Lawyer David Rudolf Reveals What Happened When The Staircase Ended

"It took a lot out of me psychologically and it certainly took me a long time to recover," says David Rudolf, and you can understand why.

He was the lawyer at the centre of one of the most controversial and long-running murder cases in recent memory, which has gone on to become the subject of a hit Netflix docu-series, The Staircase.

Speaking to LADbible ahead of his talk in Manchester this week, David opened up about the effect the trial had on him personally and how it brought him to the lowest moment in his career, as well as the phenomenon of the true crime series.

"I don't think I ever fully recovered until I got Michael a new trial in 2011," he admitted.

The attorney was tasked with defending author Michael Peterson, who had been arrested and charged with murdering his wife, Kathleen, at their home in Durham, North Carolina, USA, in December 2001.

Over the course of five months, Rudolf and Peterson were in the middle of a media frenzy following the fascinating trial to its conclusion in 2003. Despite claiming his wife had fallen down the stairs of their home, Michael was convicted of first degree murder, and sentenced to life in prison.

An additional factor in the trial was the fact that a neighbour of Peterson's, Elizabeth Ratliff, had died in unresolved yet remarkably similar circumstances in 1985. The prosecution did not accuse Peterson of murdering Ratliff in the trial surrounding Kathleen's death, but brought the matter into court with the suggestion it provided him with the idea of how to 'fake' his wife's accident.

Looking back, David said: "I was stunned, I was absolutely shocked. I didn't see how it was possible for the jury to convict.

"I thought perhaps you might have a few jurors who were so offended by his bisexuality or questioned what happened in Germany that they might hang the jury and not come to a unanimous verdict, but I never expected there to be a guilty verdict."

The lawyer added: "I never had any doubts in him."

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The 13-part documentary on Netflix was originally made at the time of the trial, with the French film crew given almost unfettered access to both David and Michael, at home and in the court room.

"I watched the series back in Paris and it was one of the worst days of my life. It was so distressing to see it all again," said David.

"It was numbers one, two and three of the worst cases in my career. But now when I watch it I have a completely different attitude because I know how it's going to end."

The series was originally aired in 2004, just a year after his conviction. But between 2011 and 2017 several new episodes were filmed, picking up Michael's appeal and subsequent release, after one of the key witnesses for the prosecution, blood-splatter analyst Duane Deaver, was found to have misrepresented evidence in court.

Michael eventually entered an Alford Plea - maintaining his innocence but accepting a reduced charge of manslaughter with time served - and was allowed to go free.

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David said: "Michael's living in Durham, which is not where I would be but it's where he's chosen to be, and living a very mundane sort of life, but one that's a lot more preferable to the prison he was in. So he just goes to the grocery store, goes to the gym, and visits his grandchildren. All the things that most 75-year-olds might do.

"There's got to be some bitterness, though he doesn't express it. But I think he's at peace in the sense that his life is back to him and he has his family around, so that's got to be a help."

Throughout the trial, the prosecution made a lot of Michael's bisexuality, Ratliff's death and Deaver's testimony.

David explained these were the reasons for the conviction - all of which have been called into question since, even by the judge at the time, though Rudolf told LADbible that this admission was 'a little too late'.

Shortly after the trial, David's marriage ended, though he said the case was not to blame.

When asked if he harboured any bitterness towards the American justice system, David, who is now remarried and has a young daughter, said no.

"At this point, the less I think about Duane Deaver, the better," he explained. "But I knew about the problems well before that so there was no surprise for me.

"I think for people who watch the documentary who are not in the system, it's an eye-opener. But for those of us who do work in the system, we've known about this for decades.

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"It's a system operated by human beings and we all have our weaknesses and our faults - so too does the criminal justice system. It's a human endeavor and like all human endeavors it falls well short of perfection

"We are constantly fighting against it."

David said there is definitely a role for series like The Staircase and podcast Serial, offering insight into the failings of the justice system and unpicking the anatomy of large criminal cases.

"I think these kind of documentaries are incredibly helpful," he said. "I think they make people more open to the fact that the criminal justice system has significant problems and that verdicts are not necessarily accurate. I think series like Serial have had a very positive impact.

"They are shocking to people. I think people want to believe there's justice in the courts, and when they see it not working... I think there's a real interest in that."

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