Robert Durst Charged With Second-Degree Murder Of First Wife, Kathie Durst

Convicted murder Robert Durst has been charged with second-degree or his first wife, Kathie Durst.

Kathie disappeared in 1982 and has never been found, leading authorities to presume her death.

Durst was already convicted in September in California for the 2000 murder of his best friend, Susan Berman. Before her death, Berman was preparing to tell private information regarding Kathie’s disappearance and Durst’s involvement. Durst shot Berman execution-style before she had the chance.

The real estate tycoon was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole for Berman’s murder in October.

Kathie was a dental hygenist when she first met Durst in 1971. She was 19 and he was 26. The two briefly dated before moving in together and getting married two years after meeting.

In 1981, their relationship began to unravel and was headed for divorce, according to her family. Friends of Kathie began to believe that she was being abused in the relationship when she would show up to medical school with a black eye and bruises on her arm.

Kathie was last seen on January 31, 1982, at a friend’s gathering. Five days later, Durst filed a missing person report and told police he and his wife had an argument that night and drove her to the train station, so she could go into New York City.

Kathie was 29 when she disappeared.

Durst has also been suspected of the 2001 murder of Morris Black, a neighbor in Galveston, Texas. Durst was arrested and claimed self-defense in the case. He was acquitted of murder, even though he admitted that he chopped up Block’s remains.

Kathie’s family has continued to look for answers about Kathie’s disappearance and filed several suits against Durst. The family has not released a statement yet on Durst’s conviction.

Durst is currently hospitalized on a ventilator with COVID-19 in Los Angeles.