Robert Durst, real estate heir convicted of murder, dies

Durst had long been suspected of killing his wife, Kathie, who went missing in New York 1982 and was declared legally dead decades later.But only after Los Angeles prosecutors proved he silenced Berman before she could tell police she helped him cover up Kathie’s killing was Durst indicted by a New York grand jury in November for second-degree murder in his wife’s death.Westchester County prosecutors, who had been trying to get Durst transferred there to face the charge, said they planned to reveal new details about the case in coming days. “We had hoped to allow them the opportunity to see Mr. Durst finally face charges for Kathleen’s murder because we know that all families never stop wanting closure, justice and accountability.” Los Angeles prosecutors also told jurors Durst got away with murder in Texas after shooting a man who discovered his identity when he was hiding out in Galveston after Berman’s killing. Durst was acquitted of murder in that case in 2003, after testifying he shot the man as they struggled for a gun.Los Angeles Deputy District Attorney John Lewin said jurors told him after the verdict that they believed Durst had killed his wife and murdered Morris Black in Texas. Killed them all, of course.”The quotes were later revealed to have been manipulated for dramatic effect but the production — done with Durst’s cooperation against the advice from his lawyer and friends — dredged up new evidence including an envelope that connected Durst to the scene of Berman’s killing as well as incriminating statements he made.Police had received a note directing them to Berman’s home with only the word “CADAVER” written in block letters.In interviews given between 2010 and 2015, Durst told the makers of the “The Jinx” that he didn’t write the note, but whoever did had killed her.“You’re writing a note to the police that only the killer could have written,” Durst said.His defense lawyers conceded in the run-up to trial that Durst had written the note, and prosecutors said it amounted to a confession.Clips from “The Jinx,” and from the 2010 movie “All Good Things” in which Ryan Gosling played a fictionalized version of Durst, had starring roles at trial.As did Durst himself.