Michael Peterson Was Also Living With His First Wife When She Died — What Happened?
Patricia Peterson was a very caring person.
Published Dec. 9 2025, 9:31 a.m. ET
When it comes to death, Michael Peterson has been in its presence on at least three separate occasions. When his second wife, Kathleen Peterson, died in December 2001, Michael was immediately charged with first-degree murder. The incident happened at the home the couple shared in Durham, N.C. On the evening of Kathleen's death, she had been drinking when she ended up at the foot of the kitchen stairs. Her cause of death was blunt force trauma to the head.
Michael was found guilty and sentenced to life in prison in October 2003, but his conviction was overturned when it was discovered that former SBI agent Duane Deaver had a history of fabricating evidence. In February 2017, he entered an Alford plea to the reduced charge of voluntary manslaughter and was sentenced to time served. He eventually ended up living with his first wife. What happened to her? Here's what we know.
What happened to Michael Peterson's first wife?
According to The News & Observer, Patricia Peterson died July 8, 2021, at Duke University Hospital after suffering a massive heart attack the previous night. Patricia wasn't feeling well on July 7, which prompted Michael to call their son, Todd Peterson, who lived nearby. Todd came over and called 911. Michael, Todd, and his other son, Clayton, were by Patricia's bedside when she died. Clayton described his mother as a "lovely person" who loved the arts and her hometown of Durham, N.C.
Patricia and Michael were married in 1966. She went on to earn her undergraduate degree from the University of Texas in Austin, followed by a master's in either education or English from UNC-Chapel Hill. The couple moved to Germany in 1980, where Patricia taught elementary school for children of U.S. military families for about 35 years. She stayed long after she and Michael divorced in 1994, at which point Michael returned to Durham.
The Petersons were friends with a woman in Germany who died near a staircase.
Kathleen Peterson wasn't the only woman Michael knew whose death involved a set of stairs. While the couple was living in Germany, a friend of Patricia's passed away in 1985. Elizabeth Ratliff lost her husband in 1983 during an Air Force mission. She and her two daughters grew close to the Petersons.
One evening, the couple went to dinner with Elizabeth, who was dropped off at home by Michael. He was the last person to see her alive. Elizabeth's body was found at the foot of her stairs the following day. After the autopsy showed she had a brain hemorrhage, the German government ruled Elizabeth's death an accident, per WRAL.
Before Michael's trial, Elizabeth's body was exhumed and transported to the State Medical Examiner's Office in Chapel Hill, N.C. Deborah Radisch, the Assistant Medical Examiner who had performed the autopsy on Kathleen, concluded the "inflicted trauma is clearly from a homicidal assault," per Michael's lawyer. Although the German government maintained it was an accident, this was a huge blow to Michael's case.