Robert Durst, real estate tycoon convicted of murder, dies

2 years ago 328

LOS ANGELES – Robert Durst, the affluent New York existent property heir and failed fugitive dogged for decades with suspicion successful the disappearance and deaths of those astir him earlier helium was convicted past twelvemonth of sidesplitting his champion friend, has died. He was 78.

Durst died of earthy causes Monday successful a infirmary extracurricular the California situation wherever helium was serving a beingness sentence, according to the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. Durst had been held successful a infirmary lockup successful Stockton owed to a litany of ailments.

Durst was convicted successful September of shooting Susan Berman astatine point-blank scope astatine her Los Angeles location successful 2000. He was sentenced Oct. 14 to beingness successful situation without parole.

Durst had agelong been suspected of sidesplitting his wife, Kathie, who went missing successful New York 1982 and was declared legally dormant decades later.

But lone aft Los Angeles prosecutors proved helium silenced Berman to forestall her from telling constabulary she helped screen up Kathie’s sidesplitting was Durst indicted by a New York expansive jury successful November for second-degree execution successful his wife's death.

Westchester County prosecutors, who had been trying to get Durst transferred determination to look the charge, said they planned to uncover caller details astir the lawsuit successful coming days.

“After 40 years spent seeking justness for her death, I cognize however upsetting this quality indispensable beryllium for Kathleen Durst’s family,” District Attorney Miriam Rocah said successful a statement. “We had hoped to let them the accidental to spot Mr. Durst yet look charges for Kathleen’s execution due to the fact that we cognize that each families ne'er halt wanting closure, justness and accountability.”

Los Angeles prosecutors told jurors Durst besides got distant with execution successful Texas aft shooting a antheral who discovered his individuality erstwhile helium was hiding retired successful Galveston successful 2001. Durst was acquitted of execution successful that lawsuit successful 2003, aft testifying helium changeable the antheral arsenic they struggled for a gun.

Deputy District Attorney John Lewin said Los Angeles jurors told him aft the verdict that they believed Durst had killed his woman and murdered Morris Black successful Texas.

Durst’s undoing was successful ample portion owed to his hubris.

After beating the complaint successful Texas, successful a bid to rehabilitate his image, helium reached retired to filmmakers who had portrayed his beingness — not favorably — successful the 2010 large surface feature, “All Good Things,” starring Ryan Gosling arsenic Durst. He offered to beryllium down for a bid of lengthy interviews astir his life.

It was a determination helium told jurors helium profoundly regretted.

Durst, who aboriginal said helium was utilizing methamphetamine during the interviews, made respective damning statements including a stunning confession during an unguarded infinitesimal successful the six-part HBO documentary bid “The Jinx: The Life and Deaths of Robert Durst.”

The amusement made his sanction known to a caller procreation and brought renewed scrutiny and suspicion from authorities.

The nighttime earlier the last occurrence aired, Durst was arrested successful Berman’s sidesplitting portion hiding retired nether an alias successful a New Orleans hotel, wherever helium was caught with a gun, much than $40,000 currency and a head-to-shoulders latex disguise for a presumed getaway.

The finale's climax came with him mumbling to himself successful a bath portion inactive wearing blistery mic saying: “You’re caught! What the hellhole did I do? Killed them all, of course.”

The quotes were aboriginal revealed to person been manipulated for melodramatic effect but the accumulation — done against the proposal of Durst's lawyers and friends — dredged up caller grounds including an envelope that connected him to the country of Berman’s sidesplitting arsenic good arsenic incriminating statements helium made.

Police had received a enactment directing them to Berman’s location with lone the connection “CADAVER” written successful artifact letters.

In interviews fixed betwixt 2010 and 2015, Durst told the makers of the “The Jinx” that helium didn’t constitute the note, but whoever did had killed her.

“You’re penning a enactment to the constabulary that lone the slayer could person written,” Durst said.

His defence lawyers conceded successful the run-up to proceedings that Durst had written the note, and prosecutors said it amounted to a confession.

Clips from “The Jinx,” and “All Good Things” had starring roles astatine trial.

As did Durst himself. He took the hazard of again taking the basal for what turned retired to beryllium astir 3 weeks of testimony. It didn’t enactment arsenic it had successful Texas.

Under devastating cross-examination by authoritative Lewin, Durst admitted helium lied nether oath successful the past and would bash it again to dodge trouble.

“‘Did you termination Susan Berman?’ is strictly a hypothetical,” Durst said from the stand. “I did not termination Susan Berman. But if I had, I would prevarication astir it.”

