German officials declared that she died of a cerebral hemorrhage at the scene of her death. Peterson had been at her house the night before her death. Everyone Practices Cancel Culture | Opinion, Deplatforming Free Speech is Dangerous | Opinion. Kathleen even has a brief run-in with Freda Black. Create a free profile to get unlimited access to exclusive videos, breaking news, sweepstakes, and more! Elizabeth's death is a tragedy, but whether it was brought upon by an ill-fated accident or contemptuous murder, we'll never know. You know, I mean, all you have to do is watch the documentary to know that that's not true. Three episodes in, drops 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. 1 week ago, Here's the OTHER Death at the Centre of Netflix's The Staircase, A Tragic Twist in Part 2 of the "The Last of Us" Video Game Could Tease What's to Come on the Show, 12 Bone-Chilling Serial Killer Documentaries on Netflix Now, Selena Gomez Says She Avoided Her "Wizards of Waverly Place" Costars After Series Due to Shame, Eugene Levy Says a "Schitt's Creek" Movie Is Very Possible: "We're Open to Anything", "The Last of Us" Stars Storm Reid and Bella Ramsey Hit Back at Homophobes: "Don't Like It, Don't Watch", Jessica Chastain Tripped Over Her Dress at the SAG Awards, but It Didn't Take Away From Her Big Win. Death: July 29, 2018, Durham, North Carolina, USA (end-stage liver disease from alcoholism) Bio: Assistant District Attorney / Prosecutor Cullen Moss Born: July 8, 1975 Birthplace: Buffalo, New York, USA Jim Hardin Born: February 1957 Birthplace: Durham, North Carolina, USA Bio: District Attorney / Lead Prosecutor Rosemarie DeWitt Occasionally wiping tears from her eyes, Appel-Schumacher testified about the large amount of blood she and her husband cleaned up after Ratliff's body was moved. I believe that Kathleen excused herself to go get ready for a meeting the next morning. It has been quite a ride, so before we discuss how it ended, lets look at how we got here. Period. I don't speak French. In response, Michael Peterson's lawyer, David Rudolf, argued he had never seen such inflammatory wording used in an autopsy before. The similarities between the deaths of Elizabeth Ratliff and Kathleen Peterson raised eyebrows among the Durham authorities. Authorities in Germany had determined that Ratliff's death was the result of a fatal stroke that sent her toppling down the stairs. Michael's adopted daughters also believe that he did not kill their biological mother. I talked to the witnesses, I got the German police report and the DA's file. 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. In HBO Max's The Staircase, Brunet (played by Juliette Binoche) appears throughout the series, at first working to edit the documentary film released in 2004 and later as Peterson's romantic partner. At the time, her death was investigated by the U.S. military police in Germany and an autopsy concluded she had died from an intracerebral hemorrhage. Patricia has always vehemently backed him up. Scott Stevenson was the editor on the in-court stuff, she had nothing to do with it. His children, who all decided not to attend the hearing, see the news break on television but decide to keep their distance to try and maintain normalcy in their own lives. 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? I spoke with a German investigator. 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". At least, until tragedy struck. After receiving permission from Elizabeth's mother and sister, authorities went ahead with the exhumation. Candace makes an impassioned plea for a dismissal, but the judge overrules her. Michael ultimately takes the Alford plea, which involves the defendant acknowledging there is enough evidence to find him guilty of charges while also maintaining innocence, and is sentenced to time already served. The prosecution calls Kathleen's sister Candace to the stand, and she tears Michael a new one again. German investigators ruled Ratliff had died due to a cerebral hemorrhage. 