Written in Blood (16 page)
Authors: Diane Fanning
Patty, Todd, Michael, and Clayton Peterson in 1990, the same year Michael's first novel,
A Time of War,
was published. The book's dedication read. “To Patty, who suffered all my wounds. To Clayton and Todd, whose suffering, I pray, is only in my nightmares.” Though Margaret and Martha Ratliff were living with the Petersons off and on at the time. Michael neglected to mention them in the book.
A Time of War,
was published. The book's dedication read. “To Patty, who suffered all my wounds. To Clayton and Todd, whose suffering, I pray, is only in my nightmares.” Though Margaret and Martha Ratliff were living with the Petersons off and on at the time. Michael neglected to mention them in the book.
Liz McKee holding Snoopy the Red Baron, a gift from George Ratliff. George and Liz were married in Germany in May 1981.
Liz McKee and George Ratliff at their wedding in early May of 1981 in Germany. Patty Peterson was Liz's maid of honor, and Randy Durham, George's close friend from the Air Force, was the best man. George's mother flew out from Texas for the ceremony.
Photo by Randy Durham.
Photo by Randy Durham.
Martha (
l
) and Margaret (
r
) Ratliff stand beside the family's Goosy Goosy Gander kitchen lamp in 1984. Since the children's father had died the year before, Liz hired a nanny, Barbara O'Hara, to help her take care of them.
Photo courtesy Randy Durham.
l
) and Margaret (
r
) Ratliff stand beside the family's Goosy Goosy Gander kitchen lamp in 1984. Since the children's father had died the year before, Liz hired a nanny, Barbara O'Hara, to help her take care of them.
Photo courtesy Randy Durham.
Martha Ratliff at the foot of the stairs in her home in Gräfenhausen in November 1985 the same spot where her mother, Liz, would be found dead later that same month. Martha's father, George, had died only two years earlier while on a secret mission with the Air Force.
Photo courtesy Randy Durham.
Photo courtesy Randy Durham.
The same staircase after Liz's death, which German police declared to be from a cerebral hemorrhage that led to a fall down the stairs. Liz's friend, Cheryl Appel-Schumacher, made the black marks on the photograph to indicate where she had cleaned Liz's blood off the walls.
Photo courtesy Durham Police Department.
Photo courtesy Durham Police Department.
Kathleen Atwater and Michael Peterson in 1995. Michael's marriage to Patty Peterson ended in 1996, and she signed over her rights to the house Michael and Kathleen shared.
The extended Peterson clan celebrated Michael and Kathleen's marriage at their home in Durham. Michael proposed to Kathleen on New Year's Eve in 1996, and they were married on June 21, 1997. Kathleen's sister-in-law Cynthia sat on the terrace by the pool for three days creating bouquets, corsages, boutonnieres and table displays for the event.
Michael Peterson confers with Thomas Maher, a member of his defense team, during his 2003 trial for the murder of his wife, Kathleen.
Photo by Diane Fanning.
Photo by Diane Fanning.
Defense attorney David Rudolf cross examines Agent Duane Deaver, the SBI lead instructor on blood-stain evidence. Deaver had testified as an expert witness in over 60 trials, and blood spatter evidence was key in the Peterson trial, as prosecutors argued than the patterns were inconsistent with a fall as the defense claimed.
Photo by Diane Fanning.
Photo by Diane Fanning.
Assistant District Attorney Freda Black examines two blowpokes. One was sent from Kathleen Peterson's sister Candace Zamperini who claimed it was an exact replica of the potential murder weapon that had disappeared from the scene of the crime. The second was a surprise exhihit from the defense, who claimed the blowpoke had been found in the Petersons' garage.
Photo by Diane Fanning.
Photo by Diane Fanning.
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