1. What do
you see as the downside
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2. to sitting down
and doing an interview,
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3. and what do you see
as the upside?
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4. The downside
of giving an interview
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5. is that the interviewer
will take what I've said
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6. to make me look
as bad as possible.
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7. The upside is that
there will be
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8. something out there
from me.
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9. I mean this whole time, since
I've gotten out of prison,
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10. I've said nothing to nobody
about anything.
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11. So, people out there
have gotten
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12. very used to the fact they
can say anything you want,
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13. because I'm never going
to give an interview,
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14. so, it's never
going to be disputed.
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15. And, and I see that
a, a lot.
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16. Um, I will be able
to tell it my way,
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17. and if somebody
is reasonably open
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18. to a different story
or a different,
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19. um, situation
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20. than what has been
put in the media,
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21. then they'll have an
opportunity to believe it.
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22. Anyone who knew his
life story would be sympathetic.
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23. And it's true.
He's, he had some rough times.
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24. Um, you talk about
the Poor, Little Rich Boy.
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25. One thing that was very
telling that Bob said.
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26. He said, "You know, all my life
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27. "I've had more money
than I could spend,
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28. and it didn't make me happy."
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29. Would you,
for the record,
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30. tell the ladies and gentleman
of the jury your name.
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31. Uh, Robert Durst.
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32. Mr. Durst, when were you born?
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33. Uh, April 12, 1943.
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34. And where
were you born?
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35. Uh, New York City.
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36. Uh, who was your father?
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37. Seymour Durst.
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38. And your mother?
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39. Bernice Durst.
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40. Is your father
still alive?
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41. No, Sir.
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42. Is your mother
still alive?
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43. No, Sir.
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44. How old were you
when your mother died?
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45. Uh, seven.
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46. Were you present
when she died?
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47. Yes, Sir.
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48. And how did she die?
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49. Uh, she died
a violent death.
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50. I'm the oldest.
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51. Douglas is two years younger.
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52. I have a sister who's
4 years younger than me
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53. and I have a little brother
who's 7 years younger than me.
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54. Your memories of
your time with your mother?
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55. Happy. Happy. Happy.
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56. What's your
first memory of that night
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57. that your mother died?
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58. My father came
and got me, and he said,
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59. "I'd like you to
come on over here.
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60. I want you to, you know,
to see, see Mommy."
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61. And we looked out a hall window
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62. out onto the roof,
and there was Mommy.
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63. And I waved at Mommy.
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64. I don't know that she saw me.
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65. It never went through
my mind that...
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66. "What is she doing out on
the roof in her nightie?"
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67. I mean, it just
didn't focus on me.
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68. "There's Mommy.
Wave at Mommy.
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69. OK, now go on back to bed."
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70. All of a sudden I heard the maid
shouting, "She's off the roof!"
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71. It was a long, long fall.
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72. The 4 adults who were there
reported that she fell.
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73. Whether they reported that
because they didn't want to say
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74. she committed suicide,
I have no idea.
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75. I never forgot it.
I mean, it happened.
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76. I was there.
I saw it—whatever I saw.
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77. It, it never left me.
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78. I went to the funeral.
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79. I mean, if you ever
have an opportunity
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80. which you're
better off not taking
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81. a 7-year-old child
to a funeral.
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82. That was a disaster.
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83. People are telling me,
"Ah, your mommy will be safe.
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84. She'll be right here."
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85. And they're starting to lower
the coffin into the ground.
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86. And I'm going, "Wait a minute.
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87. Mommy's in this box?"
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88. "Oh, yes.
She'll be right here."
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89. "Get Mommy out of the box!
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90. I don't want Mommy in the box."
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91. And I jumped out
and tried to stop the guys
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92. from lowering this box
in, into the ground.
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93. After that, they had
a big problem with me,
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94. because I would run away.
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95. They took me to school,
I would run away.
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96. At home I would run away.
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97. A number of times, they had to
call the police to go find me.
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98. I would just run away
and go hide somewhere.
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99. Did your dad do
anything to make up for
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100. the disappearance of
your mother in your life?
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101. Did he say, "Well, now I'm going
to come home more frequently"
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102. or "I'm going to change..."?
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103. He never said that.
And he did not.
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104. My father was not there
like he should have been.
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105. Did you confront your dad about
it later on in your life?
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106. Oh, I confronted him
with the whole thing.
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107. You know, way back when,
when I got 12, 13, 14.
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108. What was his response?
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109. He wouldn't go there.
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110. Bob
carried around with him
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111. a number of photographs
from his life.