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. Ratliff, a. he spits. He also has the option of pleading not guilty and again facing a new trial in front of a jury. I believe that Patty suspected Michaels infidelity with Liz, and with the girls left to Michael, this probably only reinforced her suspicions. Sam Smith is going to be in And Just Like That s2! "It is further my opinion that these injuries were incurred while Mrs. Ratliff was alive and are of sufficient severity to have caused her death.". At the time, the German police ruled her death an accident and an autopsy concluded that she died of a brain hemorrhage. But, in February, just months before the scheduled retrial, Peterson submitted an Alford plea to the reduced charge of manslaughter. Like Peterson, Ratliff was found at the bottom of her stairs with injuries to her head. As we see in The Staircase, it's very clear that Michael Peterson is distressed at the thought of his family friend's body being dug up and re-examined. The family is ecstatic but quickly learns that not everybody is thrilled and accepting of his release, with public scrutiny at an all-time high. In April 2003, a second autopsy was carried out by a Durham medical examiner, who concluded Ratliff's cause of death was "homicide". "My opinion is that this is the scene of a beating, that this scene is not unlike many scenes I've been to," Deaver concluded. Peterson lived next door to Ratliff when she died. 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. We earn a commission for products purchased through some links in this article. 13 hours ago, by Njera Perkins Margaret and Martha would be raised by Michael and his second wife, Kathleen Atwater, whom he met in 1986. Both Peterson and his wife raised his two daughters, Margaret and Martha,as if they were their own. The autopsy report found that Elizabeth Ratliff had died in 1985 from “blunt force trauma to the head” by a “homicidal attack,” rather than of a brain hemorrhage while . ), I believe Michael and Elizabeth were upstairs in her home, possibly having a romantic interlude, when the conversation turned more serious as Elizabeth asked Michael to leave his wife (Patty) at the time. Elizabeth Ratliff Wasn't Murdered It's been incredibly infuriating that people keep insisting that Michael Peterson killed Elizabeth. Furious she confronts Michael with her findings. Elizabeth Ratliff and. "The blood was all the way up the staircase.". 1 day ago. Did Michael Peterson Kill Elizabeth Ratliff? At the time of the exhumation, Michael Peterson's lawyer, David Rudolf, requested that a "neutral" pathologist from Texas carry out the second autopsy. "And you never saw any kind of indication that she had any kind of romantic relationship with Michael Peterson?" 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. The 43-year-old died in 1985 in Germany, found at the bottom of her stairs by her children's nanny Barbara Malagnino. Since her husband's death, Peterson would come over to visit her every evening after dinner, according to "The Staircase." Although the original autopsy concluded Ratliff died of a brain aneurysm, the coincidence of Peterson being the last known person to see two different women alive before they both wound up dead. Regina Green, an old family friend of Peterson pointed out in "The Staircase" how much Ratliff and Petersons first wife Patricia looked alike. Now as both Elizabeth and her husband were both deceased, the girls Margaret and Martha would surely be left in the care of one of their relatives? 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. ", Her death was eventually ruled a homicide. The family gathers in the courtroom for the retrial hearing. 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. Link your TV provider to stream full episodes and live TV. She was not close to her sisters, Appel-Schumacher said on cross-examination, and thought it would be good for the girls to live with the Petersons in Europe if anything ever happened to her. That's number one. The defense maintains that the deaths are only similar on the surface, and Peterson plans to prove that to the judge--and the jury, if he rules against them--if necessary. RELATED: Colin Firth & Toni Collette on 'The Staircase' and What They Hope Audiences Take Away From It. Get the daily inside scoop right in your inbox. Michael and his ex-wife, Patty (Trini Alvarado), had become the legal guardians of Margaret and Martha after both of their parents died. Although the 13-part programme centres around the mysterious death of Kathleen Peterson at her home in Durham, North Carolina, she wasn't the only woman linked to Michael Peterson to have been found dead at the bottom of a staircase. "I could not give her what she really needed and deserved, and that would be a full-time partner living with her in Paris. Together, they go to the Durham Herald Christmas Ball. 43-year-old Elizabeth Ratliff was found dead in her home in Graefenhausen, Germany. 