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MIMS—x3625— FINAL EDITION—FILM1
C M Y K
NEWS UPDATES AT WWW.NEWSOBSERVER.COM q FINAL EDITION, 50 CENTS SATURDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2003 ©2003 THE NEWS AND OBSERVER PUBLISHING COMPANY q RALEIGH, N.C.
The Peterson trial
VERDICT COVERAGE PAGES 11-14A
www.newsobserver.com/peterson
WHAT’S NEXT: DEFENSE WHAT’S NEXT: PROSECUTION WHAT’S NEXT: FAMILIES
Appeal filed Back to normal Moving on
Defense attorney David Rudolf gives Durham District Attorney Jim Hardin Mike and Kathleen Peterson’s families
notice of immediate appeal, but his says that there will be no big celebra- and friends come to grips with the ver-
client is likely to remain in prison while tion and that he’ll get back to doing the dict — some with outrage, others with
appeals are considered. Page 12A things he usually does. resignation. Page 13A
VERDICT : GUILTY
STAFF PHOTO BY SCOTT LEWIS STAFF PHOTO BY CHUCK LIDDY STAFF PHOTO BY CHUCK LIDDY
NOVELIST, DEFENDERS STRICKEN AT CONVICTION IN WIFE’S DEATH
BY ANNE SAKER
STAFF WRITER
DURHAM — No one heard the knock Fri-
day except sheriff’s Deputy Bryan Mis-
ter. He opened the deliberation room
door, listened for an instant, then closed
it. He turned to the dozens of people
keeping vigil in Courtroom No. 1 and
said, “We have a verdict.”
Mike Peterson took his seat between
his attorneys. His family huddled in the
gallery. Superior Court Judge Orlando
Hudson brought in the jury, and the fore-
woman produced a manila envelope.
Mister delivered it to Hudson, who
handed it to court clerk Angela Kelly. She
withdrew a sheet of paper and read it.
“State of North Carolina versus
Michael Iver Peterson, file No. 01 CRS
24821: We the 12 members of the jury
unanimously find the defendant to be
guilty of first-degree murder, this the
10th day of October 2003.”
Kelly asked: “Is this your verdict, so say
you all?”
The 12 Durham County citizens who
had listened to 14 weeks of evidence
and deliberated for nearly 14 hours over
four days, answered as one.
“Yes.”
Peterson’s brothers Bill and Jack sat
stunned. His sons Clayton and Todd
stared into space. Then sobs arose from
the gallery’s front row, as Margaret and
Martha Ratliff wrapped their arms
around each other and mourned.
Defense attorney David Rudolf said he
would appeal the verdict. His partner
Thomas Maher swallowed hard. The pros-
ecutors hugged one another: District At-
torney Jim Hardin and his two assistant
DAs, Freda Black and David Saacks, had
won an entirely circumstantial case.
The blood drained from Mike Peter-
Guy Seeberg, a member of the defense team, tries to reassure Mike Peterson as he is led out of court after his conviction of first-degree murder.
STAFF PHOTO BY SCOTT LEWIS SEE PETERSON, PAGE 14A
It wasn’t just about Mike Peterson Hardin quells doubts
Durham DA shrugs off criticism of state’s case
I
t isn’t the biggest marker. Not by lovingly tended as the grave of appeal, Mike Peterson will spend the
far. Nor the fanciest.This is, after all, Kathleen Hunt Peterson — the rest of his life in prison.
Maplewood Cemetery, home to woman whose death brought us to But really, the trial BY DEMORRIS LEE Kathleen, to death in December 2001.
Durham’s most prominent deceased for Superior Courtroom No. 1. was not only about STAFF WRITER And despite the second-guessing by many
more than 130 years. And now, finally, to the verdict. Mike Peterson. DURHAM — Whispers abounded two in the legal community, Hardin fought
Massive marble Over the past three months, so District Attorney years ago when District Attorney Jim — and won.
and granite much of the drama has focused on Jim Hardin, in his Hardin decided to prosecute Mike Pe- Hardin wouldn’t speculate Friday why
monuments pay things that don’t matter: the legal powerful closing, terson for first-degree murder. the jury believed the version of Kathleen
tribute to the Carr, maneuverings, the personalities of the Kathleen reminded the jury of There were whispers about Hardin’s Peterson’s death that he and Assistant
Duke, Mangum and lawyers, the expert witnesses, the Peterson that. Kathleen is lack of trial experience and his inability District Attorney Freda Black presented.
Teer families. male escort, the recovered blow poke. crying out for to get convictions in big cases. And here But he said that telling the jurors about
But there is no site And of course, so much of our justice, Hardin told the jurors. he had no eyewitness, no murder weapon the death of Elizabeth Ratliff, a friend of
Ruth so carefully planted,
so neatly land-
attention has been focused on Mike
Peterson, charged and now found
And they listened. and a defendant with a lot of money.
But none of that deterred Hardin. He
Peterson’s found dead at the bottom of
Sheehan scaped, so obviously guilty of murdering his wife. Pending SEE SHEEHAN, PAGE 14A believed that Mike Peterson beat his wife, SEE HARDIN, PAGE 11A
Limbaugh in treatment Tenacity in Tehran
WEATHER
Today: Light
for painkiller addiction rain, drizzle.
High 67,
wins Nobel honors
TODAY low 60.
BY HOWARD KURTZ years in an ef-
THE WASHINGTON POST fort to break Sunday: Par- BY ELAINE SCIOLINO The experi-
Rush Limbaugh acknowledged his addiction tial sun. High THE NEW YORK TIMES ence, she said
Friday that he is addicted to and would do 75, low 58. PARIS — As a judge in Iran before later, was like
painkillers and said he is taking a so again imme- the revolution of 1979, Shirin turning “the
30-day leave of absence to try to diately. He said TOMORROW PAGE 12B Ebadi stayed away from politics. president of a
kick the habit. he could not But when the Islamic revolu- university into
Breaking a weeklong silence discuss the in- INDEX tion came, she embraced it, join- a janitor.”
since the National Enquirer re- vestigation, Business . . . 1D Films . . . . . . 8E ing the Ministry of Justice’s strike On Friday,
ported that he had been caught up Limbaugh which is based Classified . . . 1F Puzzles . . . . 11E committee and musing about cre- Ebadi, 56, went
in a drug investigation by Florida makes on-air in part on the ating an Iran that would rival the Shirin Ebadi before 200 jour-
7=C;=B:EEFEEV
Comics . . . 10E Rogers . . . . . 1B The State Fair, born
authorities, the nation’s most pop- confession. account of a Deaths . . . . 10B Real Estate . 1H most open Western democracy. earns Nobel nalists in Paris
ular radio host told listeners: “I am former house- Editorials .22A Tudor . . . . . .1C 150 years ago, is still The embrace was not returned. Peace Prize. as this year’s
no victim and do not portray my- keeper at his $30 million Palm The clerics who created the Is- winner of the
self as such. … I take full respon- Beach County estate. fun and still evolving. lamic Republic decreed that Nobel Peace Prize, honored for
sibility for my problem.” Michael Harrison, editor of
Page One
women were too “emotional” to her human-rights activities and
Limbaugh, 52, said he had Talkers magazine, said Lim- be judges. Ebadi, one of the first the promotion of democracy.
twice checked into rehabilitation female judges in Iran, was de-
clinics over the last half-dozen SEE LIMBAUGH, PAGE 17A AB STORY SUMMARIES, PAGE 2A moted to legal assistant. SEE NOBEL, PAGE 17A
1A, , 2002 C M Y K
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