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112. It's very touching to see
what mattered to him.
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113. He had several pictures of, uh,
himself with Kathie.
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114. He had pictures
of their wedding.
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115. Which one of those
pictures is Kathie?
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116. Kathie? Oh.
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117. This is Kathie.
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118. That's when we lived
in Hollis.
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119. She was always
nice-looking.
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120. She had a brain.
That's the thing.
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121. She was probably smarter
than me.
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122. Do you remember when
you first heard about Bob?
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123. Bob must have been
out with his friends,
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124. and that's how she met him.
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125. All his pick up.
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126. The worst thing that ever
happened, I think. Really.
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127. If you had him sitting
here, what would you say to him?
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128. "What did you do with her?"
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129. Because he's the—
the key is with him.
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130. Where is she, Bob?
What did you do with her?
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131. I didn't
meet him right away.
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132. I heard about him.
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133. That he was courting her,
and she was you know very...
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134. "swept off her feet" is the way
I like to describe it.
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135. You know, he just came on
like Prince Charming.
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136. Um, and she was
basically Cinderella.
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137. She thought I was
good-looking in my little way.
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138. Cute, or whatever it was.
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139. And she was very
outgoing and social,
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140. and got along
with people real good.
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141. So, it was perfect.
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142. Because I don't
get along with people.
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143. Most people don't
get along with me.
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144. We met
in the fall of '71.
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145. I was living and working
in New York City,
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146. whereas Bob was visiting
New York City from Vermont.
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147. I had this health food
store in my mind
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148. and then I met Kathie.
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149. And she, we got along great,
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150. and she was right away
in favor of it.
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151. After
two dates, he asked me
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152. to come live with him
in Vermont,
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153. and I did, in January of '72.
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154. My very first impression of
Kathie and Bobby when I met them
Copy !req
155. was that they were in love.
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156. There was no two ways about it.
They were in love.
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157. In late March,
the question of marriage came up.
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158. We were as close then
as we probably ever were.
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159. Did you see yourself
staying in Vermont for a long time?
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160. Oh, yeah.
This was it.
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161. This is what
I was going to do.
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162. Even in the '70s,
was the Durst,
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163. uh, family business,
the Durst Organization
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164. uh, a powerful business
entity in New York?
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165. We were always one
of the top five or six
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166. owners of property
in Manhattan.
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167. Were you interested
in that business?
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168. No.
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169. Every October,
we would go up to
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170. the cemetery where
my mother was.
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171. My father said, "You know,
one day I'm going to be
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172. over here"--pointing
next to my mother.
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173. "Please let me, when I
come here, know that,
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174. that the business is being
taken care of by you."
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175. What happened to
the health food store?
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176. Uh, we sorta
sold it.
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177. Why did you sell it?
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178. I had gone along
with my father's wishes
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179. and agreed to go
into the family business.
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180. Did you want
to back to New York?
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181. No.
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182. I remember
very early on
Copy !req
183. being enamored by
his family success.
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184. The business, at that time,
it was 8...
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185. it was reported in one of
the, I think it was Forbes,
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186. $880,000,000 family dynasty.
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187. And I said, "Wow, maybe I can
learn from this guy."
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188. And when I tried to
engage him in discussions,
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189. he kind of changed the subject.
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190. MRS.
He never was friendly.
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191. To me, I don't think.
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192. You never could like converse
with him or anything, you know.
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193. He wasn't that friendly.
He was an oddball.
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194. Kathie's mother
was very interested
Copy !req
195. in Bob Durst "liking me."
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196. And Bob Durst
"conversing with me."
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197. Her favorite reading material
was the magazine
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198. "Yankee," a New England thing.
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199. And she, she would
want to talk to me
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200. about the articles in "Yankee."
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201. I don't know.
I'm not interested in
Copy !req
202. talking about canning.
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203. These experiences with
her family were kind of like
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204. "Bob meets the average
American family."
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205. Well, more than "meet."
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206. "Bob is forced
to spend time with
Copy !req
207. the average
American family."
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208. "Bob is supposed to be polite
and cooperative and pleasant,
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209. and engage in the same
conversations that they are."
Copy !req
210. And I just
couldn't do that.
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211. As we're going back
in the car,
Copy !req
212. Kathie is crying, and saying,
"They're all good people.
Copy !req
213. "They treated us
with utmost respect.
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214. You can just put up
with it for two hours."
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215. Did you say,
"I'll try"?
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216. I wouldn't talk about it.
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217. If you were with Kathie's
mother, what would you say?
