I don't have an issue with the blood or lacerations. Owls have powerful sharp talons and as you know, head wounds bleed like hell. If this were near a park or somewhere an owl might nest, I could believe an attack. If there was a blood trail to the staircase where she died in the stairwell, I could believe it. I don't see the owl being in the staircase where the blood seems to indicate it happened.
The Michael Peterson Case
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To be clear some people think an owl flew into the house and attacked her on the staircase. In defending herself Kathleen was unable to pull out a single large feather? An owl with feet and abdomen smeared in blood then deftly flew through the house without a trailing blood everywhere? Also how does the owl account for the splatter in the stairwell?
The thing I see in Michael’s favor is there was not much recoil/wind-up splatter.
The thing I see in Michael’s favor is there was not much recoil/wind-up splatter.
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See the link I posted above. The theory is that the owl swooped down and “attacked” her while she was out in the yard. Then she ran into the house and went upstairs in an attempt to get into her bathroom where she had first aid. Here is some of the pertinent info from the link I posted above:
“Here is the circumstantial evidence that supports the theory that Kathleen went out to the front yard, perhaps to place the small reindeers seen in the photos of the scene taken by the police, and that a barred owl inflicted those injuries:
- Barred owls were living in the woods by the Peterson house
- Barred owls are aggressive and can be dangerous, as explained in: Was an Owl the Real Culprit in the Peterson Murder Mystery?.
- Barred owls have attacked people on numerous occasions
- There were drops of blood on the outside walkway leading to the front door of the house, as shown in police photos
- There was a large smear of blood on the outside of the front door frame as shown in police photos
- At least two of the wounds on Kathleen Peterson’s scalp are in the shape of the talons of a barred owl, as shown on autopsy photos
- The tiny wounds on Kathleen’s face are consistent with the tip of an owl’s beak
- A feather was found on Kathleen Peterson’s body
- A twig was found in dried blood on Kathleen Peterson’s body
- There were numerous strands of Kathleen Peterson’s head hair, which the roots indicated had been pulled out (not cut), found in dried blood on her hands
- Kathleen’s head injuries are not consistent with her having been beaten by a blunt object or on a stair, as she had no brain injury or swelling, no subdural hematoma, and no skull fracture.@
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That’s not the theory. See above.
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A doubt based on an attack by a phantom owl is not a doubt based on reason and common sense.
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Thanks for the summation. I do not think that is more plausible than notorious liar with money issues kills wife but it does come together somewhat neatly amidst a case full of questions. The video of the owl attack does further the possibility while also making me wonder why Kathleen’s alleged owl went for the kill.
The owl in the video dives and immediately retreats. Kathleen’s injuries seem only plausible if she was literally holding the owl on top of her head.
gtyellowjacket
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Where are you getting the blood splatter testimony wasn't crucial? He was a self-proclaimed blood spatter expert. Half the case was there's no way the splatter could have ended up this way if she had fallen down the stairs.
And yeah, I don't think too many people are going to think that the Durham Police are the gold standard for effective investigations. During the Netflix documentary, Peterson's lawyer in the second case claimed that he was told that crime scene technicians had found the blow poke in the basement, took it outside to photograph it, then put it back in the garage. They didn't think anything of it because it wasn't bloody or dented and it was covered in dust. The prosecution hadn't formed the theory yet that the blow poke was the murder weapon. They also never turned over the photographs which if the photographs did exist was either intentional or a mistake that makes one wonder what other evidence wasn't turned over.
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gtyellowjacket
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If this one slows down, you may want to expand it to Scott Cooper (Lochmere murder) and Jason Young (out of town but drove back to murder his wife).
I thought Cooper might have been guilty but I don't think the state proved it beyond a reasonable doubt. I thought Jason Young was guilty.
I thought Cooper might have been guilty but I don't think the state proved it beyond a reasonable doubt. I thought Jason Young was guilty.
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theel4life
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Owl got her.
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The couple had been drinking wine by the pool. There was an empty wine bottle in the kitchen when the police arrived.
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I'm "getting the blood splatter testimony wasn't crucial " based upon what the jurors said after the verdict. They said that after visiting the crime scene during the trial, they were shocked and overwhelmed by the massive amount of blood they saw on the wall and ceiling in the stairwell. After their visit to the crime scene their guilty verdict was essentially sealed.
