News

Robert Durst Sentenced To Prison Time

by Cate Carrejo

Real estate heir and subject of the HBO miniseries The Jinx Robert Durst has been sentenced to prison by a New Orleans judge on weapons charges. The judge agreed to a plea deal of seven years and one month behind bars, but Durst still faces murder charges over the 2000 death of his longtime confidant Susan Berman. Durst entered the plea in February on the charge of illegally possessing a .38 revolver, which was discovered during his arrest on the pending murder charge. Because Durst is already a felon, his illegally owning the handgun carried extra weight in his sentencing.

Durst was convicted of felony evidence tampering and skipping bond in 2003 in connection with another death — that of Morris Black, a neighbor of Durst's beach house in Galveston, Texas. Durst was charged with the murder but acquitted after a trial, despite his own testimony that he chopped up the body and threw it into the Galveston Bay.

Durst is also suspected of murdering his first wife, Kathie McCormack, who disappeared in the New York City area in 1982 — however, that case never went to trial. Investigators believe that Durst murdered Berman because she was about to tell the authorities about Durst's involvement in McCormack's disappearance. Durst seemingly confessed to murdering all three during the finale of The Jinx, when he said to himself "What the hell did I do? Killed them all, of course," while unaware that his microphone was still on.

Durst has been charged with Berman's murder in Los Angeles County. His legal team filed a motion on Monday asking U.S. District Judge Kurt Engelhardt to recommend that Durst serve his sentence at Terminal Island, California because it's close to where Durst will face trial. According to the motion, Durst also has significant medical needs due to his "advanced age and serious health considerations, including mobility challenges."