Copy !req
218. "I feel bad about
the way I treated you."
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219. "That you're
a good person."
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220. "I am complicit in Kathie's
not being here."
Copy !req
221. I was the last person
to see Kathie in New York.
Copy !req
222. And the very first
thing we did,
Copy !req
223. as soon as we got
through the door,
Copy !req
224. she picked up the phone
and phoned Bob.
Copy !req
225. And said, "I'm here
with Geraldine."
Copy !req
226. And I said to her,
"Do you always phone Bob?"
Copy !req
227. And she said, "Yes, he always
wants to know where I am."
Copy !req
228. He said to Kathie,
"Don't forget.
Copy !req
229. You have to be
up in the morning at 8:00."
Copy !req
230. They were going to go up
to the South Salem house.
Copy !req
231. She said she really
didn't want to go.
Copy !req
232. And I said, "So, tell him
you can't go."
Copy !req
233. And she looked at me like
I'd just sprouted horns.
Copy !req
234. And she said, "Are you kidding?
He'd kill me."
Copy !req
235. I was having a late afternoon
dinner party for my family.
Copy !req
236. And Kathie really
wasn't invited.
Copy !req
237. But when Kathie called me
that morning and said,
Copy !req
238. "Gilberte, I need
to get out of here,"
Copy !req
239. I'm not going to tell
my best friend "no."
Copy !req
240. Everybody was getting along,
Copy !req
241. and everybody was
enjoying, you know.
Copy !req
242. It was just a nice evening.
Copy !req
243. And I can remember very clearly
the telephone calls.
Copy !req
244. And Bobby insisting that
Kathie come home
Copy !req
245. and Kathie being visibly shaken
after the phone calls.
Copy !req
246. She went out.
She warmed up the Mercedes.
Copy !req
247. She came back in and she said,
"I'm leaving now."
Copy !req
248. So we stood on the front porch.
Copy !req
249. She said to me,
"Gilberte, promise me.
Copy !req
250. "If something happens,
you'll check it out.
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251. I'm afraid of Bobby."
Copy !req
252. And I just said,
"Kathie, of course.
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253. You can count on me."
Copy !req
254. It didn't even register
that she was
Copy !req
255. telling me that for some
dreadful reason.
Copy !req
256. I just didn't get it.
Copy !req
257. Gilberte called me.
Copy !req
258. And she asked me if I had heard
from Kathie, and I said, "No."
Copy !req
259. And she said, "Well, I was
supposed to go to the city.
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260. I was supposed to meet her."
Copy !req
261. I was waiting for Kathie
and waiting for Kathie
Copy !req
262. and she never showed up.
Copy !req
263. The phone rang, and we pick up
the phone and it's Bob Durst.
Copy !req
264. And his gravelly voice—I can
still hear the voice,
Copy !req
265. because he has that sound—
he said, "Jim. This is Bob."
Copy !req
266. You know, words to that effect.
Copy !req
267. "Do you know where Kathie is?"
Copy !req
268. And I was like, "Bob, I don't
know where Kathie is.
Copy !req
269. You know, I'm presuming she's,
she's with you."
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270. Kathie is off the grid.
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271. Something happened.
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272. My name is Michael Struk.
Copy !req
273. I'm retired as a detective from
Copy !req
274. the New York City
Police Department.
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275. Can you just
read the details?
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276. Yeah.
Copy !req
277. So, when I,
when I initiated
Copy !req
278. the, uh, the missing
persons brief narrative,
Copy !req
279. it said, "The complainant,
Robert Durst,
Copy !req
280. "was present at the 2-0 Precinct,
Precinct Detective Unit
Copy !req
281. "and states that
his wife of 9 years,
Copy !req
282. "who is currently
a fourth-year medical student
Copy !req
283. "at the Albert Einstein
Medical Center,
Copy !req
284. "has not been seen
since Sunday evening,
Copy !req
285. "January 31, 1982.
Copy !req
286. "The subject is the
daughter-in-law of
Copy !req
287. wealthy real estate
executive Seymour Durst."
Copy !req
288. We went over the events
of Sunday, January 31.
Copy !req
289. Mr. Durst stated
that he and his wife
Copy !req
290. had gone to South Salem
Grocery Store
Copy !req
291. to get a newspaper.
Copy !req
292. They came home for breakfast.
Copy !req
293. Kathie went to Gilberte's house
later in the afternoon,
Copy !req
294. around 3:30, 4:00.
Copy !req
295. And she utilized the Mercedes.
Copy !req
296. Kathie returned back to
South Salem at about 7:30.
