after defeat, voelker re-entered private practice. in august and september 1952, he represented the defense in "people v. coleman peterson". peterson was a veteran of both world war ii and the korean war who was stationed in big bay during the summer of 1952 and accused of murder in the shooting death of maurice chenoweth, a local bar owner. the case "made" his "reputation as a defense attorney". the defense centered on a rare form of the insanity defense called "irresistible impulse". until the peterson case, the "irresistible impulse" defense had not been used in michigan since "people v. durfee" in 1886. the trial lasted seven days with a total of 31 witnesses: 26 for the prosecution and five for the defense. the jury deliberated for four hours before pronouncing peterson not guilty by reason of insanity. voelker's only payment as the defense attorney was the murder weapon.