True Crime Friday: Robert Alan Durst, the Real Estate Heir Serial Killer


Robert Alan Durst was born April 12, 1943, he was a wealthy serial killer who literally admitted to dismembering a man and putting his body in garbage bags. He was brought to trial and was found not guilty by a jury of his peers. He said he feared for his life and the jury believed him. He murdered his first wife and then killed his lifelong friend. This man got away with murder for decades before dying in prison.

Robert Durst was an American real estate heir and the eldest son of New York City real estate developer Seymour Durst. Robert garnered attention as a suspect in the unsolved 1982, disappearance of his first wife, Kathleen McCormack. She disappeared without a trace to the dismay of her loved ones and friends. Her spouse was not too concerned about his wife and what might have happened to her.

In the year 2000, Durst murdered Susan Berman in her home with a gun. Susan Berman gave Durst an alibi after he was suspected of murdering Kathleen McCormick, so police was unable to prove he killed his wife. He was under suspicion for the disappearance of McCormack. In the year 2001, Durst murdered his neighbor and friend Morris Black. Even though he dismembered Morris Black a jury of his peers found him not guilty. Durst own family was afraid of him and went to court to get restraining orders.

The Early Childhood of Robert Alan Durst

Robert Durst lived in Scarsdale, New York. He was the oldest son of Bernice and Seymour Durst children. When Robert was ten years old his mother died by suicide, she jumped off the roof of the family home. All was not well in the Durst household. Robert and his brother Douglas went to counseling because of their disruptive sibling rivalry. Robert was diagnosed with personality disorder and schizophrenia.

His classmates described him as a loner. Durst earned a bachelor’s degree in economics from Lehigh University. Durst opened a small health-food store in Vermont in the early 1970s. His father asked him to return to New York to assist with the family business. Durst exhibited inappropriate business and personal behavior, so his father appointed Douglas Durst to run the Durst Organization. Robert Durst later sued the family regarding his being passed over as the eldest son and the family settled with him out of court.

The Victims of Robert Alan Durst

  • Kathleen McCormack
  • Susan Berman
  • Morris Black
  • Lynne Schulz
  • Kristen Modafferi
  • Karen Mitchell

The Survivor of Robert Alan Durst

  • Debrah Lee Charatan
Robert Durst called Morris Black a cranky loner. He said Black angrily confronted him and so being afraid for his life he grabbed his gun. During the struggle he shot Black in the face. He then used knives, saws and an axe to dismember the victim. He put Blacks body parts in garbage bags and dumped them in Galveston Bay. Morris Black's head was never recovered somehow Durst defense attorneys were able to convince the jury that Durst was afraid for his life and he was acquitted November 12, 2003. The jury members stated there was not enough forensic evidence to dispute Durst's account of the struggle.

Lynne Schulz was said to have known Durst from visiting his store when he lived in Vermont. Karen Mitchell worked at a homeless shelter Durst would visit and Kristen Modafferi who was seen with Durst in San Francisco. Despite Durst murdering and being suspected of murder, he married Debrah Lee Charatan. He told his sister it was a marriage of convenience because they did not live together. He did not want his inheritance to go the victims’ families. In fact, it was proven she was married to someone else at the time. Durst is suspected of killing animals, a clear trait of serial killers. He owned nine dogs, and they all disappeared without a trace. Even though he was wealthy he stole food from supermarkets that he visited when traveling and hiding from the law. His first arrest came from stealing a chicken salad sandwich from a deli. He was once in a CVS where he exposed himself to customers and urinated on a bag of candy.

Lady Justice

Robert Durst got away with the murders, so he felt emboldened enough to participate in a 2015 documentary call The Jinx. After participating in the documentary Durst was arrested for the murder of Susan Berman. He talked to himself during the filming  and his confession was caught on camera. Durst was convicted in 2021 and sentenced to life without parole. He was also charged with McCormack's murder. Shortly after his sentencing, Durst died on January 10, 2022, before the trial was to begin. His conviction for Berman's murder was automatically vacated upon his death because his appeal was still pending. His estate is still being litigated by the victims’ families and other entities. This case alone explains so much about how there are two justice systems in America.

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