Copy !req
297. She had appeared
to have been drinking,
Copy !req
298. but that she wasn't drunk.
Copy !req
299. Mr. Durst stated that
they had a sandwich together.
Copy !req
300. And then later left
for the Katonah Station
Copy !req
301. at about 8:30 P.M.
Copy !req
302. And according to him,
it appeared that
Copy !req
303. she did get on a train.
Copy !req
304. He then returned back
to the house in South Salem.
Copy !req
305. As he was going to the house,
he had observed
Copy !req
306. his neighbor Bill Mayer.
Copy !req
307. He had a drink with Mr. Mayer.
Copy !req
308. He further stated he
then went for a walk.
Copy !req
309. Later called his wife
from a pay phone.
Copy !req
310. And that had occurred at about
11:00, 11:15 that evening.
Copy !req
311. She stated that she was fine,
and that she was watching TV.
Copy !req
312. After the call to his wife,
Durst says that
Copy !req
313. he walks home
and he goes to sleep.
Copy !req
314. Police are satisfied
that the 28-year-old, 5'6"
Copy !req
315. Mrs. Durst made it to the city,
Copy !req
316. and got to the couple's
apartment on Riverside Drive.
Copy !req
317. The night doorman told them
he saw her come in
Copy !req
318. at about 11:30 Sunday night
Copy !req
319. and go up to the Durst penthouse
on top of the 15-story building.
Copy !req
320. The doorman
at 37 Riverside Drive
Copy !req
321. saw her arrive home that Sunday
evening and go to her apartment.
Copy !req
322. And she was
heard from Monday morning.
Copy !req
323. Mrs. Durst was a fourth-year
medical student
Copy !req
324. here at the Albert Einstein
College of Medicine.
Copy !req
325. And she was to have
a clinic class that morning,
Copy !req
326. but she called up saying
she wasn't feeling well.
Copy !req
327. She had called
the Dean of the Medical School
Copy !req
328. and told the dean that
she couldn't make it
Copy !req
329. because she was sick.
Copy !req
330. As far
as police know,
Copy !req
331. that's the last time that
anyone had contact with her.
Copy !req
332. Good evening. She
talked on the telephone
Copy !req
333. with her husband and
with a supervisor
Copy !req
334. at a medical center.
Copy !req
335. Then she vanished.
Copy !req
336. That was more than a week ago.
Copy !req
337. And no one has seen
Kathleen Durst since.
Copy !req
338. She's gone.
Nobody's heard from her.
Copy !req
339. There's no crime scene.
Copy !req
340. There's no telephone activity
or checking account activity.
Copy !req
341. Credit card activity. Zero.
It's almost like "poof."
Copy !req
342. Right off the face
of the earth.
Copy !req
343. 2-0 Detectives Squad.
Copy !req
344. Yeah,
is Lieutenant Gibbons in?
Copy !req
345. Yeah. Yeah. He is?
Can you transfer me to him?
Copy !req
346. This is Jim McCormack,
Kathie Durst's brother.
Copy !req
347. LT. Hey, listen, Jim.
There's two ways of viewing
Copy !req
348. this thing, you know,
at this stage.
Copy !req
349. And I wouldn't bullshit you.
Copy !req
350. She's either dead,
or she voluntarily left.
Copy !req
351. I wouldn't be surprised as to
the second, as a matter of fact.
Copy !req
352. When a guy comes in
and says the wife is gone,
Copy !req
353. right away, not that
you're jaded about the effort
Copy !req
354. that you're going to put forth,
but it's like,
Copy !req
355. "Yeah, well, you know,
maybe she's shacking up
Copy !req
356. "or, or she's just
tired of this guy.
Copy !req
357. "Maybe he's a,
he's a, he's a banana
Copy !req
358. "and she doesn't just want to
Copy !req
359. involve herself
with him anymore."
Copy !req
360. And then she took off.
Copy !req
361. That happens all the time.
Copy !req
362. Is there any
reason at this point
Copy !req
363. to suspect that she
might have been killed,
Copy !req
364. kidnapped,
anything like that?
Copy !req
365. No. No. At this point
there's nothing
Copy !req
366. to indicate any
foul play at all.
Copy !req
367. Do you
remember what he said
Copy !req
368. about the state
of the marriage?
Copy !req
369. Sure, that would,
that's always—
Copy !req
370. the, the state
of their marriage—
Copy !req
371. that's, that's, that's
a common question
Copy !req
372. you have to ask
when a spouse is
Copy !req
373. reporting another
spouse missing.
