An autopsy at the time of her death concluded Ratliff died from an intra-cerebral haemorrhage secondary to the blood coagulation disorder Von Willebrand's disease, based on blood in her cerebrospinal fluid and reports that she had been suffering severe, persistent headaches in the weeks leading up to her death. He did meet with Michael Stuhlbarg who portrayed him in the series and even lent him his real glasses to wear during the film. , 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. . 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 . Join half a million readers enjoying Newsweek's free newsletters. Cosmopolitan, Part of the Hearst UK Fashion & Beauty Network. Although Ratliff lost a lot of weight and mourned her husband's death deeply, Appel-Schumacher said Ratliff's mood lifted during 1985. Noticing the uncanny similarities with Kathleen's case, prosecutors took a closer look at Elizabeth's death in 2003. Then I went and realized, no, I can't. "There was nothing out of place, except that she was no longer living," she recalled almost two decades later. 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 Elizabeth Ratliff Wasn't Murdered It's been incredibly infuriating that people keep insisting that Michael Peterson killed Elizabeth. He was sentenced to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole in October 2003. Lestrade appears throughout the series, filming Michael in the most mundane and dramatic of moments, capturing his family and his entire trial, appeal, and release. They argued as he would not agree to this. However as Kathleen was not having any of it, I believe she decided to storm out and go to a relatives house or even a hotel, just to get out as some people do in the onset of a huge argument-just need to get out even to go for a drive. The details of Elizabeth Ratliff's second autopsy were submitted as prosecuting evidence in Michael Peterson's trial for the murder of his wife, Kathleen. Bush: Prosecutor taking up Schiavo inquiry. However, he maintains adamantly that Kathleens death was an accident. 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. } else if ( host.indexOf("asia.cnn.com") != -1 ) { With The Staircase retelling the tale of Michael Peterson and his alleged hand in wife Kathleen Petersons bizarre December 2001 demise, several related matters are coming back into the spotlight. When watching The Staircase, it might be hard to keep track of the complicated Peterson family tree. By John SpringerCourt TV.com They believe their adopted father is innocent of killing both of their moms, according to the documentary. The SBI, the organization that recreated the crime scene, is placed under investigation for unethical practices, which opens up another opportunity for an appeal in Michael's case. The Staircase airs Thursdays on HBO Max and Sky Atlantic. The prosecutors have also hypothesized that Elizabeths perplexing 1985 passing inspired Michael to fake Kathleens accident in 2001, yet there has never been any direct evidence to back it up. Despite the evidence submitted during the trial, Elizabeth Ratliff's daughters, Margaret and Martha - who had been brought up by Michael and Kathleen - stood by their adoptive father and continued to protest his innocence. Patricia has always vehemently backed him up. The prosecution shockingly reveals to the jury that, at age 43, Ratliff turned up dead at the bottom of her stairs in 1985, some 16 years earlier. "Even from this distance I could see that it did not look clear, and that's when he made the statement, right there by her body in my presence, that she had died of a cerebral haemorrhage.". Scott Stevenson was the editor on the in-court stuff, she had nothing to do with it. We didn't get paid anything for the appeal. Do any of us? German police arrived at the scene and quickly deemed Elizabeth's fall an accident. 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. 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". Both Peterson and his wife raised his two daughters, Margaret and Martha,as if they were their own. At the time of the exhumation, Michael Peterson's lawyer, David Rudolf, requested that a "neutral" pathologist from Texas carry out the second autopsy. In April 2003, a second autopsy was carried out by a Durham medical examiner, who concluded Ratliff's cause of death was "homicide". if ( host.indexOf("europe.cnn.com") != -1 ) { However, it was carried out by Durham-based state pathologist Dr. Deborah L. Radisch. Appel-Schumacher recalled that Ratliff had a severe headache four days before she died, severe enough that she made an appointment to see a doctor the following week. ), 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. Tragedy struck, however, in 1983, when Elizabeth's husband George was killed in a secret military operation overseas. Often, he'd help with the dishes or read to Ratliff's two young daughtersbefore returning home, according to the documentary series. In her opinion, the seven lacerations on her head indicated blunt force trauma. "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. I completely feel for his family, especially the kids. 