Inside Michael Peterson's Life Today
While the multi-part true-crime docuseries "The Staircase" might not be the gold standard of the genre like it once was at the time of its 2004 debut, it's become the go-to source for the strange case of Michael Peterson, a North Carolina novelist who may or may not have murdered his second wife, Nortel executive Kathleen Peterson. As the first iteration of "The Staircase" detailed, Kathleen was found at the bottom of the titular staircase in the couple's Durham mansion in 2001, an incident which immediately raised the hackles of local law enforcement, who believed her death was the result of homicide on the part of her husband. Following an investigation and an ensuing murder trial, the latter of which became one of the longest of its kind in North Carolina history, Michael Peterson was eventually found guilty.
But part of the central pull of "The Staircase," aside from its various twists and turns (among which included the discovery that a close family friend of Peterson's had died under similar circumstances, also involving a staircase, nearly 17 years prior to Kathleen's death), was the central figure to the story. Despite Michael Peterson's murder conviction in 2003, his story was far from over.
So, where is Michael Peterson now? And what's his life like today? Scroll on to find out.
Michael Peterson's conviction was eventually commuted in the form of an Alford plea
After spending eight years in prison, Michael Peterson was given an unexpected reprieve — one granted by way of state corruption. As the later episodes of "The Staircase" covered, Peterson was eventually granted a retrial hearing in 2011 after it was discovered that Duane Deaver — a blood-spatter analyst for North Carolina's State Bureau of Investigation who had testified under oath at Peterson's initial trial that evidence pointed towards his guilt – had covered up evidence in other trials that would've benefited the defense. Considering Deaver's testimony had largely swayed the jury at Peterson's trial in 2003, Peterson was granted a retrial hearing, and was released from prison in 2011.
After a years-long legal battle post-prison, which included almost three years under house arrest, Peterson finally attained freedom by entering an Alford plea for manslaughter and was officially given time served in exchange. While an Alford plea is not an admission of guilt, it signifies that the defendant agrees there is enough evidence in any given case to result in a guilty verdict. However, the same type of plea, contrary to the assertion Peterson has made in his books about his experience following his release, is not synonymous with his conviction being overturned.
As The News & Observer noted, the former columnist's Alford plea was distinctly tied to the charge of manslaughter, which means that Peterson asserted his opinion of his innocence while simultaneously accepting charges (via Metro).
Michael Peterson has stayed out of the spotlight — or has he?
Since his 2017 Alford plea, Michael Peterson has managed to keep to himself while continuing to remain in the spotlight. According to a June report by The Sun, Peterson continues to live in Durham and has self-published two books about his life during the murder trial and his life following his release from prison.
Peterson's current financial state, while up for speculation, is most likely a shadow of what it was in 2001. Peterson, who shared a fortune with his wife Kathleen Peterson up until the time of her death, referred to himself as "indigent" during the later episodes of "The Staircase," which were filmed following his 2011 release from prison.
In addition to losing the civil suit his step-daughter, Caitlin Atwater, brought against him, Peterson also lost out on Kathleen's $1.4 million life insurance policy, per WRAL, and the home that they shared was put on the market in 2020, per The Sun.
Michael Peterson lived with his first wife Patricia until her death
Another constant during the lengthy legal ordeal was Michael Peterson's first wife, Patricia "Patty" Peterson. The couple shared two sons, Clayton Peterson and Todd Peterson. They also became the legal guardians of two young girls, Margaret Ratcliff and Martha Ratcliff, following their mother's death in 1985. Their mom had been Elizabeth Ratcliff, the family friend who'd died falling down the stairs in Germany decades before Kathleen Peterson, per Cosmopolitan.
Michael and Patty split up in 1986. Clayton and Todd chose to live with their mom, while Martha and Margaret moved to North Carolina with Michael. He and Patty maintained a close friendship — so close that CNN reports she "loaned" Michael $168,000 towards his legal fees in April 2003. Patty was also a staunch defender of Michael. "He is innocent of any involvement in Kathleen's death," she insisted to The News & Record in 2014. "I've always believed he did not do this, and I always will."
