23 years ago Kathleen Peterson was found dead in a pool of blood at the bottom of a stairwell in her Durham mansion. Her husband, novelist and one-time mayoral candidate, Michael Peterson, was the only other person in the home at the time. He vehemently denied having anything to do with his wife's death saying it must have been an accident, that she fell down the stairs and hit her head after a long night of drinking. What followed was a captivating investigation and case that wound its way through the criminal justice system while the whole world watched…hanging on every detail…details like Michael Peterson's involvement with a male escort and the defense's allegation at one point that an owl had killed Kathleen. It would forever divide the Petersons' blended family. After a 3-month trial in 2003, Michael Peterson was found guilty of beating his wife to death—the alleged weapon a fire poker—and was sentenced to life in prison with the possibility of parole. But it didn't end there. In this episode, we interview a local reporter who followed the case for 17 years. Julia Sims gives us a behind the scenes peek at one of North Carolina's crimes of the century.

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