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. The neighbour, Karin Hamn, testified that she saw MP hurrying away from ER's house at 12.50 am on November 25th. He was an out bisexual man who had continuous affairs with men outside his marriage. Colin Firth as Michael Peterson in "The Staircase." Those who were there in the aftermath of Elizabeth's death were called as witnesses, and the the state pathologist took to the stand to confirm Elizabeth Ratliff had sustained similar injuries to the ones Kathleen Peterson suffered. Michael, a Vietnam War vet, bonded with Elizabeth's husband George, who was a captain in the military. At the time, her death was investigated by the U.S. military police in Germany and an autopsy concluded she had died from an intracerebral hemorrhage. Odessa Young and Sophie Turner as Elizabeth Ratliff's daughters Martha and Margaret. With two young children (Martha, the youngest, was just months old when her father passed away), Elizabeth relied on Michael and Patty's support more than ever. DURHAM, N.C. An autopsy report released Monday says Elizabeth Ratliff, a friend of novelist Mike Peterson who died 18 years ago, was the victim of a homicide and not a stroke as originally . The two families were close friends while living in Germany, and Michael was the last person who'd seen Elizabeth alive following dinner at the Ratliff home one night, Michael offered to stay behind and help Elizabeth put her girls to bed. 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. His only respite is his new relationship with Sophie, the documentary editor, and her letters. So that's why today I'm very uncomfortable because I feel that I've been betrayed in a way.". However, back in Germany Michael Peterson's BFF Elizabeth Ratliff also happened to die in another "freak staircase accident" in 1995. 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. 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 Michaels daughter (as you can see the incredible similarities between she and Michael as well as his boys Todd & Clayton with Patty). by Monica Sisavat She was found dead at the bottom of a staircase, Ratliff was found tilted sideways at the bottom of a wooden staircase inside her home, according to "The Staircase.". After her passing, Michael adopted Elizabeth's two daughters, Martha and Margaret. As it came to light that Kathleen was not the first woman associated with Michael to be found dead at the bottom of the staircase, Elizabeths remains were exhumed for more information. Three, she never wrote to Michael while she was working on the project, never ever, ever. 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. Jennifer McHugh is a Los Angeles-based writer. She continued: "Rather, they are indicative of multiple blunt force impacts, either from blows to the head caused by a blunt object or by the head being forcibly struck against a hard surface. The real-life Rudolph is seen above. She often ate dinner with the Petersons, and Michael would help her clean up and tuck her children to sleep. As Todd tries to explain social media followers to Clay and Martha finally comes out to Margaret, the family tries desperately to maintain a sense of normalcy. host = new String(location.hostname); The story follows author Michael Peterson (portrayed by Colin Firth) who finds his wife, Kathleen (Toni Collette) dead at the bottom of the staircase in their Durham, NC home in 2001. She was very happy while planning a party she threw for Appel-Schumacher and her new husband two nights before she died, the witness recalled. All external sites will open in a new browser. Elizabeth Ratliff, a family friend of Michael Peterson and his first wife, Patricia, died in 1985, just two years after her husband, George. When he separated from his wife, he brought his sons and the Ratliff children to the United States. In the end, Michael Peterson was convicted of murdering Kathleen Peterson. After Kathleen's death, her two sisters, Candace (Rosemarie DeWitt) and Lori (Maria Dizzia) firmly believe Michael at first, but quickly switch sides, along with Caitlin, and stand with the prosecution. 