Case against Robert Durst "weak, circumstantial," lawyer says
The attorneys who secured Robert Durst's acquittal in a Texas murder case a dozen years ago are fighting a new murder charge. Durst's lead lawyer, Dick Deguerin, gave his first television interview on this legal battle to "48 Hours" correspondent Erin Moriarty where he revealed his feelings on his second time defending the real estate heir.
According to Deguerin, the Los Angeles district attorney interviewed his client for three hours without his lawyer present. No one knows what was said in the three-hour interview with Durst, but Deguerin does not think he said anything incriminating. Durst called his lawyers after he was arrested, something Deguerin assumes both the prosecution and jail knew about.
The interview has not been passed on to the defense, so it is still unknown if the assistant DA crossed any lines during it.
Asked to assess the strength of the prosecution's case, compared to the one he was acquitted for in Galveston, Texas, in 2003, Deguerin said "the evidence here is a lot more troublesome for the prosecution."
"Not only is it a circumstantial evidence case, it is a weak, circumstantial evidence case."
In the murder case of Morris Black, Durst admitted to dismembering a body. But in the Susan Berman murder case, there is no direct evidence between Durst and the murder, Deguerin argues.
One potentially key piece of evidence may not even be all that valuable, Moriarity noted. The handwriting on a letter sent to authorities tipping them off to the location of Susan Berman's body, known as the "cadaver" letter, shows striking similarities to an envelope Durst sent to Berman, right down to the same misspelling of the word "Beverly."
However, Los Angeles authorities had previously matched the cadaver note to someone else - Nyle Brenner, not Durst. Because of that fact, it will be difficult for the prosecution to use this piece of evidence in court compellingly.
Deguerin is not concerned about what he calls "the bathroom confession," dramatically caught on a HBO documentary, either.
As Moriarity noted, it will likely be a while before this goes to trial because of delays in New Orleans, where he may face gun charges.