Chambers Speaks

On Valentine's Day, Robert Chambers walked out of a prison in upstate New York as a free man, but one still pursued by his own infamy.

In an exclusive interview with 48 Hours Investigates correspondent Troy Roberts, Chambers apologized for the way he lived his life and took Jennifer Levin's.

"Every day, something reminds me of her, reminds me of her family," Chambers told Roberts. "And every day, I know that I'm in prison because somebody died, and I'm responsible for that. It's not an easy feeling. You don't get comfortable with it. And it's part of my life for the rest of my life."

Rehearsed lines from a con artist? Or genuine repentance?

In four-hour Feb. 17 interview session in a hotel outside of Washington, D.C., Chambers gave his version of exactly what happened the night in 1986 that he strangled Jennifer Levin and the time he spent in prison, during which he was charged with 27 rules violations. He served every day of his sentence.

Over and over again, he denied that he was faking remorse and playing the role that he had perfected as a teen-age prep school student.

"People say, 'I don't believe he's changed; I don't believe he's grown up; I don't believe he's going to be any different,'" Chambers says. " I will. I really will. I mean, it's a wake-up call. You know, you may not wake up immediately, like people want you to, but towards the end, there's something that clicks in your mind, and you realize, you have to change."

Chambers said he would prefer to spend time in solitary confinement than be interviewed . "I'd choose solitary in a second," he says. "It's a lot easier than this. I don't want to be here."

He repeatedly denied that he was playing a role. "Would I like to be forgiven? I wouldn't even think of asking for that," he said. "Would I like the opportunity to apologize for my actions? Yes. Am I acting? I don't know how to act. I'm too scared to act right now. You say I'm well mannered and everything. I'm here holding my hands. I'm scared."