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? Although Ratliff lost a lot of weight and mourned her husband's death deeply, Appel-Schumacher said Ratliff's mood lifted during 1985. Elizabeth Ratliff, a 43-year-old widow who taught second grade at a U.S. Department of Defense School, was found dead at the bottom of a flight of stairs on November 25, 1985. I believe they had been around Michael long enough to possibly take on his ability of telling stories, the more they told themselves he did not do it or that he could not have done it, the more they believed it. She was found by her children's nanny, Barbara Malagnino, who sought help from Patty shortly after making the grim discovery. Todd, who used to be the responsible son, now seems to be falling apart as Clay, who used to be the irresponsible one, has fallen into the role of caretaker. Therefore, when the Captain suddenly lost his life during a secret overseas operation in 1983, his widows connection with them only furthered she even began relying on Michael for some help in daily chores. Sign up forOxygen Insiderfor all the best true crime content. Meanwhile, in France, two filmmakers are searching for their next project. "Because I know all aspects of his personality. Judge Orlando Hudson Jr. will rule on whether the similarities between Ratliff's death and Kathleen Peterson's are sufficiently similar that jurors should hear the evidence. (We'll get back to that.). Later, Jean-Xavier shows Sophie the latest footage of his chat with Michael, where he explains his bisexuality. , Awesome, Youre All Set! Elizabeth's death is a tragedy, but whether it was brought upon by an ill-fated accident or contemptuous murder, we'll never know. And no questions were raised when her close friend Michael Peterson adopted her daughters, Margaret and Martha. , Let's Break Down The Staircase's Deeply Frustrating 13 Episodes, The "Bel-Air" Cast Weren't Surprised by the Show's Success: "A Huge 'I Told You So' Moment", "Outer Banks" Had No Business Making Rafe Look This Fine With a Buzz Cut, Jazz Catches Hilary in a Lie in This Exclusive "Bel-Air" Season 2 Sneak Peek, Selena Gomez Says She Avoided Her "Wizards of Waverly Place" Costars After Series Due to Shame, "The Last of Us" Stars Storm Reid and Bella Ramsey Hit Back at Homophobes: "Don't Like It, Don't Watch", Jessica Chastain Tripped Over Her Dress at the SAG Awards, but It Didn't Take Away From Her Big Win, Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information. Regardless, Rudolf believes the damage has been done, describing it as "defamation" towards Brunet and de Lestrade. The DAs case focuses mainly on Michael Petersons lifestyle. A second autopsy, conducted by Durham, North Carolina officials this time, revealed sufficient evidence to suspect the manner of death being clear homicide. With that said, no charges against Michael have ever been brought in connection to this matter, and he maintains his innocence. Thats where she first came across Captain George Ratliff, a navigator, only to tie the knot with him in 1981 before welcoming two adorable daughters into their lives Margaret and Martha Ratliff. Bush: Prosecutor taking up Schiavo inquiry. Sophie is skeptical hearing about this theory at first, but soon leans in and pushes for a re-examination of the body. Whether the evidence about Elizabeth Ratliff's death had a particularly swaying influence on the jury or not is impossible to know - but Michael Peterson was convicted of murdering Kathleen Peterson in October 2003. Peterson and friends maintained that their friendship was purely platonic. Michael and Patty had two sons while living over in Germany - Clayton and Todd - while Elizabeth and George had two daughters, Margaret and Martha. To begin with, he said that the scene where he was introduced to Michael Peterson (played by Colin Firth) in a diner while eating pastrami did not happen in real life. He has since insisted she was completely okay when he walked out the door, yet the following morning, the girls nanny found her dead at the bottom of the stairs Elizabeth passed away on November 25, 1985. Michael wasn't accused of murdering Elizabeth outright, but the fact that her daughters who he, again, adopted after her death were the recipients of a hefty life insurance policy was enough to cast doubt in the jurors of his case. Newsweek has everything you need to know. It also includes imagined dialogue for dramatic purposes but stays grounded in court documents, meticulous research by the team behind the show, and of course, content from Lestrade's 13-part documentary. 