Robert Durst charged with murder and new weapons charges
On Monday afternoon, Los Angeles County prosecutors filed a murder charge against Robert Durst, subject of the HBO documentary The Jinx, in the 2000 killing of his friend Susan Berman. Hours later, Louisiana officials rebooked him on weapons charges.
In the Berman case, Durst, a 71-year-old real estate scion, stands accused of lying in wait and killing a witness, the Los Angeles Times reports. If he is found guilty, he would be eligible for the death penalty. In Louisiana, where he was arrested on Saturday, law enforcement officials said he has been booked on two new weapons-related charges: Convicted felon in possession of a firearm and possession of a weapon with a controlled dangerous substance, which Louisiana State Police spokeswoman Melissa Matey said was a small amount of marijuana.
Matey also said she did not know if prosecutors in Louisiana would keep Durst on the new charges before sending him to Los Angeles.
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Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.
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