Claus von Bulow
Dead at 92
… Once Accused of Attempting to Murder Wife
5/30/2019 3:38 PM PDT
Claus von Bulow, the man who was convicted but walked free — after his conviction was overturned — and ultimately acquitted of trying to murder his wife … has died.
The trial was one of the most sensational of the 20th century. Von Bulow was charged with deliberately injecting insulin into wife Sunny in 1980, sending her into an irreversible coma.
Prosecutors claimed Claus wanted to do Sunny in so he could inherit her fortune and continue his relationship with his mistress, a soap opera actress.
Von Bulow was convicted the first time around and sentenced to 30 years in prison, and then was famously represented on appeal by Harvard Law professor Alan Dershowitz. He successfully argued items were illegally seized and the notes from key witness interviews had not been turned over to the defense.
The story riveted the nation, and became the subject of “Reversal of Fortune,” which chronicles the murder and Dershowitz’s appeal. Jeremy Irons, who played Claus, won an Oscar for Best Actor.
Claus was retried and found not guilty in 1985. He moved to Europe where he died.
Von Bulow was 92.