United States v. Rita Gluzman: 1997 - From Asylum To Affluence, Rita Prosecuted Under Federal Statute, Courts Dismiss Appeals

body zelenin river found

Defendant: Rita Gluzman
Crime Charged: Interstate domestic violence
Chief Defense Lawyer: Lawrence Hocheiser
Chief Prosecutor: Deidre Daly
Judge: Barrington D. Parker, Jr.
Place: White Plains, New York
Date of Trial: April 30, 1997
Verdict: Guilty
Sentence: Life imprisonment without parole

SIGNIFICANCE: Rita Gluzman was the first woman to be convicted under the Violence Against Women Act 18 USC 2261.

Rita Gluzman, a former chemical engineer living in Upper Saddle River, New Jersey, was convicted for crossing state lines with her cousin, Vladimir Zelenin, killing her husband Yakov Gluzman, and then chopping his body into 65 pieces in his apartment in Pearl River, New York.

Zelenin was arrested while dumping parts of the body in 10 plastic bags into the Passaic River on April 7, 1996, the day after the murder. He was found by police walking along the bank of the river, with bloody hands and blood on his clothes. In nearby cars, bags with body parts, bloody clothes, and tools used in dismembering the body were found. The fingertips of the body had been removed in an apparent attempt to conceal the identity of the victim. On Zelenin's arrest, he confessed, implicating Rita. He said that they had purchased the tools for dismembering the body in New Jersey, then went to the apartment and surprised Yakov when he entered.

Zelenin said they had killed Yakov with two axes, then dismembered the body with hacksaws and a scalpel. Rita's motive in the case, the prosecution would later allege, was that she feared her husband was going to divorce her, and she wanted to preserve her interest in a computer firm, ECI Technologies. Zelenin was employed in the company.

Rita was sought by police for several days, and then arrested April 12 on Long Island, where she had taken refuge in a cabin for visiting scientists at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratories. She was found with travel books and flight information regarding Switzerland. She was first arrested on burglary charges, before federal charges were brought.

Additional Topics

United States v. Rita Gluzman: 1997 - From Asylum To Affluence

The Gluzmans had been married for 27 years. Rita had gained some notoriety many years before as part of the Jewish exodus from the Soviet Union. Although she had been able to leave the country, her husband had not been granted an exit visa. She had emigrated first to Israel, and then to the United States, where she sought help to get her husband out. In 1971, she had asked for support from U.S. am…

United States v. Rita Gluzman: 1997 - Rita Prosecuted Under Federal Statute

After her arrest, Rita was charged by federal prosecutors under the Violence Against Women Act (passed in 1994 by Congress following the 0.j. Simpson case). The act contains gender-free language, and Rita was the only woman charged with violation of the new law among the three or four cases brought since it had been passed. The act was used because of the difficulty of bringing charges under New Y…

United States v. Rita Gluzman: 1997 - Courts Dismiss Appeals

Rita Gluzman appealed her sentence on several grounds. In U.S. v. Gluzman 154 F.3d 49 (2nd Cir. 1998), the Second U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals denied her appeal on August 28, 1998. Then the U.S. Supreme Court denied certiorari on March 22, 1999. In that appeal her attorney Judd Berstein contested the constitutionality of the federal statute, claiming Congress exceeded its power to control interst…

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User Comments

almost 6 years ago

You really have to know Rita Gluzman to understand just how money crazy she was. I worked for her for six years. She whould do anything for a dollar, including having affairs with customers in her own house, while her husband was there. I only thing I regret is that this crime did not have a death penalty. It would be so justified. Also, no matter what they say, her sister and son participated in the crime.