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American novelist, Michael Peterson, who was convicted of murdering his wife in 2003, is granted a new trial in 2017.
“The Staircase” takes place in an idyllic wealthy suburb in North Carolina. Starting off with a frantic man mumbling over a 9-11 call, his wife Kathleen is found dead in her mansion at the bottom of a large staircase. She’s covered in blood and has some interesting head trauma, her husband who made the strange call, Michael, is immediately the prime suspect.
This documentary seems to have set the blueprint for future true crime docs. “The Staircase” is filmed as the events are unfolding. It is fascinating capturing new clues and old dark secrets coming to light. The audience is shown how a jury is selected and the different methods used by the prosecution and the defense. Both sides have their unique, at times morally questionable, strategies. In particular, the defense lawyer David Rudolf is vocal about suppressing past evidence that’s massively important to contextualize the prime suspect and the case’s expanding details.
The case is complicated and luckily the Netflix release includes a few new additional episodes to bring us up to date. Michael seems to be a pathological liar, one example is that he claimed for years he sustained injuries in Vietnam when in reality they were from a car accident.
More importantly, this case shows the difference in wealth and privilege when you are under investigation. When he’s placed under arrest he’s immediately able to secure bail while many others in this country can’t afford that. Michael receives coaching for testifying in court, along with so many other advantages. It recalled Robert “killed them all” Durst to me, who was charged with abusing a corpse, instead of murder in Texas, due to his suave expensive lawyer. Meanwhile, countless others who aren’t convicted of a crime or are nonviolent offenders can’t afford their bail. Unfortunately, in those cases, they are stuck there for months or longer until they can pay for it. It would be great to see more documentaries on the criminal justice system divide and less on wealthy wife murderers.
Now streaming on Netflix
