter. Under no circumstances would they have had a sexual relationship.". From D.A. After Vietnam, retired Marine Captain Michael joined Patty in Germany and the couple quickly became good friends with Elizabeth Ratliff and her husband George, also a Captain in the military. by Kirbie Johnson Exposing Jean-Xavier de Lestrade's tendentious film, the Peterson murder documentary: Death on the Stairacse. It is only natural that a mother want custody of her children, but why not the girls as their mother was supposedly her best or very close friend?? Peterson said she must have fallen down the stairs after consuming alcohol and Valium. He later adopted Ratliff's two daughters, Martha and Margaret. 'The Staircase': Who Are Michael and Kathleen Peterson's Children? 1987-United States-Michael and Patty have now since divorced (funny how so soon after this all happened) And in the divorce, the Petersons boys went with Patty while the Ratliff girls remained with Michael. As Peterson was the only person at the residence at the time of Kathleen's death, he was the prime suspect and was soon charged with her murder. Down The Staircase After Affair Uncovered | by Edward Anderson - Medium His release on bond followed a judicial order for a new trial after Judge Hudson found that Deaver had given "materially misleading" and "deliberately false" testimony about bloodstain evidence, and had exaggerated his training, experience, and expertise. The Netflix series, originally a documentary produced by a French company, examines his original trial. [39][40] The film documents Peterson's family and his legal team's arguments in seeking a retrial, in which they succeed.[41]. Her life was thus incredibly different from her Rhode Island farm upbringing, especially as shed eventually found herself working at an elementary school at the Rhein-Main Air Force Base in West Germany. The 43-year-old died in 1985 in Germany, found at the bottom of her stairs by her children's nanny Barbara Malagnino. The Staircase Ending Explained: What Is the Truth? - Collider True story behind The Staircase: The marriage of Michael and Kathleen Michael Peterson trial - Wikipedia We understand the opportunity to grow engagement with new audiences of all ages and through new partnerships with Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Instagram, TikTok and Snapchat, along with our podcasts and on-demand SVOD services, we ensure our programming and unique stories reach audiences across the full demographic spectrum. Woman's death in Germany 18 years ago enters novelist's murder trial - CNN Despite Michael Peterson's lawyer, David Rudolf, requesting that a "neutral" pathologist from Texas carried out the autopsy, the District Attorney had Dr. Deborah L. Radisch, the state pathologist, do it instead. Jean-Xavier de Lestrade's The Staircase alludes to the haunting centre of novelist Michael Peterson's infamous murder case. These similarities include: . "There was nothing out of place, except that she was no longer living," she recalled almost two decades later. I do however wished that Michaels lawyer wouldve let him testify because the jurors would've seen his true colors, but as seen in The Staircase on Netflix, even his lawyers knew his personality as they stated it would not be in his best interest to take the stand because his personality would be off-putting to the jury (Im not quoting, but basically they knew the jury would hate him). They were 2 and 1 years old when Ratliff died. After her passing, Michael adopted Elizabeth's two daughters, Martha and Margaret. The owl did it, and other reasons true crime fans love The Staircase - Vox At the age of 43, Elizabeth Liz Ratliff had created a good life for herself as a teacher for military children, signifying that she often got the chance to travel across the globe for work. Often, he'd help with the dishes or read to Ratliff's two young daughtersbefore returning home, according to the documentary series. Im also sure as he is a master storyteller, that he convinced himself the story he told was the truth and his mind believed it, thus giving his consciousness the ability to feel he was innocent and then able to act the part of the victim as well. Will King Charles III get a coronation medal? Rudolf had stated that he could no longer afford to represent Peterson without being paid. According to their analysis, the lacerations were not consistent with blows of any sort, because there was a lack of underlying injury, such as skull fractures or bruising, swelling and hemorrhaging of the brain. In response, Michael Peterson's lawyer, David Rudolf, argued he had never seen such inflammatory wording used in an autopsy before. Following Kathleen's death, which didn't look much like the accident Michael Peterson made it out to be, police almost immediately zoned in on him as the prime suspect. Create your free profile and get access to exclusive content. When Elizabeth Ratliff's body was exhumed from a Texas grave and autopsied by the North Carolina medical examiner's office in 2003, it was determined she had been murdered. Reddit - Dive into anything It had been a gift to the Petersons from Kathleen's sister but was missing from the house at the time of the investigation. He said they wanted the same medical examiner who claimed that Peterson's wife wasn't accidental to perform the autopsy rather than a neutral pathologist in Texas as he suggested. Peterson was housed at the Nash Correctional Institution near Rocky Mount until he was released on December 16, 2011. During Michael's trial, Cheryl Appel-Schumacher, one of the late schoolteacher's friends, recalled that Elizabeth had severe headaches a few days before she was found dead. On February 24, 2017, Peterson entered an Alford plea (a guilty plea entered because sufficient evidence exists to convict him of the offense, but the defendant asserts innocence) to the voluntary manslaughter of Kathleen. After graduating, Peterson took a civilian job with the United States Department of Defense, where he was assigned to research arguments supporting increased military involvement in Vietnam. Blood at Liz Ratliff's death : r/TheStaircase - Reddit The exhumation of Elizabeth Ratliff. Upon examination, forensic pathologist Deborah Radisch, who also worked on Kathleen's case, said that Elizabeth's injuries were inconsistent with an accident. Nearly two decades before Michael's wife, Kathleen, was found lifeless at the bottom of a staircase, there was a woman named Elizabeth Ratliff, whose death would become crucial to the prosecution's story. [18], According to Pollard, had a jury been presented with this evidence it would have "materially affected their deliberation and therefore would have materially affected their ultimate verdict". A+E Networks EMEA is an amalgamation of A+E Networks UK, Germany, Italy, Poland, Nordics, Benelux, Spain and Africa. Once the jury left for the day, testimony turned to a death scene from 18 years ago in Germany. We anticipate change, identify future opportunities and are excited by the potential that tomorrow brings. No, the will of the Ratliffs stated the girls would be left in the care of Michael Peterson. Scan this QR code to download the app now. "My mom would .