Elizabeth Ratliff
Encyclopedia
Elizabeth McKee was born in 1942 and reared with two sisters on a farm on Rhode Island
. A serious, artistic child, she played an acoustic guitar, sang and spoke French and German.
For 17 years Elizabeth, known as "Liz," taught elementary school at a school for the children of military families at the Rhein-Main Air Base
in Frankfurt
, Germany
where she met Captain George Ratliff, an Air Force navigator. They married in 1981. Their daughter Margaret was born that same year, and two years later, their second daughter, Martha, was born.
Although the circumstances are unclear, George Ratliff died from a heart attack while taking part in a secret military operation during the Invasion of Grenada
in 1983.
Liz Ratliff also died under mysterious circumstances on November 25, 1985 when she was found at the bottom of a staircase in her house in Weiterstadt-Graefenhausen, surrounded by pools of blood. An autopsy
at the time of her death concluded she had died from an intra-cerebral haemorrhage secondary to the blood coagulation disorder Von Willebrand's disease. The coroner determined that the haemorrhage resulted in immediate death followed by Ratliff falling down the stairs after collapsing. Margaret and Martha were then raised by close friends of the family, Michael and Patricia Peterson, but were never adopted by them.
In 2001 Michael Peterson
, a writer, was arrested for the murder of his second wife, Kathleen Peterson, who was found dead at the bottom of a staircase.
In connection with that trial, the North Carolina
medical examiner's office had Elizabeth Ratliff's body exhumed from a Texas grave in 2003. The new autopsy report stated that Liz Ratliff had been murdered, and gave the cause of her death as blunt force trauma to the head. Although Peterson was never accused or charged in relation to Ratliff's death this report, by the same examiner who had conducted Kathleen Peterson's autopsy, played a significant part in the trial, and the admission of it as Similar fact evidence
formed the basis of Peterson's subsequent appeal.
Rhode Island
The state of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, more commonly referred to as Rhode Island , is a state in the New England region of the United States. It is the smallest U.S. state by area...
. A serious, artistic child, she played an acoustic guitar, sang and spoke French and German.
For 17 years Elizabeth, known as "Liz," taught elementary school at a school for the children of military families at the Rhein-Main Air Base
Rhein-Main Air Base
Rhein-Main Air Base was a U.S. Air Force / NATO military airbase near the city of Frankfurt am Main, Germany. It occupied the south side of Frankfurt International Airport. Its airport codes are discontinued....
in Frankfurt
Frankfurt
Frankfurt am Main , commonly known simply as Frankfurt, is the largest city in the German state of Hesse and the fifth-largest city in Germany, with a 2010 population of 688,249. The urban area had an estimated population of 2,300,000 in 2010...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
where she met Captain George Ratliff, an Air Force navigator. They married in 1981. Their daughter Margaret was born that same year, and two years later, their second daughter, Martha, was born.
Although the circumstances are unclear, George Ratliff died from a heart attack while taking part in a secret military operation during the Invasion of Grenada
Invasion of Grenada
The Invasion of Grenada, codenamed Operation Urgent Fury, was a 1983 United States-led invasion of Grenada, a Caribbean island nation with a population of about 100,000 located north of Venezuela. Triggered by a military coup which had ousted a four-year revolutionary government, the invasion...
in 1983.
Liz Ratliff also died under mysterious circumstances on November 25, 1985 when she was found at the bottom of a staircase in her house in Weiterstadt-Graefenhausen, surrounded by pools of blood. An autopsy
Autopsy
An autopsy—also known as a post-mortem examination, necropsy , autopsia cadaverum, or obduction—is a highly specialized surgical procedure that consists of a thorough examination of a corpse to determine the cause and manner of death and to evaluate any disease or injury that may be present...
at the time of her death concluded she had died from an intra-cerebral haemorrhage secondary to the blood coagulation disorder Von Willebrand's disease. The coroner determined that the haemorrhage resulted in immediate death followed by Ratliff falling down the stairs after collapsing. Margaret and Martha were then raised by close friends of the family, Michael and Patricia Peterson, but were never adopted by them.
In 2001 Michael Peterson
Michael Peterson (author)
Michael Iver Peterson is a fiction writer and politician. In 2003, he was convicted of the murder of his wife, Kathleen Peterson.-Personal life:...
, a writer, was arrested for the murder of his second wife, Kathleen Peterson, who was found dead at the bottom of a staircase.
In connection with that trial, the North Carolina
North Carolina
North Carolina is a state located in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte...
medical examiner's office had Elizabeth Ratliff's body exhumed from a Texas grave in 2003. The new autopsy report stated that Liz Ratliff had been murdered, and gave the cause of her death as blunt force trauma to the head. Although Peterson was never accused or charged in relation to Ratliff's death this report, by the same examiner who had conducted Kathleen Peterson's autopsy, played a significant part in the trial, and the admission of it as Similar fact evidence
Similar fact evidence
In the law of evidence, similar fact evidence establishes the conditions under which factual evidence of past misconduct of accused can be admitted at trial for the purpose of inferring that the accused committed the misconduct at issue.In Canada, the rule is established in R. v...
formed the basis of Peterson's subsequent appeal.
See also
- Michael PetersonMichael Peterson (author)Michael Iver Peterson is a fiction writer and politician. In 2003, he was convicted of the murder of his wife, Kathleen Peterson.-Personal life:...
- for details of the trial.