Copy !req
374. You know, I don't
remember his exact words,
Copy !req
375. but like, "Well,
you know, like
Copy !req
376. "every other family,
you know, we may have
Copy !req
377. occasional argument,"
or something like that.
Copy !req
378. Kathie was
very protective of
Copy !req
379. the negatives of
the relationship.
Copy !req
380. She'd always share
the good things.
Copy !req
381. You know, happy
to tell us about
Copy !req
382. the trips and the decorating
Copy !req
383. and the new house in
South Salem on the lake.
Copy !req
384. But when there were
issues—fights, whatever—
Copy !req
385. you didn't hear about it.
Copy !req
386. Spring of '79.
Copy !req
387. We return from a party.
Both drunk.
Copy !req
388. We argued and he slapped me.
Copy !req
389. Fall of '79, we were both sober
Copy !req
390. and argued about
some minor issue.
Copy !req
391. He punched me, and I fell
to the ground—hit my leg.
Copy !req
392. The fights between them
started to become more intense.
Copy !req
393. With
the verbal arguments
Copy !req
394. and the escalating violence,
Copy !req
395. when you start to put it
all together after the fact,
Copy !req
396. you realize that the whole
thing was boiling over.
Copy !req
397. Why didn't
she leave?
Copy !req
398. I don't know.
I think she was afraid of him.
Copy !req
399. About two or 3 weeks
into Kathie being gone,
Copy !req
400. I was really angry.
Copy !req
401. Because there was so much
that wasn't being done.
Copy !req
402. So, we went down
into New York City
Copy !req
403. to have a meeting
with Michael Struk.
Copy !req
404. I can even recall them coming
from time to time with,
Copy !req
405. with an entourage—
3, 4, 5 girls.
Copy !req
406. All really relating
all these incidents
Copy !req
407. of violence and threats.
Copy !req
408. And they were kind of... eh,
Copy !req
409. you know, laissez faire
about it.
Copy !req
410. They weren't about—you know,
they didn't jump up
Copy !req
411. and take notes and say,
"Oh, my goodness."
Copy !req
412. I became a little
annoying to a lot of people.
Copy !req
413. I became a lot annoying
to some people.
Copy !req
414. As the case went forward
after a long time,
Copy !req
415. you know, a lot of these things
became very redundant.
Copy !req
416. "In case something happens
to me, you know, Bob did it."
Copy !req
417. Blah blah blah.
Copy !req
418. Excuse me, "Senior detectives."
Copy !req
419. Senior detectives.
Copy !req
420. Gilberte got onto
the train at Katonah,
Copy !req
421. and made the ride on the train
at 9:15 going into the city.
Copy !req
422. And started asking
everybody on the train
Copy !req
423. if they had seen Kathie,
Copy !req
424. showing them
a photograph of Kathie.
Copy !req
425. Nobody had seen her.
Copy !req
426. I stood outside for shifts.
Copy !req
427. Like 5 or 6 different shifts,
Copy !req
428. showing the nurses
a picture of Kathie.
Copy !req
429. "Is she in there?
Is she in there?
Copy !req
430. Please tell me she's in there."
Copy !req
431. And then we're going
to the reservoirs
Copy !req
432. and we're looking
for tire tracks.
Copy !req
433. We were just so, um, motivated
to find Kathie no matter what.
Copy !req
434. Anyway, Ellen became involved.
Copy !req
435. Ah.
Copy !req
436. "1982.
Copy !req
437. Sunday, March 7..."
Copy !req
438. "Midnight. Met Gilberte.
Copy !req
439. 12:00 to 12:30, drove to
South Salem."
Copy !req
440. "12:30 to 2:30, garbage
escapade," I called it.
Copy !req
441. I said to Ellen,
"We're going to steal garbage.
Copy !req
442. You up for this?"
"Yeah, let's go."
Copy !req
443. She's my co-conspirator
in crime.
Copy !req
444. She helps me steal the garbage.
Copy !req
445. We parked,
and I waited in the car.
Copy !req
446. I was to have the doors open so
she could throw the garbage in,
Copy !req
447. and then we took off.
Copy !req
448. We drove back to her kitchen.
Copy !req
449. We spread everything
out on the floor.
Copy !req
450. We started sorting through it.
Copy !req
451. And that's when we find
he was throwing out
Copy !req
452. her clothes
and her schoolbooks.
Copy !req
453. And it was like "This man
knows she's not coming back."
