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Heir on Trial
Aired November 06, 2003 - 14:04 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: Now to south Texas, where a jury is pondering the guilt or innocence of a real estate heir who killed and dismembered an elderly neighbor. At issue is Robert Durst's motive with prosecutors claiming that Durst wanted to steal his victim's identity in order to stymie two other investigations.
CNN's Ed Lavandera has the latest now from Galveston -- Ed.
ED LAVANDERA, CNN DALLAS BUREAU CHIEF: Hi, Kyra.
Well, this trial has been going on for about six weeks. When the defense made their opening statements in this case, they said it would be a bizarre case, one in which the jury would hear a lot of weird testimony. That's exactly what they have gotten.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
LAVANDERA (voice-over): Robert Durst says Morris Black was accidentally killed in self-defense while both men struggled for a gun. It wasn't poetic, but this is how prosecutors summed up what they thought of that story.
KURT SISTRUNK, PROSECUTOR: If Morris Black was here right now, he'd be saying, I'm thinking two words -- two words, Robert Durst, and one of them is bull.
LAVANDERA: Defense attorneys say Durst came to Galveston disguised as a woman to escape the New York prosecutors, who suspected he might have been involved in his first wife's disappearance. Prosecutors say the New York millionaire beat up and shot Morris Black, his elderly neighbor, as part of a plan to assume Black's identity, and then sliced Black's body into pieces to make the man disappear.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Morris Black in his own way became a solution to this man's problem, a solution that was handled by murdering Morris Black.
LAVANDERA: Defense attorneys say that makes no sense.
MIEK RAMSEY, DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Now, here we've got a zillionaire with all the money in the world to buy whatever identity he wants to buy from anywhere at any price. And they want you to think that he came here to Galveston in order to cut out of the pack a loner like Morris Black.
LAVANDERA: Defense attorneys describe Black as an angry, volatile man, and that Robert Durst had to be scared for his life when he found Black in his apartment holding a gun.
DICK DEGUERIN, DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Bob Durst is not guilty of murder. Whatever else he may have done is for another time and place.
LAVANDERA: Robert Durst apparently feels good, as he quickly flashed his thumbs up as he left the courtroom.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LAVANDERA: The jury in this case has been deliberating a short while. They deliberated for a little bit more than an hour yesterday afternoon. They've been back here since 8:30 in the morning Central Time. So, they've been going on about four and a half hours of deliberations. At this point, they remain behind the closed doors in the jury room, and we'll wait to see what happens next.
If Robert Durst is found guilty, he could be sent to prison for the rest of his life -- Kyra.
PHILLIPS: Ed Lavandera in Galveston, thank you.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com.
Aired November 6, 2003 - 14:04 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: Now to south Texas, where a jury is pondering the guilt or innocence of a real estate heir who killed and dismembered an elderly neighbor. At issue is Robert Durst's motive with prosecutors claiming that Durst wanted to steal his victim's identity in order to stymie two other investigations.
CNN's Ed Lavandera has the latest now from Galveston -- Ed.
ED LAVANDERA, CNN DALLAS BUREAU CHIEF: Hi, Kyra.
Well, this trial has been going on for about six weeks. When the defense made their opening statements in this case, they said it would be a bizarre case, one in which the jury would hear a lot of weird testimony. That's exactly what they have gotten.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
LAVANDERA (voice-over): Robert Durst says Morris Black was accidentally killed in self-defense while both men struggled for a gun. It wasn't poetic, but this is how prosecutors summed up what they thought of that story.
KURT SISTRUNK, PROSECUTOR: If Morris Black was here right now, he'd be saying, I'm thinking two words -- two words, Robert Durst, and one of them is bull.
LAVANDERA: Defense attorneys say Durst came to Galveston disguised as a woman to escape the New York prosecutors, who suspected he might have been involved in his first wife's disappearance. Prosecutors say the New York millionaire beat up and shot Morris Black, his elderly neighbor, as part of a plan to assume Black's identity, and then sliced Black's body into pieces to make the man disappear.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Morris Black in his own way became a solution to this man's problem, a solution that was handled by murdering Morris Black.
LAVANDERA: Defense attorneys say that makes no sense.
MIEK RAMSEY, DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Now, here we've got a zillionaire with all the money in the world to buy whatever identity he wants to buy from anywhere at any price. And they want you to think that he came here to Galveston in order to cut out of the pack a loner like Morris Black.
LAVANDERA: Defense attorneys describe Black as an angry, volatile man, and that Robert Durst had to be scared for his life when he found Black in his apartment holding a gun.
DICK DEGUERIN, DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Bob Durst is not guilty of murder. Whatever else he may have done is for another time and place.
LAVANDERA: Robert Durst apparently feels good, as he quickly flashed his thumbs up as he left the courtroom.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LAVANDERA: The jury in this case has been deliberating a short while. They deliberated for a little bit more than an hour yesterday afternoon. They've been back here since 8:30 in the morning Central Time. So, they've been going on about four and a half hours of deliberations. At this point, they remain behind the closed doors in the jury room, and we'll wait to see what happens next.
If Robert Durst is found guilty, he could be sent to prison for the rest of his life -- Kyra.
PHILLIPS: Ed Lavandera in Galveston, thank you.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com.