So if the Durham police did not turn over the supposed photographs to the 2nd lawyer, did the lawyer file a complaint the he was denied exculpatory evidence ? I don't think he did, but I could be wrong. My guess is that the lawyer was flinging bull shit like so much the defense flung in the first case.
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I'm guessing you have not seen the pictures of the massive amount of blood all over the stairwell. I have seen the photos. One would have to be willfully ignorant( or Peterson's defense lawyer ) to believe that horrific blood scene was due to a fall down stairs or an attack by an angry owl.
I did not need to rely on a blood splatter expert to convince me that this was a murder committed by a human in a fit of rage.
gtyellowjacket
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I
davidsrudolf.com
"But perhaps the most significant fact we learned was regarding the blow poke. Thomas Dew had worked for the prosecution throughout the case. He had constructed the “to scale” staircase that the prosecution had used to illustrate Deaver’s testimony. He had been present during Deaver’s “experiments.” And he had also been present when the police came back to the house in June 2002, pursuant to a search warrant, to take measurements of the house. During that trip, the crime scene technicians, Eric Campen and Dan George, had again searched the house. During this search, they had found what turned out to be the “missing blow poke” in the basement boiler room taken it outside and photographed it, and put it back not where they found it, but rather in the garage, where we found it more than a year later. Dew and Deaver were both there and witnessed this."
I think it was the lawyer for the second case was told the investigators didn't turn over the photos. Peterson took the Alford plea so they didn't go to trial and it didn't come up. Not sure if the lawyer filed a complaint or if not why not.
Chapter 13: Flawed Justice - David S. Rudolf
After 16 years Michael's case had finally drawn to a close. David Rudolf explains shocking new revelations and the closing of the case in an Inside View of "The Staircase Chapter 13: Flawed Justice".
davidsrudolf.com
"But perhaps the most significant fact we learned was regarding the blow poke. Thomas Dew had worked for the prosecution throughout the case. He had constructed the “to scale” staircase that the prosecution had used to illustrate Deaver’s testimony. He had been present during Deaver’s “experiments.” And he had also been present when the police came back to the house in June 2002, pursuant to a search warrant, to take measurements of the house. During that trip, the crime scene technicians, Eric Campen and Dan George, had again searched the house. During this search, they had found what turned out to be the “missing blow poke” in the basement boiler room taken it outside and photographed it, and put it back not where they found it, but rather in the garage, where we found it more than a year later. Dew and Deaver were both there and witnessed this."
gtyellowjacket
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I'm not sure how one would know based on that photo that it was a murder or a fall or anything else. I would rely on expert testimony and when the state's expert is perjuring himself, that's going to be tough to get justice.
I would put the odds of a man having two wives fall down stairs to their deaths at about 1 billion to 1. But the odds of that happening go up if Michael Petersen is the husband and in the house.
I found it very interesting the documentary was done in real time. He seemed to enjoy the attention.
I found it very interesting the documentary was done in real time. He seemed to enjoy the attention.
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The photo I have seen captures the blood stains that were much higher on the wall ( and ceiling ) than your cut off photo.I'm not sure how one would know based on that photo that it was a murder or a fall or anything else. I would rely on expert testimony and when the state's expert is perjuring himself, that's going to be tough to get justice.
I had a special interest in this case because the wife of my best friend worked with Kathleen at Nortel. They had a friendly relationship and Kathleen confided in her about her marriage.
According to my best friend's wife, Kathleen was considering getting a divorce because Michael was an irritable man given to fits of anger. He was distant and uninterested in their relationship and was essentially living off her income and wealth to sustain their lifestyle because he was bringing in no income on his own. Moreover she said she had a sizable life insurance policy ( 1 million ? ) and planned to remove Michael as the beneficiary. Simply put, she was fed up with her husband.
I don't know if Kathleen shared her plans with Michael, but that would make for a motive, no ?
gtyellowjacket
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Would it be a possible motive? Sure. Did it happen? I don't know. Are you going to send someone to prison for life because it may have happened? There is a very good reason hearsay evidence like this is not allowed.
Here is a bigger photo. I still don't know if that's a murder. I would rely on experts and I would hope that they wouldn't perjure themselves. Note: the black thing on the right side is a chair lift.
