Report: Friend of Michael Peterson died of homicide (Durham,NC)

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS ^ | April 28, 2003 | ASSOCIATED PRESS

[jern]

Report: Peterson friend died of homicide

By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

DURHAM, N.C. - A medical examiner says homicide, not a stroke, caused the death 18 years ago of a friend of novelist Michael Peterson, whose wife died in December 2001 under similar circumstances. Elizabeth Ratliff died of blunt trauma to her head, according to the report released today. Peterson is to go on trial next today on charges of killing his wife, Kathleen Peterson, at their house in Durham. Kathleen Peterson was found at the base of a staircase.

Ratliff was found dead in 1985 at the bottom of a stairway in her house in Germany, where her family and Peterson's then lived. Her cause of death was originally determined to be a stroke.

Both women suffered severe brain injuries and head damage. This month, District Attorney Jim Hardin ordered Ratliff's remains to be exhumed from a Texas grave and autopsied by the North Carolina medical examiner's office.

Dr. Aaron Gleckman, who performed the autopsy, said Ratliff was alive when she was hit on the head, and the blows "were of sufficient severity to have caused her death."

"In my opinion, the location, number and severity of these lacerations are inconsistent with a fall down a set of stairs; rather, they are indicative of multiple blunt force impacts, either from blows of the head caused by a blunt object or by the head being forcibly struck against a hard surface," Gleckman wrote.

He noted at least seven cuts on Ratliff's head, including four on the back of her head, as well as bruising.

"Due to the character and number of the scalp lacerations, the inflicted trauma is clearly from a homicidal assault," the report said.

Superior Court Judge Orlando Hudson ordered the report released today as lawyers argued over whether to allow the public into a hearing Wednesday. That hearing is to determine whether to allow the autopsy results at Peterson's trial.

Defense lawyer David Rudolf said the report was inflammatory and should be withheld at least until Wednesday's hearing.

After today's hearing, he said he considered Gleckman's report deficient since much of Ratliff's brain was missing. It weighed 1,300 grams during the first autopsy and was roughly 700 grams in this autopsy.

He said two autopsies performed in 1985 determined Ratliff died of natural causes.

"This particular doctor wrote a report that is misleading. Dr. Gleckman is not God. It will be a jury's role to determine guilt or innocence," Rudolf said.

[pttttt]

That pore man - jest keeps losin' 'em.

Seems like if there was a Jerry Lee Lewis award, Peterson would be a finalist.

[Constitution Day]

I cannot believe it!
You posted this over 1/2 hour ago and it's not up to 200 replies yet!!

Seriously, though, this sounds very suspicious.

[The PeteMan]

Mike Peterson is a Killer in Raleigh, NC

Scott Peterson is a killer in Ca.

Mike= Murder East

Scott= Murder West

*Both have killed more than one person..under strange circumstances and belive their own lies and will apply the OJ defense....

[MyDogAteMyBallot]

What has he written?

[RightOnGOP]

PeteMan: By OJ defense, did you mean phalanx of lawyers? If so, then I agree. If not, the cases have nothing in common.......

And no, the Petersons are not related. Scott (CA) allegedly killed his wife on 12/23/02, and discarded her body in the bay off Berkeley. Subsequent to her disappearance, another female's disappearance at a college where Scott also attended has caused a second look (Kristen Smart, 1996).

Michael (NC) has known two women who died after falls down stairs. After the second fall to death (his wife Kathleen on 12/9/01), the first fall(friend Elizabeth Ratliff in 1985) has been reexamined now in a different light (body exhumed, re-autopsied).

On second thought, maybe the Petersons have more in common than I thought.....hhhhhmmmmmm..... ;)

[NautiNurse]

The East coast Peterson is a real piece of work. He lost Durham's mayoral race in 1999 after admitting that for years he had falsely claimed he sustained a permanent injury to his right leg from combat in Vietnam. He had actually injured his leg in a car crash in Japan.

