Robert Durst hospitalized with COVID-19, his lawyer says

LOS ANGELES — New York real estate heir Robert Durst, who days ago was sentenced in a two-decadeold murder case, has been hospitalized after contracting COVID-19, his lawyer said Saturday.

Defense Attorney Dick DeGuerin said he was notified that Durst was admitted after testing positive for the coronavirus. DeGuerin said he didn’t know Durst’s condition and was trying to find out more details.

Durst, 78, was sentenced Thursday to life in prison without a chance of parole for the murder of his best friend more than two decades ago. Durst, who has numerous medical issues, sat in a wheelchair with a catatonic stare during much of the sentencing hearing.

“He was very, very sick in the courtroom,” DeGuerin said Saturday.

He was convicted in Los Angeles Superior Court last month of first-degree murder for shooting Susan Berman point-blank in the back of the head at her home in December 2000.

The killing 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.

Myung J. Chun / Associated Press New York real estate scion Robert Durst, 78, sits in the courtroom as he is sentenced to life in prison without chance of parole, Thursday in Los Angeles. On Saturday, Durst’s attorney announced he was admitted to a hospital with COVID-19.