Michael and Patty became even closer post-trial. Their son, Clayton, shared that the former spouses cohabited an apartment in Durham, the same town in which Michael and Kathleen had lived. "They were companions," he told The News & Record. "They took care of each other." The two lived together until Patty's death from a massive heart attack in July 2021. She was 78 years old.
Michael Peterson lives in a ground floor apartment
Michael Peterson had been forced to sell his assets, including the family home, to pay legal fees, leaving him broke. During a CrimeCon speech, Peterson's attorney, David Rudolf, shot down reports his client made bank from the Netflix series. "Michael hasn't made a penny from the documentary," he insisted. Via The Independent, The Associated Press reported Michael moved into a two-bed condo in 2018. "He is living in Durham. He's in a ground-floor apartment with no stairs — that was a really important accommodation," Rudolf shared.
"He visits his grandchildren; he's writing. He's published at least one, maybe two books, since he's been out and, and he goes to the gym, and he sort of lives a normal life," the attorney told Newsweek. However, it was nearly a very different ending. During filming, Peterson began dating one of the documentary editors, Sophie Brunet. The couple discussed moving to France and settling in the capital once the trial was finally over.
"We made plans to live in Paris. Then I went and realized, no, I can't. I can't live in Paris. I don't speak French," Peterson admitted to The News & Observer. "I'm too old. I couldn't afford to live in Paris, and my children and grandchildren were in America." So the ill-fated lovebirds went their own ways. Instead, Peterson is now living the life of "a 75-year-old grandfather" and surviving "[on a] fairly modest pension," Rudolph told "True Crime Interviews" host Steve Wraith.
Colin Firth portrays Michael Peterson in HBO's The Staircase
The shy, dull, and very British Mark Darcy is as far as you can get from the confounding and unpredictable American novelist Michael Peterson. So, it was an unusual choice to cast the "Bridget Jones' Diary" love-rival in HBO's "The Staircase." However, Colin Firth has won over critics, with the show earning a 92% score on Rotten Tomatoes.
Firth threw everything into the part, and it turned out it changed his attitude and approach towards acting. He said that when he previously prepared for a role, he liked to delve right in and get "to the heart" of the character. But that proved a tad more challenging in this case. "I didn't know if Michael Peterson's presentation of himself was going to be helpful to me in terms of finding out what lies underneath, and I found it kept moving," Firth explained to The Wrap. He admitted it made him question if there is actually no "fixed core to characters." He now believes "maybe everybody's somewhat elusive and changeable and multifaceted."
It turns out Firth landed the role out of pure Hollywood happenstance. "We originally had been to Harrison Ford," the HBO show's creator Antonio Campos told Entertainment Weekly. "But we parted ways because he had to go do an 'Indiana Jones.'" Luckily for them, Firth has received rave reviews. While The Guardian proclaimed Firth to be "brilliant" and that "you cannot help watching to see if and which way he will fall," CNN called his acting skills "riveting work."
Michael Peterson's lawyer has blasted HBO's The Staircase
At least three people are not fans of HBO's "The Staircase": Jean-Xavier de Lestrade, Michael Peterson, and attorney David Rudolf. Lestrade told Vanity Fair that he felt "betrayed" by show creator Anthony Campos' adaptation of his Peabody Award-winning docu-series and claimed the facts were altered for dramatic effect.
Meanwhile, Peterson said he felt "pimped ... out" by Lestrade for allowing HBO access to footage for a fee and co-executive producer credit. "He released his archive to Campos, who then created a fictional account of events, most of which trashed me (which I really don't care about) and my children — which I really do care about," Peterson told Variety.
However, Rudolf is the one who finds the dramatization most egregious. In an interview with Variety, he fired off numerous criticisms, including HBO's depiction of him eating a pastrami sandwich during his first meeting with Peterson. "We could have put a little blimp over my head saying, 'Jewish lawyer from New York,'" he said. He also wasn't a fan of the portrayal of himself and his client regularly fighting, the implication Peterson kept important information secret from him, and the depiction of his relationship with reporter Sonya Pfeiffer. Despite the couple eventually marrying, Rudolf insists their relationship had no bearing on her coverage nor granted her any special privileges. Rudolf said, "To suggest I assisted [Pfeiffer] with any interviews, that would be as much fiction as it is that a criminal defense lawyer is allowed in a Grand Jury proceeding."