Peter Braunstein, the writer who was convicted of kidnapping and torturing a former colleague, is back to writing: He sent a letter to the judge, expressing his remorse. Last month, it took a jury about four hours to find Braunstein guilty of his 13-hour 2005 attack, and Judge Thomas Farber will be sentencing Braunstein on Monday.
Braunstein's parents have also sent letters on their son's behalf, but the most interesting stuff is from Braunstein himself, who is hoping that Farber will not sentence him to the maximum - 25 years to life. We've cobbled together a few quotes, as parts of the 9-page letter were excerpted in the Times, Post and Daily News:
The madness resides in the fact that I had no motive or intent. Thus, once I attacked the victim I had no idea why I was there or what to do. I did not consider rape or murder, and the robbery I committed was of three random items of women's clothing I had no intention of reselling...
I myself have several theories as to why I engaged in this behavior. I'm more swayed by the mental illness explanation, but I'm still deeply confused...
I also earned a number of monikers courtesy of the press — ‘Perv,’ ‘Fiend,’ ‘Psycho.' Despite the pseudoclinical patina of these epithets, they were just part of an editorial arsenal that seeks to demonize a suspect before he even reaches trial...
[The Post's Andrea Peyser] declared that I was not sick; I was evil. This kind of tabloid rhetoric is essentially a mandate for harsh sentencing. After all, if I am evil, then showing me any kind of leniency means 'coddling' me and 'letting me off easy.'..
Although the verdict did not go as I would have liked, I believe you to be a fair and circumspect judge who will consider this plea for leniency in sentencing...
In closing, I would like to express my remorse for committing this crime and heartfelt sympathy for the victim. All I know is how my victim, through her powerful testimony, demonstrated once again the fortitude she exhibited during her ordeal with me; and how this in turn inspired a bout of self-contempt as I considered my lack of self-control and the fall from society this had cost me.
But he did admit, "I did plan the crime intently."
The Times reported that the first eight pages were dictated to his lawyer, because "his hand shakes badly from the effects of the antipsychotic medication he has been taking while incarcerated, Zyprexa."
