|
|
| Infamous 'Preppie Killer' Released From Prison |
| By Associated Press |
| Published: 02/24/2003 |
|
Robert Chambers, the ''Preppie killer'' whose case drew national attention in the late 1980s, was released from a New York prison February 14 after serving his full 15-year sentence for manslaughter. Wearing a red turtleneck sweater and green pants, Chambers ignored a phalanx of reporters as he walked out of Auburn Correctional Facility at 7:15 a.m. Valentine's Day, got into a police van and rode to the Syracuse bus station. He then jumped into a sports utility vehicle and rode away. The driver and his destination were unknown. Chambers confessed in 1988 to strangling 18-year-old Jennifer Levin two years earlier while allegedly having ''rough sex'' during a tryst in Central Park. In a statement released by his lawyer, Chambers said he regrets his actions on the day Levin was killed. ''There has not been a day since Jennifer Levin's death that I have not regretted my actions on that day,'' the statement said. ''I know that the Levin family continues to suffer her loss, and I am deeply sorry for the grief I have caused them.'' In the one paragraph statement, Chambers also said he would like to pursue a college degree and begin paying the $25 million wrongful death settlement awarded the Levin family. Chambers, now 36, could have reduced his sentence by as much as six years but ruined any chance of early release by amassing 27 disciplinary violations during his incarceration, including heroin possession, assaulting an officer, and weapon possession. He spent a third of his time in solitary confinement and was rejected for parole five times. Chambers who has declined all requests for interviews while in prison was happy, but nervous about his imminent release, Monsignor Thomas Leonard, Chambers' priest, told the New York Post on Thursday. ''He's happy, but he's also apprehensive about how he's going to adjust to life out of prison,'' Leonard said. Chambers would like to complete college and counsel prisoners after he is released from prison, the priest said. ''I think his family and friends will do everything they can to make sure he becomes a contributing member of society. I am confident he will be able to make a life for himself,'' said Brian O'Dwyer, his attorney. Meanwhile, Levin's family has said they were ''haunted by a feeling of dread'' over the prospect of Chambers' release and return home. Ellen Levin said Chambers has never shown any remorse in her daughter's death, nor admitted any culpability. She remains bitter that Chambers was able to plead guilty to manslaughter after jurors had deliberated for nine days and prosecutors feared a deadlock. ''I don't think you can teach a person in any prison situation or anywhere how to have a conscience, and Robert Chambers does not have a conscience. And that makes him dangerous,'' Ellen Levin said Thursday on NBC's Today Show. |
advertise
|
privacy policy
|
add URL
|
about us
|
terms/disclaimer
|
contact us
|
join our team
|
help
Do you know someone who has been arrested in Waco or McLennan County? It’s important to find a good Waco lawyer to represent you in the matter involving your own liberty. Look for the best Waco lawyer that you can find. Whether you have been accused rightly or wrongly, it’s important to know your legal rights that concern whether you go to jail.