Copy !req
454. And then we found
Copy !req
455. a piece of paper
in Bob's handwriting
Copy !req
456. that practically brought us out
in goose bumps.
Copy !req
457. Town dump, bridge, dig, boat,
other, shovel or?
Copy !req
458. car, truck, rent.
Copy !req
459. This list was a list
of things to do
Copy !req
460. and how to get rid of...
or dispose of a body.
Copy !req
461. "Boat" or "Dig"
or "Bridge" and "Shovel"--
Copy !req
462. what does that mean to me
in February of 1982?
Copy !req
463. Um... what are you
going to do with a shovel
Copy !req
464. in February in South Salem?
Copy !req
465. I'm sure there's frost.
Copy !req
466. You're not going to be able
to dig a hole or bury somebody,
Copy !req
467. if that's what
we would be thinking.
Copy !req
468. I was so mad
and I was so sure that
Copy !req
469. he had murdered Kathie
and that he was
Copy !req
470. going to get away with it.
Copy !req
471. I was actually stalking him.
Copy !req
472. I was standing outside
the building and he came out.
Copy !req
473. And I decided, "Well, I better
act like things are OK,"
Copy !req
474. so, I come up,
"Oh, Bobby! Bobby!"
Copy !req
475. And I give him
a hug and a kiss,
Copy !req
476. and "How are you doing?
Copy !req
477. How are you holding up?"
You know?
Copy !req
478. I could have just as easily
put my hands around his neck
Copy !req
479. and choked the life out of him
at that moment.
Copy !req
480. Trying to get Bob
to respond to any calls
Copy !req
481. was near impossible.
Copy !req
482. You didn't even
know where he was.
Copy !req
483. So, our family was
in New York City,
Copy !req
484. and we actually were
able to get Seymour
Copy !req
485. to pick up the phone
at his townhouse.
Copy !req
486. And we got ourselves
basically invited over.
Copy !req
487. We kept pressing him.
Copy !req
488. "Seymour, what can you tell us?
Copy !req
489. How can you help?"
Copy !req
490. And it was like, "Well,
I don't know anything."
Copy !req
491. It was like almost defensive.
Copy !req
492. I hate to use that phrase, but
eh, I should use that phrase.
Copy !req
493. It was almost defensive.
Copy !req
494. There was no warmth or empathy
from a guy whose daughter-in-law
Copy !req
495. is missing under the strangest
Copy !req
496. and most bizarre
of circumstances.
Copy !req
497. And the weird thing was a son,
Copy !req
498. I think it was Tom,
came in in a trench coat.
Copy !req
499. And, you know, asked his father,
"What's going on here?"
Copy !req
500. And they had a discussion
that this was
Copy !req
501. the McCormacks and we're
looking for help
Copy !req
502. on Kathie's disappearance.
Copy !req
503. And Tom said,
"This discussion's over."
Copy !req
504. Just like that.
Copy !req
505. If she had met some normal
type guy from Long Island,
Copy !req
506. she would have had a bunch of
kids like her, her siblings.
Copy !req
507. And she would have lived a—
I hate to say "normal,"
Copy !req
508. but I don't know
how else to put it—
Copy !req
509. an average or
something like that life.
Copy !req
510. It was just finding me, and then
the whole, uh, scenario,
Copy !req
511. it just kept getting blown up
Copy !req
512. and getting worse and worse
and worse and worse.
Copy !req
513. What was the dynamic
between you and Kathie?
Copy !req
514. I was the dominant one
in the relationship.
Copy !req
515. I was making
all the decisions.
Copy !req
516. "Calling all the shots,"
as she would say.
Copy !req
517. And, you know,
she went along
Copy !req
518. with that for a while,
and then
Copy !req
519. she just got
tired of it.
Copy !req
520. She said she wants
her independence.
Copy !req
521. She doesn't want me to be
controlling her all the time.
Copy !req
522. Was there a dividing
line when she began that change?
Copy !req
523. Kathie first started
changing from
Copy !req
524. the Kathie I met
when I made her
Copy !req
525. get an abortion.
Copy !req
526. February of '76,
Copy !req
527. I found out I was pregnant.
Copy !req
528. We used birth control
and had at one time said
Copy !req
529. if I was to become pregnant,
I would have an abortion.
Copy !req
530. The reality of the situation,
however, was problematic for me.
Copy !req
531. I said, "I told you
from the beginning
Copy !req
532. "I didn't want children.
Copy !req
533. "You agreed that we
wouldn't have children.
Copy !req
534. "Now you're telling me you
want a—you're pregnant,
Copy !req
535. "which, you know, you're in
charge of that stuff, not me.