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. Netflix's 'The Staircase': How did Elizabeth Ratliff really die? 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. Inevitably, the series includes elements of fiction, particularly the flashback scenes to Kathleen (Toni Collette) and Michael Peterson's marriage and the days leading up to her death. 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. 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? The Real Housewives of Atlanta The Bachelor Sister Wives 90 Day Fiance Wife Swap The Amazing Race Australia Married at First Sight The Real Housewives of Dallas My 600-lb Life Last Week Tonight with John Oliver 2023 Cinemaholic Inc. All rights reserved. The widow grew even closer with the Peterson family. He hires David Rudolf (Michael Stuhlbarg) whose price tag is as big as his reputation. RELATED: Colin Firth & Toni Collette on 'The Staircase' and What They Hope Audiences Take Away From It. host = new String(location.hostname); Newsweek reached out to HBO and director Antonio Campos's representatives. 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. He later adopted Ratliff's two daughters, Martha and Margaret. And she said to me, 'So you're going to be content just being an old grandfather?' 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. Create your free profile and get access to exclusive content. Regardless, Rudolf believes the damage has been done, describing it as "defamation" towards Brunet and de Lestrade. In response, Michael Peterson's lawyer, David Rudolf, argued he had never seen such inflammatory wording used in an autopsy before. Elizabeth Ratliff, a family friend of Michael Peterson and his first wife, Patricia, died in 1985, just two years after her husband, George. The filmmakers, with Michael's permission, are granted 24/7 access to document the entire process from prepping for the trial, the trial itself, and after the jury verdict is announced. After receiving permission from Elizabeth's mother and sister, authorities went ahead with the exhumation. George Ratliff died in a military operation in 1983, and two years later, Elizabeth Ratliff, 43, was found dead by her children's nanny, Barbara Malagnino, at the bottom of her staircase on November 25, 1985. The real-life Rudolph is seen above. The Staircase will be your new fav true crime show, The legal age you can get married has just changed, Charles & Camilla break major royal tradition, Courteney Cox speaks on Harry magic mushroom claim, Harry 'adding at least one more chapter' to memoir, Dylan responds to being misgendered on Instagram. A retrial is granted, and Michael is released from prison and sentenced to house arrest with an ankle bracelet. Michael is having a rough time in prison. We charge Michael a fee for the trial. DURHAM, North Carolina (Court TV) -- Author Michael Peterson is charged with killing his wife in their home here 18 months ago, but it was the death of a neighbor in Germany 18 years ago that took center stage at Peterson's first-degree murder trial Monday. He was released on bond in 2011 pending a retrial. Just four days before her death, she was complaining of severe headaches. When re-examined, Elizabeth's relationship with Michael's family and the details of her passing thicken the plot of this engrossing true crime case. So why would you? . He was granted a new trial in 2011, which was scheduled to begin in May 2017. 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. On April 16, 2003, the state medical examiner's office carried out a second autopsy on Elizabeth Ratliff's body. He described the scene as "complete fiction" adding that "for anybody who knows anything about the criminal justice system, it totally undermines the credibility of the entire film.". Authorities in Germany had determined that Ratliff's death was the result of a fatal stroke that sent her toppling down the stairs. Elizabeth's updated autopsy report indicated that she died from homicidal assault. 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. 2023 Vox Media, LLC. "Number two, she left the project in October of 2003. Con Girl: Where is Samantha Azzopardi now? "She hadn't gotten to the point where she was seeing other men?" No, the will of the Ratliffs stated the girls would be left in the care of Michael Peterson. "She wasn't actively dating, if that's the question," Appel-Schumacher said. 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. Please select the topics you're interested in: Would you like to turn on POPSUGAR desktop notifications to get breaking news ASAP? In 2011, a retrial hearing is granted after Duane Deaver, the analyst that had given the damning evidence against Michael at the first trial, finds himself under investigation. 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. The DAs case focuses mainly on Michael Petersons lifestyle. 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