Talk:Michael J. Halberstam

Length of sentence for Welch
The Milestones citation says he was "sentenced to 143 years to life". Is this right, or just a typo for 43, 14, 13 or some other number?

How could it be "143 years to life" - since when has 143 years been shorter than any human person's life?

If it is correct, what was the purpose of such an illogical sentence for a single crime? JackofOz 05:15, 24 April 2007 (UTC)


 * Welch received 9 life sentences for one count each of felony murder and second-degree armed burglary, to be served concurrently, four counts of burglary and four counts of grand larceny. Jokestress 05:21, 24 April 2007 (UTC)


 * Ah ha. I think we need to put that information in the article, to make it clear there was more than one charge involved, even if it was only one incident.   Thanks, Jokestress (btw, is that Joke-stress, or the feminine of jokester?) --  JackofOz 06:36, 24 April 2007 (UTC)
 * Agreed. I'll do that in a minute. US criminal sentencing is weird. The guy who set the Happy Land fire was sentenced to 4,350 years but is eligible for parole in 8 years. I agree this article needs clarification on that. (feminine of jokester)-> Jokestress 06:40, 24 April 2007 (UTC)

About His Death
I was at Welch's trial. I've also discussed these events with Halberstam's widow (though not recently). My understanding of the evening's events is that Halberstam saw Welch running to his car down University Terr. toward Dana Pl., which is why Halberstam chose to go toward MacArthur Blvd. rather than Loughboro Rd. to get to the hospital. (The prosecution used this as evidence of Welch's guilt, because taking Loughboro would have been faster.) Halberstam caught up to Welch and drove onto the front yard of a residence on Dana Pl. to strike Welch with the car. Welch was later found by the police (not Halberstam) hiding in some bushes. After striking Welch with the car, Halberstam took MacArthur Blvd. to Sibley, but passed out from loss of blood, losing control of the car and striking a tree on MacArthur Blvd. near Loughboro Rd. His wife had to flag down another driver for a ride to Sibley to get an ambulance to go back to their car to take him to the ER (remember, in those days cellphones were not as ubiquitous as today). If no one objects, I would change part of the article to read:

In spite of being shot in the chest, Halberstam told his wife to get into their car, and drove toward Sibley Hospital. On the way to the hospital, Halberstam saw Welch, shouted, "That's the guy!" and swerved to hit him. Welch was wounded, but not fatally injured. Halberstam crashed his car into a tree nearby the hospital, and was brought to the ER by ambulance.

Sorry for the length of this, and thanks for your consideration, Ehalbers (talk) 18:41, 17 December 2009 (UTC)

Unresolved conflict
The article says wife was driving. Then it says Halberstam swerved. this is unclear.Skywriter (talk) 09:28, 6 January 2010 (UTC)

Reply to Unresolved Conflict
According to the Lyons N.Y. Times article (ref. 6):

After being wounded, the doctor went to his automobile to drive himself to a nearby hospital. On his way he saw a man he believed was the intruder on a sidewalk and ran him down.

Minutes later, Dr. Halberstam's auto struck a tree and he lost consciousness. He died in a hospital operating room soon after that.

Shortly after the shooting Mr. Welch was found unconscious, several hundred yards from the Halberstam home in northwest Washington, with the murder weapon, gloves and burglar tools lying nearby.

"That's the guy," the physician's widow quoted him as having said when he spotted the man she later identified as Mr. Welch.

_________

So Halberstam was driving the car. I would change the article to read:

On December 5, 1980, Halberstam was shot at his Washington, D.C., home by Bernard C. Welch Jr., an escaped convict living in the area and Duluth, Minn. Halberstam and his wife surprised Welch when they returned to their home while Welch was committing a burglary. In spite of being shot in the chest, Halberstam told his wife to get into their car, and he drove them toward Sibley Hospital. On the way to the hospital, Halberstam saw Welch, shouted, "That's the guy!" and swerved to hit him. Welch was wounded, but not fatally injured. Halberstam crashed his car into a tree nearby the hospital, and was brought to the ER by ambulance. His colleagues were unable to save him, and Halberstam died on the operating table approximately 90 minutes after he was shot. District of Columbia police arrested the wounded Welch. At Welch's trial, the prosecuting attorney pointed at him and used Halberstam's words: "That's the guy!" Welch received life sentences for one count each of felony murder and second-degree armed burglary, to be served concurrently, four counts of burglary, and four counts of grand larceny, totaling 143 years.

In 1981 Halberstam was posthumously awarded the BUMC Distinguished Alumnus Award.

His brother was Pulitzer Prize-winning writer David Halberstam. Ehalbers (talk) 22:35, 11 January 2010 (UTC)

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