Copy !req
536. "And you want
to keep the baby.
Copy !req
537. "Well, you keep the baby,
Copy !req
538. "you're going to get
divorced from me.
Copy !req
539. Period."
Copy !req
540. I mean, you sound like you were
pretty adamant about it, and why...
Copy !req
541. I was strictly adamant.
Copy !req
542. I just didn't
want kids around.
Copy !req
543. I didn't want to raise
a... children.
Copy !req
544. I, I, I, somehow I thought
I would be a jinx.
Copy !req
545. That you might be
a jinx for them?
Copy !req
546. Yeah.
Copy !req
547. And I, I knew I wasn't
going to be a good father.
Copy !req
548. A little more
than half a year
Copy !req
549. after she started
at medical school,
Copy !req
550. she said the two of you
went to a party,
Copy !req
551. and that you were
both drunk,
Copy !req
552. and you came home
and that was
Copy !req
553. the first time
that she remembers
Copy !req
554. that you had hit her.
Copy !req
555. Do you remember that?
Copy !req
556. No. I don't remember
the first time
Copy !req
557. I had slapped her
or hit her.
Copy !req
558. Do you remember other
times that, that...?
Copy !req
559. Well, yeah.
By, by 1981,
Copy !req
560. our life was
half arguments,
Copy !req
561. fighting, slapping,
pushing, wrestling.
Copy !req
562. It deteriorated
from there on.
Copy !req
563. It never got better.
It got worse and worse.
Copy !req
564. So, the night
that she disappeared,
Copy !req
565. that Sunday night,
or the last night
Copy !req
566. that you saw her, do you
want to just take me
Copy !req
567. through what you remember
happening that night?
Copy !req
568. She's going to Gilberte's
for a party.
Copy !req
569. She's taking the car.
Copy !req
570. "Do I want to come?"
Copy !req
571. Not, "Do you want to go to
Gilberte's for a party?"
Copy !req
572. but "I'm going to go,
and I'm taking the car.
Copy !req
573. You can come if you...
yeah, you want to come?"
Copy !req
574. "No, I don't
want to come."
Copy !req
575. That was the weekend.
I didn't like that at all.
Copy !req
576. She gets back
from Gilberte's maybe
Copy !req
577. 7:00 or whatever.
Copy !req
578. Angry at me. Loaded.
Copy !req
579. And announcing that she
wants to go to the city.
Copy !req
580. I said, "You can go
to the city if you want,
Copy !req
581. "but you, you know,
you can't drive
Copy !req
582. because I'm not going
to go to the city."
Copy !req
583. And she says, "No,
I'm taking the car."
Copy !req
584. And I went and got
the keys out of the car,
Copy !req
585. and told her she's
not taking the car
Copy !req
586. because I'm not
giving her the keys.
Copy !req
587. That was an argument.
Copy !req
588. Was that argument
just a verbal argument?
Copy !req
589. No, that was
a pushing/shoving argument.
Copy !req
590. And so, eventually, she capitulated
and she agreed to take the 9:17?
Copy !req
591. At the last minute.
Copy !req
592. At first, well,
she just wasn't
Copy !req
593. answering her calls.
Copy !req
594. But she was doing a
subintern in the hospital,
Copy !req
595. which involves staying over
a lot of nights.
Copy !req
596. And I wasn't worried.
Copy !req
597. It wasn't until I got a call
from the medical school,
Copy !req
598. and she hadn't been
in classes for several days.
Copy !req
599. And I thought, "I've got
to do something."
Copy !req
600. I went and I talked
to my father
Copy !req
601. and my brother Douglas,
and they all said,
Copy !req
602. "You know, you two
have been having
Copy !req
603. "all these arguments
all these years.
Copy !req
604. "She's probably just
over there or over there.
Copy !req
605. "You go and report it
to the police,
Copy !req
606. "they're not going
to do anything,
Copy !req
607. "but you're going to
get all this press
Copy !req
608. dealing with
the family."
Copy !req
609. They discouraged me from
reporting it to the police
Copy !req
610. until it got to be
Thursday night.
Copy !req
611. And then I just felt
like "I'm worried.
Copy !req
612. This is what I should do."
And I did it.
Copy !req
613. On my own, I called
the 20th Precinct.
Copy !req
614. Going into the
police station when you...
Copy !req
615. I hated it.
I didn't want to do it.
Copy !req
616. The idea of
talking to them,
Copy !req
617. and the idea of trying
to convince them... because
Copy !req
618. they at first didn't
want to hear about it.