Peterson also ran for the Durham City Council. He is also the author of two Vietnam War Novels, "A Time of War" and its sequel, "A Bitter Peace."

Peterson has five children and is a graduate of Duke University.

Everything you could ever wish to read about the Mike Peterson case from WRAL

[RightOnGOP]

Piece of work, that's one thought. You're being quite generous to Mr. Peterson and his current situation.

But of those five, only two are his biological kids (2 sons). Of the remaining 3 kids, one daughter named Caitlin Atwater was Kathleen's by her former husband and two daughters are the Ratliff sisters, adopted after Elizabeth's death in 1985. To know these details makes the recent developments (exhumation of Elizabeth Ratliff's body) more compelling.

Question for you, NautiNurse. I thought that Michael Peterson also wrote a book on Charlie Two Shoes, from the Vietnam era. Do you know this to be true? Also, I believe that there was a "commemoration" with Charlie Two Shoes in Fayetteville, sometime last year, on the 30th anniversary of ???? (maybe Charlie's arrival in US). Due to obvious reasons, Michael Peterson did not attend, but I recall wondering at that time that it's just like his "act" so far, to show up anyway.....

[fish hawk]

Must be the Peterson disease that is going around.

[Dialup Llama]

>That pore man - jest keeps losin' 'em.

>Seems like if there was a Jerry Lee Lewis award, Peterson would be a finalist.

The winners of such an award would clearly be Norman Mailer and William S Burroughs who both killed women they were involved with but were declared to be 'accidents' due to their fame.

[cherry]

This case is really beginning to get to me....now we know that MP was the last person to see two apparently clumsy women fall down the stairs and die....what a coincidence...

by the way....I read somewhere about talk about him being a cross dresser...anyone know anything about that?

what about those dtrs of the first woman.....to be raised by a guy who could very well have done in your own mom....how evil...how unfathomable...

I understand that Kathleen Peterson's dtr is suing the Mr. P.....good for her...

[Dialup Llama]

My bad. Mailer's second wife surived his near fatal stabbing attack. But he did escape all legal consequences of the attack- much like OJ.

[Hillary's Lovely Legs]

Your post intrigued me, so I did some research:

Why is Britannica using Norman Mailer for their ads? Why is it that when one searches their site under Mailer’s name there is no mention that Mailer repeatedly stabbed his wife, Adele Mailer, in the abdomen and back? Mailer’s reputation remains untarnished even though he later admitted to stabbing Adele Mailer and left her to die in their apartment.
According to the New York Times article, Adele Mailer was listed in critical condition after Mailer “suddenly walked up to her, looked at her, stabbed her . . . and left the apartment.” One wound was said to be near her heart. The stabbing occurred about 5 a.m. on a Sunday at a party at their apartment. Three hours later she was taken to the hospital. It was unclear why others at the party were unable to get her to the hospital or if others left with Norman after he stabbed her.
Is this the sort of icon Brittanica needs to boost sales? We asked Brittanica if they considered his actions trivial because she was “his” wife, or because Adele Mailer was a woman of color? [New York Times, 11/22/60]

Britannica Replies [12/8/99]

Thank you again for your note on Norman Mailer. Mr. Mailer’s appearance in our ad campaign does not imply an endorsement of him or indifference to what he did in 1960.
We are aware that Mr. Mailer received psychiatric treatment and five years probation following the attack on his wife, and that he has admitted his guilt and shown remorse in his writings and public interviews. Mr. Mailer was one of several people included in the advertising campaign that launched britannica.com beginning this past October. That initial campaign has now concluded, and we will resume advertising with a new campaign after the New Year. Sincerely, Tom Panelas, Britannica.com Inc., 39 West 56th St. 4th fl., New York City, NY, 10019, (800) 405-6884, email: tpanelas@us.britannica.com



William S. Burroughs
a few articles from important moments in Burroughs' life
Heir's Pistol Kills His Wife; He Denies Playing Wm. Tell
Mexico City, Sept. 7 (AP)--William Seward Burroughs, 37, first admitted then denied today that he was playing William Tell when his gun killed his pretty, young wife during a drinking party last night.


