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Four wives. One dead. One missing.

Drew Peterson, 55, the former Bolingbrook police sergeant arrested for murder of his third wife and under investigation for the missing fourth wife, cooked the perfect recipe for a high profile criminal investigation, provoking both media and common people alike to get enveloped into another sensational story.

Exclusive interviews with “Today” Show, a 300-page book devoted to a couple of lie detector tests (Drew Peterson Exposed), constant news coverage and a number of hate blogs–this story is bizarre and garnering loads of attention.

The story

Drew Peterson was a police officer of Bolingbrook since 1977. In 1979, he was awarded “Police of the Year” by the Metropolitan Area Narcotics Squad. Ironically, he was fired in 1985 for official misconduct including allegedly soliciting drugs in a self-assigned investigation. The case was ruled unprovable, so he was reinstated the following year.

But far more interesting than his professional history, Peterson led an intriguing married life. His first wife was Carol Brown. They met in high school in Villa Park, Illinois and went to prom together. They divorced in 1980 due to Peterson’s infidelity. His second wife was Victoria Conolly; they were together for 10 years. The marriage ended after Peterson started dating Kathleen Savio, who two months after, became his third wife.

Peterson and Savio married in 1992 and divorced in 2003. Savio was found dead in a waterless bathtub on March 1, 2004, with Peterson as the suspect. It was reported that police were called to Peterson’s house 18 times between 2002 and 2004 on domestic disturbance calls. Her death, however, was ruled an accidental drowning.

So the suspicious circumstances continue to pile up…

On October 18, 2003, Peterson married Stacy Ann Cales. They have two kids and led a seemingly normal family life, yet Cales went missing on October 28, 2007. This led the police to exhume Savio’s body and subject it to another forensic investigation.

This time, Dr. Michael Baden, a former New York City chief medical examiner, concluded that she died of drowning following a struggle. Further tests gave more evidence suggesting foul play and Illinois State’s Attorney James Gaslow announced the death was a “homicide staged to look like an accident.”

These developments consequently intensified the Cales family belief that Stacy was also murdered by Peterson. Search operations of both officers and volunteers is on-going. They search among tall grasses, in parks, in ponds and manholes, they wear “missing” shirts and leave fliers everywhere — as of today Stacy remains missing.

Meanwhile, Peterson found himself another woman in 2008.

He was engaged to 23-year-old Christina Raines who forsook family and friends for Peterson, only to take back her words when she finally “came to her senses.” She claimed the engagement was a publicity stunt made to keep Peterson in the spotlight.

The bizareness grows and continues…

On May 7, 2009, the Will County Grand Jury indicted Peterson for the murder of Kathleen Savio and he was arrested with bail set at $20 million. Peterson’s retort: “I guess I should have returned those library books.”

The mystery

Despite the provoking and often disturbing turns of Peterson’s life, his story is not a a new one. We’ve heard of this before.

We’ve heard of law enforcers breaking the rules and using their expertise to escape penalty. We’ve heard of good husbands killing nice wives leaving neighbors and friends shuttering in horror. We’ve heard such tragedies so many times it is a wonder why such crimes still leave us in a hungry state of captivated interest.

Perhaps, the loudest question we want answered is “Why? Why do people kill?”

And it is not just Peterson’s situation we are interested in… We want to get an answer that will satisfy all similar cases, even all murder cases for that matter.

For a long time, psychology has been blaming society for such behavior, “upbringing” being the foremost of reasons blamed. They say a child brought up in brutality will eventually be brutal.

Another theory is a callous heart, as people who kill do not feel empathy.

But a more directed reason for why husbands kill their wives is the oblivious “narcissism.” Experts agree that most men who kill their wives are not psychopaths who could not distinguish between right and wrong; they’re men whose feelings mean everything– they have crafted for themselves their own plans and ambitions, their own concept of a perfect life– when the wife obstructs the way, it’s dream or bust and so murder becomes an option.

This appears to be Peterson’s case. Although he had a carefully crafted reputation, with powerful and influential friends to spare, he had a life he wanted to live which he could never seem to have.

What then can we do to keep ourselves from the same situation? Well, its a difficult question– one we’d have to contemplate on our own. There might be practical answers to it, but such answers will not be useful in all cases.

Murder is not something we avoid by following a rule book or a detailed moral procedure. It is a heart problem that needs a heart solution. I say it’s a very metaphysical concern that needs a metaphysical examination of life and oneself.

The best I can say is to be wise and prudent in every step we take, knowing that in this life of uncertain turns, we always have a choice.

“Did he or didn’t he?” Weigh with your thoughts in the comments section because I look forward to our lively debate.

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