Convicted Murderer Robert Durst Hospitalized for Covid-19; Lawyer Claims He is on Ventilator

Edited by: TJVNews.com

Now that 78-yearold real estate tycoon Robert Durst was sentenced to life in prison without parole this past Thursday for the murder of his longtime friend Susan Berman in 2000, it appears that the embattled businessman is now facing some serious health challenges.

Last month, Durst was convicted in Los Angeles Superior Court of first-degree murder for shooting Susan Berman point-blank in the back of the head at her home to keep her from telling police that she had helped him concoct a fake alibi when his wife, Kathie McCormack Durst, disappeared from Westchester County in 1982, according to a report in the New York Post.

Westchester County prosecutors are expected to impanel a grand jury within weeks to hear evidence against Durst in his first wife’s disappearance.

The Post also reported that Durst has been hospitalized after contracting COVID-19. On Saturday, Durst’s attorney, Dick DeGuerin said he was notified that Durst was admitted after testing positive for the coronavirus. DeGuerin told multiple media outlets that Durst is on a ventilator. Additional details on his condition were not immediately made available, as was reported by the AP.

In a statement issued on Saturday, the Los Angeles Superior Court said it was notified someone present for the sentencing hearing for Durst on Thursday had tested positive for COVID-19, according to the AP report.

“As a result, the Court will follow CDC and LA County Department of Public Health guidelines for assessing close contacts of the infected individual,” the statement read.

No additional COVID-19 cases have been reported.

Durst, who has numerous medical issues, sat in a wheelchair during his sentencing hearing with a catatonic stare, as was reported by the AP.

“He was very, very sick in the courtroom,” DeGuerin said Saturday. Speaking to NBC News on Saturday, DeGuerin said: “All we know he’s tested positive for COVID-19, he’s in hospital and on a ventilator.

“He looked awful Thursday, worst I’ve ever seen him,” DeGuerin said of his 78-year-old client. “He was having difficulty breathing, he was having difficulty speaking.”

The AP report indicated that the murder of Berman had been a mystery that haunted family and friends for 15 years before Durst was arrested in 2015 following his unwise decision to participate in a documentary that unearthed new evidence and caught him in a stunning confession.

DeGuerin said Thursday that Durst will appeal.