Robert Durst pleads guilty on gun charge to 'clear the decks' for L.A. murder case, attorney says

Robert Durst pleads guilty on gun charge to ‘clear the decks’ for L.A. murder case, attorney says

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Robert Durst leaves federal court in an Orleans Parish sheriff’s vehicle after his arraignment April 14 in New Orleans. (Gerald Herbert / Associated Press)

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Robert Durst is transported from district court to prison after his arraignment in New Orleans on Tuesday. (Gerald Herbert / Associated Press)

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Robert Durst is escorted into prison after his arraignment in New Orleans on Tuesday. (Gerald Herbert / Associated Press)

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Writer Susan Berman was killed in her home in the Los Angeles neighborhood of Benedict Canyon. (Francine Orr / Los Angeles Times)

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Robert Durst, far right, photographed through fencing, is escorted into Orleans Parish Criminal District Court through a tunnel entrance, in New Orleans. Durst waived extradition Monday and will be taken to Los Angeles to face a murder charge in the 2000 slaying of a writer and friend. (Gerald Herbert / Associated Press)

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Multi-millionaire murder defendant Robert Durst, right, is congratulated by his attorneys Dick DeGuerin, left, and Mike Ramsey after receiving a verdict of not guilty Nov. 11, 2003, in Galveston, Texas. (Pat Sullivan / Associated Press)

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Multi-millionaire murder defendant Robert Durst demonstrates how Morris Black handled a gun during testimony at his trial on Oct. 23, 2003, in Galveston, Texas. (Pat Sullivan / Associated Press)

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In this Aug. 18, 2003, file photo, Robert Durst, left, sits in a courtroom during a pretrial hearing at the Galveston County Courthouse in Galveston, Texas. (Kevin Bartram / Associated Press)

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Robert Durst, center, is escorted by Northampton County deputy sheriffs before a hearing advising Durst of his rights under extradition laws Dec. 3, 2001, in Easton, Pa. (Robert Fish / Associated Press)

By Veronica Rocha

and Molly Hennessy-Fiske

Feb. 3, 2016 2:51 PM PT

New York real estate heir Robert Durst has pleaded guilty to a gun charge in Louisiana, clearing the way for his transfer to Los Angeles to face a murder charge in connection with the death of his writer friend Susan Berman.

Durst, 72, entered his plea Wednesday in a New Orleans Federal Court as part of a deal, his attorney’s office confirmed. Durst was facing a federal gun charge related to the discovery of a loaded revolver by FBI agents in his New Orleans hotel room.

The agreement seals Durst’s extradition from New Orleans to Los Angeles. He is expected to return to California by Aug. 18 for his arraignment on the murder charge, said Jane Robison, a spokeswoman of the Los Angeles County district attorney’s office.

“We anticipated this,” she said. “We were expecting this.”

Durst’s attorney, Dick DeGuerin, said that by pleading guilty, his client was able to “clear the decks” for his extradition to L.A.

“Bob Durst did not kill Susan Berman and doesn’t know who did,” DeGuerin said in a prepared statement. “Bob Durst has one goal and that is to get to Los Angeles and prove his innocence.”

Durst drew national attention this year as the subject of the HBO docudrama “The Jinx.”

The series explored the mysterious 1982 disappearance of Durst’s wife, Kathy, as well as the 2000 killing of Berman, who was found shot in her Benedict Canyon home. In the final episode, Durst is caught muttering what sounded like a confession to the killings into a microphone off-camera.

Durst left his final interview to use the bathroom, appearing not to notice that his microphone was still recording as he muttered to himself, “What the hell did I do? Killed them all, of course.”

“There it is, you’re caught,” he said at another moment. “What a disaster.”

Before the series ended last spring, Durst disappeared from his Houston condo, a manhunt ensued and he was caught in New Orleans on March 14. Los Angeles County officials charged him with murder in connection with Berman’s death and attempted to extradite him to California.

Durst has insisted he had nothing to do with Berman’s fatal shooting.

For breaking news in California, follow @VeronicaRochaLA

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