The assemblage promptly returned a blameworthy verdict.

It agelong appeared helium would debar immoderate convictions.

Durst went connected the tally successful precocious 2000 aft New York authorities reopened an probe into his wife’s disappearance, renting a humble flat successful Galveston and disguising himself arsenic a mute woman.

In 2001, the assemblage parts of a neighbor, Black, began washing up successful Galveston Bay.

Arrested successful the killing, Durst jumped bail. He was caught shoplifting a sandwich six weeks aboriginal successful Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, wherever helium had gone to college. Police recovered $37,000 currency and 2 handguns successful his car.

He aboriginal quipped that helium was “the worst fugitive the satellite has ever met.”

He would attest that Black had pulled a weapon connected him and died erstwhile the limb went disconnected during a struggle.

He told jurors successful item however helium bought tools and downed a vessel of Jack Daniels earlier dismembering Black’s assemblage and tossing it retired to sea. While helium was cleared of murder, helium pleaded blameworthy to violating his bail, and to grounds tampering for the dismemberment. He served 3 years successful prison.

Durst had bladder crab and his wellness deteriorated during the Berman trial. He was escorted into tribunal successful a wheelchair wearing situation attire each time due to the fact that his attorneys said helium was incapable to alteration into a suit. But the justice declined further delays aft a 14-month intermission during the coronavirus pandemic.

At his sentencing, Durst entered the courtroom with a wide-eyed vacant stare. Attorney Dick DeGuerin said helium was “very, precise sick” — the worst helium looked successful the 20 years helium spent representing him.

Near the extremity of the proceeding aft Berman’s loved ones told the justice that her decease upended their lives, Durst coughed hard and appeared to conflict to breathe. His thorax heaved and helium pulled his disguise down beneath his rima to gulp for air.

He was hospitalized 2 days aboriginal with COVID-19 and DeGuerin said helium was connected a ventilator. But Durst seemingly recovered and was transferred to authorities situation wherever mug shots showed nary motion of a ventilator.

The lad of existent property magnate Seymour Durst, Robert Durst was calved April 12, 1943, and grew up successful Scarsdale, New York. He would aboriginal accidental that astatine property 7, helium witnessed his mother’s decease successful a autumn from their home.

He graduated with an economics grade successful 1965 from Lehigh University, wherever helium played lacrosse. He entered a doctoral programme astatine the University of California, Los Angeles, wherever helium met Berman, but dropped retired and returned to New York successful 1969.

He became a developer successful the household business, but his begetter passed him implicit to marque his younger brother, and rival, Douglas the caput of the Durst Organization successful 1992.

Durst broke ties with his family, reaching a colony with a household trust. He was estimated to person a luck of astir $100 million.

Douglas Durst testified astatine proceedings that helium feared his member wanted to termination him.

“Bob lived a sad, achy and tragic life," helium said successful a connection Monday. "We anticipation his decease brings immoderate closure to those helium hurt.”

In 1971, Robert Durst met Kathie McCormack, and the 2 joined connected his 30th day successful 1973.

In January 1982, his woman was a pupil successful her last twelvemonth astatine aesculapian schoolhouse erstwhile she disappeared. She had shown up unexpectedly astatine a friend’s meal enactment successful Newtown, Connecticut, past near aft a telephone from her hubby to instrumentality to their location successful South Salem, New York.

Robert Durst told constabulary helium past saw her erstwhile helium enactment her connected a bid to enactment astatine their flat successful Manhattan due to the fact that she had classes the adjacent day.

Prosecutors said Berman, the girl of a Las Vegas mobster, posed arsenic Kathie Durst to telephone Albert Einstein College of Medicine the adjacent greeting to accidental she was sick and wouldn't beryllium astatine her infirmary rotation. The telephone provided an alibi for Robert Durst due to the fact that it made it look his woman made it safely to Manhattan aft helium saw her.

He would divorcement her 8 years later, claiming spousal abandonment, and successful 2017, astatine her family’s request, she was declared legally dead.

Kathie McCormack Durst's household said they program to supply an update connected Jan. 31 — the 40th day of her disappearance — into an probe of others who helped screen up her killing, lawyer Robert Abrams said.

Robert Durst is survived by his 2nd woman Debrah Charatan, whom helium joined successful 2000. He had nary children.

Under California law, a condemnation is vacated if a suspect dies portion the lawsuit is nether appeal, said Laurie Levenson, a instrumentality prof astatine Loyola Law School.

Attorney Chip Lewis said Durst had appealed.

___

Associated Press writer Michelle A. Monroe successful Phoenix contributed.

Read Entire Article