Copy !req
619. "Got any problems
in the marriage?"
Copy !req
620. "Yes."
Copy !req
621. "Well, don't you think she
probably just took off?
Copy !req
622. "I mean, obviously,
things weren't good.
Copy !req
623. She blah blah," like that.
Copy !req
624. And I said, "Except for
medical school.
Copy !req
625. She's not going to take off
and not graduate."
Copy !req
626. I can't really say that
Copy !req
627. at that point
in my initial meeting
Copy !req
628. that I could detect that he was
lying on anything he said to me.
Copy !req
629. Because his story was, was, was
Copy !req
630. fairly logical as
he laid it out.
Copy !req
631. New York City Police
had some reason to believe that
Copy !req
632. Bobby had taken her
to the train station
Copy !req
633. and possibly come back
here for a drink.
Copy !req
634. He just, I assume,
fabricated that story,
Copy !req
635. without ever coming here
for a drink,
Copy !req
636. nor even discussing
with us in any way.
Copy !req
637. So, he didn't ask us
to lie for him.
Copy !req
638. He just, I guess,
kind of fibbed for himself.
Copy !req
639. Now, Bob's told
you, this is what happened,
Copy !req
640. and you hear from what neighbors
say, it didn't happen.
Copy !req
641. Yeah, well, what is it?
It's, it's an inconsistency.
Copy !req
642. It's not... Mayer
could be wrong, too.
Copy !req
643. So, I, you know, I mean,
really at that point,
Copy !req
644. it's just another little piece
that you have to kind of
Copy !req
645. plug in the back
and, um, and go forward.
Copy !req
646. You told
Detective Struk
Copy !req
647. that the Sunday night
that you last saw Kathie,
Copy !req
648. you had dropped her off
at the station
Copy !req
649. And then you went to
the Mayers' for a drink.
Copy !req
650. The neighbors.
Copy !req
651. Yeah, that's what
I told the police.
Copy !req
652. I was hoping that would just
make everything go away.
Copy !req
653. I didn't go
to the Mayers'.
Copy !req
654. I took her
to the train station,
Copy !req
655. went home, and went
to sleep.
Copy !req
656. And why, why would that have
made everything go away?
Copy !req
657. Well, then I'm
at the Mayers'.
Copy !req
658. They wanted to hear,
"What did you do?"
Copy !req
659. so, I told them
I did that.
Copy !req
660. I, I just never got
through my mind...
Copy !req
661. it was like a negotiation.
Copy !req
662. You tell somebody something,
and, well, that's it.
Copy !req
663. They don't go back there.
They don't look for motive.
Copy !req
664. "Why is he telling me
this?" kind of thing.
Copy !req
665. I thought that
would get them to,
Copy !req
666. you know, leave me alone,
Copy !req
667. accept the missing person,
like that.
Copy !req
668. There was some
discussion about—
Copy !req
669. that you spoke to her
at some point.
Copy !req
670. Yes, yes. That was
the last part of my,
Copy !req
671. you know, "The police are going
to leave you alone now."
Copy !req
672. I say, I said,
"I called her."
Copy !req
673. And I said, "I stopped at
a pay phone on the way home."
Copy !req
674. Or "I went out
for a walk later,
Copy !req
675. "and I, and I called her
from the pay phone.
Copy !req
676. "She answered the,
the phone.
Copy !req
677. And that puts her
in the city."
Copy !req
678. And they were going
to leave me alone now.
Copy !req
679. Did you end up speaking
to her that night?
Copy !req
680. No.
Copy !req
681. We really did
trust the police
Copy !req
682. and the procedure,
Copy !req
683. and you know,
admittedly it failed.
Copy !req
684. Failed Kathie.
Copy !req
685. I felt very, very
angry, frustrated, stonewalled,
Copy !req
686. in being able to get Bob.
Copy !req
687. Bob got away with
murdering Kathie.
Copy !req
688. He got away with it.
Copy !req
689. There's no corpse.
Copy !req
690. We don't even have
a crime scene.
Copy !req
691. No corpse, no crime scene.
Copy !req
692. We got... this is
a missing persons case.
Copy !req
693. I really believe
that some way, somehow,
Copy !req
694. somebody's going to come and
tell me what happened to Kathie.
Copy !req
695. And if I don't get that,
I'll sit there as an old woman
Copy !req
696. wondering what I did wrong,
and how I let my friend down.
Copy !req
697. Because I need to know.
Copy !req
698. I need to know
what happened to Kathie.
Copy !req