In his dream, Craig Rabinowitz told the world yesterday, he walked into his boyhood home and was confronted by three loved ones, all now dead: his father, his father-in-law, and the wife he'd murdered.
``The three of them are sitting there and they say, `Craig, sit down. We have to talk to you,' '' Rabinowitz said between sighs and sobs. ``And I sat down, and they put their hands on my hand and said, `Craig, it's time to do what's right. It's time for you to do the right thing.' ''
Yesterday, Rabinowitz followed that advice.
Stunning a Montgomery County courtroom full of people prepared for the opening day of his murder trial, Rabinowitz took the witness stand and pleaded guilty to strangling his wife, Center City lawyer Stefanie Rabinowitz, in their Merion home on April 29.
He told of a ``moral disconnect'' that led him to believe killing her would dissolve the knot of deceit and financial problems he'd created for himself.
He stood before Judge Samuel W. Salus 2d and was sentenced to life in prison without parole. He agreed that he would not appeal his sentence.
Thus ended one of the most sensational murder cases in this region's recent history.
It came to an end as two women - Rabinowitz's mother and mother-in-law - cried in the second row of the Norristown courtroom. It was an ending that amazed the families, the judge, even the lead prosecutor.
``I was shocked,'' said First Assistant District Attorney Bruce L. Castor Jr., who had all but announced his eagerness to go to trial. ``A total surprise.'' He called Rabinowitz a coward.
Rabinowitz's decision to admit guilt, defense lawyers Frank DeSimone and Jeffrey Miller said later, evolved over a few weeks and became final late Wednesday night in a meeting with them at Montgomery County Prison. They said it was prompted by Rabinowitz's desire to stop hurting his loved ones. Rabinowitz also told his lawyers of the dream. ``It was eerie,'' DeSimone said.
Anne Newman, Stefanie's mother, said afterward that she had no idea that Rabinowitz had decided to plead guilty. She sat between relatives yesterday, quietly crying through most of the 75-minute proceeding. Across the aisle from her in Courtroom B was Joyce Rabinowitz - Craig's mother - who kept her head bent much of the time.