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?? Elizabeth's death was initially ruled an accident, but when her body was exhumed during the trial for a second autopsy in April 2003, the coroner found sufficient evidence to categorize it as a . ", Speaking separately to Vanity Fair about the scenes in the fifth episode of HBO Max's The Staircase, Lestrade said: "We gave [Campos] all the access he wanted, and I really trusted the man. In the fifth episode, Brunet and Lestrade are seen arguing with their producer over which clip to delete from the documentary. German police arrived at the scene and quickly deemed Elizabeth's fall an accident. Netflix's 'The Staircase': How did Elizabeth Ratliff really die? In her opinion, the seven lacerations on her head indicated blunt force trauma. Despite a large amount of blood, witness Cheryl Appel-Schumacher testified Monday, Ratliff's death didn't pique the interest of German and U.S. investigators, and they left the house without the body and without taking any photographs. How much, I can't say," Appel-Schumacher testified outside the jury's presence. It's believed that Michael was the last person to see . Story goes there was a lot of blood at the scene of Liz's death, according to the three women who testified at the trial A few people have suspected an affair between Michael and Elizabeth turning sour as his motive for murder, but the novelists former wife Patricia has always vehemently backed him up. "Once the trial started, they hired [film editor] Scott Stevenson to edit the trial footage. She refuses to binge-watch anything. On the prosecution side, Durham County District Attorney Jim Hardin (Cullen Moss) and Assistant District Attorney, Freda Black (Parker Posey) take on the case. Now fast forward to 2001-the night Michaels second wife, Kathleen dies. "So to create the impression that somehow I'm this greedy lawyer, who's forcing my client to sell his furniture in order to write me checks to do his appealI mean that is sort of offensive to me. He explained that he first met Peterson at this house in Durham, North Carolina, and holding a meeting in a diner with a client would just never happen. Elizabeth Ratliff's children Margaret (Ratliff) Blakemore and Martha Ratliff. Stuhlbarg is seen above with Tim Guinee and Colin Firth in a scene from "The Staircase" in which the men prepare for Peterson's trial. . 1 day ago, by Chanel Vargas Radisch's reported concluded that Elizabeth Ratliff's death had actually been as a result of a "homicidal assault", and not an accident as was previously determined. Click Here to try 4 Free Trial Issues of Time! In 1985, a few years after George Ratliff's death, Elizabeth was found at the bottom of the stairs by the nanny, Barbara Malagnino. Then I went and realized, no, I can't. A widow, Elizabeth raised two daughters and her family grew close with the Petersons. When producer Denis Poncet (Frank Feys) and director Jean-Xavier de Lestrade (Vincent Vermignon) come across the Peterson story, they wonder if there is a story there. Michael moved back to the United States, taking his adopted daughters with him, and met Kathleen Peterson in 1986. No, the will of the Ratliffs stated the girls would be left in the care of Michael Peterson. Elizabeth was just 43 years old when she died on November 27, 1985. A one-stop-shop for all things video games. It wasn't until after Kathleen's death in December 2001 that the circumstances surrounding Elizabeth Ratliff's fall and subsequent death were re-evaluated. host = host.toLowerCase(); But the autopsies were enough to convince Kathleen Peterson's daughter Caitlin to change her mind about her stepfather. In 2017, Michael is contemplating taking the Alford plea, in which he would have to plead guilty to the lesser charge of voluntary manslaughter for a reduced sentence, but he could not be retried. by Lindsay Kimble Ratliff taught second grade at a U.S. Department of Defense School. The medical examiner found Kathleen Peterson and Elizabeth Ratcliffe suffered similar blows to the head, including seven lacerations which were sustained by blunt force trauma. . Elizabeth was just 43 years old when she died on November 27, 1985. In April 2003, a second autopsy was carried out by a Durham medical examiner, who concluded Ratliff's cause of death was "homicide." Appel-Schumacher said the blood was mostly on a wall adjacent to the staircase and it stretched from the top landing to the bottom. As both their families grew, so did the bonds between them. Cosmopolitan, Part of the Hearst UK Fashion & Beauty Network. } else if ( host.indexOf("asia.cnn.com") != -1 ) { Join half a million readers enjoying Newsweek's free newsletters. (We dont know if this is factual or just a dramatized coincidence.) In the first three episodes of The Staircase on HBO Max, there have been subtle mentions of a woman named Elizabeth Ratliff, and in Episode 4, audiences learn a little bit more about her. Margaret and Martha lived with Michael Peterson but were never adopted by him. U.S. Army doctor Dr. Larry A. Barnes carried out an autopsy on Elizabeth and confirmed that a cerebral haemorrhage was her cause of death. 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