Carol Anne Burger (pictured), 57, an openly lesbian columnist for The Huffington Post, murdered her ex-partner by stabbing her 222 times with a screwdriver and then committed suicide by shooting herself in the head last week.
The victim, Jessica Kalish, who shared a house with Burger despite breaking up with her more than a year ago, was found last Thursday stuffed in the backseat of her gun-metal BMW sedan, abandoned behind a medical office in Boynton Beach, Florida. Her blood was splashed around the rear end and undercarriage of the car, as if her killer had tried to load her into the trunk. The driver-side window was shattered.
Stab wounds were clustered around the back of her head and stitched across her back and arms and face. Most were between an inch and an inch-and-a-half deep. A blow to Kalish's neck probably killed her, investigators determined. At a news conference Wednesday, police laid out what they'd learned during a week of investigation. They said the evidence pointed to one conclusion: Burger killed Kalish, a 56-year-old software executive whom friends described as worldly and intelligent, and then tried to throw investigators off her trail.
Burger, an award-winning photojournalist and former editor, was very excited to be writing about the presidential election and covered a wide range of stories including early voting in Florida, a summit on green jobs with Barack Obama and swing-state governors and a Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation event.
Tracey and Kathy are monthly contributors of a new column, "Dear Lezzies - Common Sense Lesbian Advice". They're here to talk about life, love and relationships. Have something that needs solving? Visit www.lotl.com to read their column and ask your questions.
Kristina Antoniades, a lawyer in Lander & Rogers Family Law group, combines a strong commitment to pro bono work with a keen interest in domestic relationship law. This year, she has spoken at a number of parenting seminars for separated same-sex couples, and is currently undertaking pro bono presentations to other law firms on the implications of the Relationships Bill and how it will affect parties in domestic relationships. Check out her column on www.lotl.com for valuable legal advice or to ask your own questions.
