A jury found Michael Peterson guilty of first-degree murder in the death of his wife, whose body was found at the bottom of a staircase in their home in December 2001.
The verdict was read just after 11 a.m. Friday after more than three days of deliberation by the jury. A sheriff's deputy immediately took Peterson into custody after Judge Orlando Hudson sentenced the novelist to life in prison without parole. Peterson had been free on bail since January 2002.
Peterson's defense attorney David Rudolf gave notice that he would appeal the verdict, maintaining his stance that Michael Peterson was innocent because Kathleen Peterson's injuries were not consistent with a homicide. The 48-year-old woman, Rudolf said, fell in an accident and was still alive when Peterson found her but died before paramedics arrived.
Kathleen Peterson died Dec. 9, 2001. Her body was found at the foot of a back staircase in the couple's expensive home in Durham. The prosecution claimed that Peterson beat his wife to death to collect a $1.4 million life insurance policy.
The trial took five months from jury selection to verdict, with jury selection beginning May 5 and opening statements July 1. The jury of seven women and five men began deliberations Oct. 6 after hearing testimony for thirteen and a half weeks. Durham District Attorney Jim Hardin decided early last year not to pursue the death penalty.
Throughout the trial, the prosecution held that Peterson beat his wife to death with premeditation. The prosecution backed its claim with testimonies regarding the patterns of blood stains at the scene and on Peterson's clothing and the multiple lacerations on his wife's head.
The prosecution also introduced evidence about the death of Peterson's friend, Elizabeth Ratliff, who was found dead at the bottom of a staircase in 1985.
The jurors expressed confidence Tuesday that their decision was the correct one.
Some near tears, they gathered in the Durham County judicial building to recount some of the struggles and images that stayed with them from the trial.
They differed in some recollections but not on the outcome. Most of the jurors cited the physical evidence.
"We feel we made the right decision," juror Shirley Ferrell said as the rest of the jury nodded in unison.
Jurors said lacerations on the back of Kathleen Peterson's head and the blood in the stairwell did not fit with the defense's argument that she died in a fall down the stairs.
"He had a chance to stop," juror Paul Harrison said of Michael Peterson. "He didn't. It took place over a period of time. How long of a period of time, I don't know. Something happened, and it was not from a fall by Mrs. Peterson. She was beat to death."
He added later that when the jurors began debating the five elements of first-degree murder, they immediately agreed that Kathleen Peterson was attacked and did not die from a fall down the staircase in the couple's home.
"The other four elements were the ones we had to fight over, debate," Harrison said.
Kellie Colgan said she was dubious of the expert testimony of Henry Lee when he said there was too much blood on the staircase for a beating to have occurred there.
"I don't have his experience, per se, but I can't imagine that a fall would cause that much blood," she said.
Michael Peterson maintained she must have fallen after an evening of drinking in celebration of a movie deal for one of his books.
During the trial, prosecutors introduced evidence of Peterson's bisexuality and attempts to hire a male prostitute. They uncovered credit card debt of $143,000 and said Peterson was worried that his wife's job was in jeopardy, while her life was insured for $1.4 million.
Jurors said Tuesday they paid no attention to the testimony about Peterson's bisexuality but did place some weight on the financial testimony.
Peterson, Trinity '65, is a former editor of The Chronicle. His novels include "A Time of War," published in 1990, and "A Bitter Peace," published in 1995.
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