Robert Durst Charged In 1982 Death Of Wife: DA

SOUTH SALEM, NY — New York real estate heir Robert Durst, who was sentenced Oct. 14 in Los Angeles for murdering a longtime friend, was indicted Monday by a Westchester County grand jury for the killing of his wife Kathleen Durst.

Westchester County District Attorney Miriam Rocah announced that Durst, 78, was charged with second-degree murder.

Rocah said, when 29-year-old Kathleen Durst disappeared Jan. 31, 1982, her family and friends were left with pain, anguish and questions for almost four decades.

"The District Attorney's Office reinvigorated its investigation into Robert Durst just 10 months ago when I took office, launched the Cold Case Bureau and dedicated the resources and skill that I thought this case deserved," she said.

"Thanks to the incredible hard work of our assistant district attorneys, the district attorney's criminal investigators and the New York State Police, we have taken a huge step forward in the pursuit of justice for Kathie Durst, her family and victims of domestic violence everywhere," Rocah said.

A warrant has been issued for Durst's arrest for the murder of Kathleen Durst.

Robert Durst was convicted in Los Angeles County Superior Court Sept. 17 of first-degree murder. He was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole for Berman's murder.

Prosecutors said he killed Susan Berman, who was shot in the back of the head, just before Christmas Eve 2000.

The argument from prosecutors was that Durst shot Berman and then Morris Black, his neighbor in Galveston, Texas, nine months later because they both had incriminating information against him. He feared they would speak to authorities after a re-investigation was launched into Kathleen Durst's 1982 disappearance.

Kathleen Durst's body has never been found, police said.

Rocah said an indictment is a crucial step in the process of holding someone accountable for their actions.

"For nearly four decades, there has been a great deal of speculation about this case," she said, "much of it fueled by Robert Durst's own highly publicized statements."

Durst has been in jail since March 14, 2015, after he was taken into custody in New Orleans just hours before the final episode of the HBO documentary series "The Jinx: The Life and Deaths of Robert Durst" was broadcast. The series examined Kathleen Durst's disappearance and the shooting deaths of Berman and Black.

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