Police said that Burroughs, grandson of the adding machine inventor, first told them that, wanting to show off his marksmanship, he placed a glass of gin on her head and fired, but [was so drunk] that he missed and shot her in the forehead.

After talking with a lawyer, police said, Burroughs, who is a wealthy cotton planter from Pharr, Tex., changed his story and insisted that his wife was shot accidentally when he dropped his newly purchased .38 caliber pistol.

Husband in Jail

Mrs. Burroughs, 27, the former Joan Vollmer, died in the Red Cross Hospital.

The shooting occurred during a party in the apartments of John Healy of Minneapolis. Burroughs said two other American tourists whom he knew only slightly were present.

Burroughs, hair disheveled and clothes wrinkled, was in jail today. A hearing on a charge of homicide is scheduled for tomorrow morning.

No Arguments, He Says

"It was purely accidental," he said. "I did not put any glass on her head. If she did, it was a joke. I certainly did not intend to shoot at it."

He said there had been no arguments or discussions before the "accident."

"The party was quiet," he said. "We had a few drinks. Everything is very hazy."

Burroughs and his wife had been here about two years. He said he was studying native dialects at the University of Mexico. He explained his long absence from his ranch by saying that he was unsuited for business.

[kcvl]

An accomplished novelist - his latest book optioned by a Hollywood producer. A Durham gadfly - Peterson ran unsuccessfully for city council and mayor in 1999. The politicking revealed deceit, however, Peterson claimed to have won two purple hearts in Vietnam after combat injuries. The truth is he was injured in Japan in a car accident.

Peterson used his gift of writing to criticize the wrongs he saw in society - in newspaper columns railing against the Durham Police Department for shoddy, lazy police work.

So when Durham Police showed up at Peterson's 14 room mansion on December 9, 2001 the irony was palpable. Peterson maintained his innocence from then on - in several interviews including his first television interview with Eyewitness News. "I had nothing to do with Kathleen's death as I've said it's all going to come out."

Peterson kept his profile high, promoting his latest book and participating in neighborhood panels on subjects like racial disparity amongst prison populations. Whether Peterson will maintain his high profile or end up silent in jail will be decided in the coming months.

[Dialup Llama]

Good catch. And of course the perennial runner up for the Jerry Lee Lewis 'Violence Toward Women' award is Sen Edward Kennedy who left a woman to suffocate trapped in a car which was only a few feet under water. He left the scene, not to organize a rescue or to alert authorities but to clean up at a hotel and try to initially pretend he was no where at the scence. He also escaped all legal consequences of his actions due to the influence of his family.

[weegee]

He also escaped all legal consequences of his actions due to the influence of his family.

He was far from the only Kennedy to use influence to evade prosecution for murder and other serious crimes.

[NautiNurse]

You are correct about the book. Peterson co-authored (with David Perlmutt) the book Charlie Two Shoes and the Marines of Love Company.

However--Mike Peterson did, indeed, attend the Fayeteville event when Charlie Two Shoes was made an honorary U.S. marine in April 2002. Peterson posted $850,000 bail in February. He watched the ceremony with a Hollywood producer.

Interesting note--Peterson claims that on the night his wife died, they were celebrating a possible movie contract, but that she went upstairs about midnight to prepare for a conference call the next morning.

[RightOnGOP]

Don't know anything about this cross-dressing, but the morning's headlines include an article about a hearing on Wednesday must be open to the media and the public, a hearing that will discuss M. Peterson's sexual preferences! Maybe more will be revealed as soon as tomorrow.....
"Media gain open hearing on shielding testimony"
http://www.herald-sun.com/durham/4-346985.html

I believe that the daughter is suing to claim the Nortel $$$ policy on her mother; a form transferring beneficiary from daughter's father to M. Peterson was never signed.......

[RightOnGOP]

Wow, he did stay out of the spotlight, as I don't recall his presence being covered by the murder case reporters, at the time.