Viswa Vanapalli
A sudden and vicious attack at a psychiatrist’s office in Manhattan, New York, garnered news headlines at the time of its occurrence. Dr. Michael Weiss fought off his attacker in November 2012 but was injured in the process. As the authorities would later find out, the incident was traced back to his former girlfriend, Dr. Pamela Buchbinder, and her cousin, Jacob Nolan. CBS News’ ‘48 Hours: The Psychiatrist and the Selfie’ focuses on the events that led to the attack and what happened after. So, if you’re wondering where Michael might be today, we’ve got you covered.
Who is Dr. Michael Weiss?
November 12, 2012, started like any other day for Dr. Michael Weiss; he was at his Manhattan home office with his patients. The successful psychiatrist was the loving father to a then-four-year-old son, Calder. The mother was Pamela, and the two broke up soon after Calder was born. At the time of the incident, they had just gone through a custody battle, with Pamela receiving full custody and Michael receiving generous visitation rights. According to Michael’s lawyer, his client also paid child support without a court ordering him to do so.
Pamela also lived in New York City, New York, along with Calder and her cousin, Jacob, who was Calder’s godfather. Jacob was diagnosed with bipolar disorder, and Pamela agreed to keep an eye on his medication and give him therapy sessions. But on November 12, things turned dangerous when Jacob showed up at Michael’s office. Once the patient left, Jacob asked Michael for financial forms for Calder’s school.
Then, Jacob went into the bathroom and came out swinging with a sledgehammer. Michael was able to duck but was hurt in his shoulder. Then, Jacob stabbed the doctor seven or eight times in the back and chest, but Michael wrestled the knife away during the altercation, hurting Jacob in the process. The psychiatrist then went to the hallway screaming for help. The authorities arrived and rushed both of them to the hospital for treatment.
Jacob later told the police that Pamela was the mastermind and she wanted her ex-boyfriend dead. According to Michael, she falsely told Jacob that Calder was abused by his father and that he refused to pay child support. Furthermore, Michael alleged that Pamela wrongly accused him of abusing her in the past. Surveillance video from a Home Depot showed Pamela paying for the sledgehammer the night before the attack. According to Jacob, she packed his duffel bag with the hammer and gave him the knife in addition to drawing a map of Michael’s office so Jacob could bypass security.
Michael later stated that the motive was a $1.5 million life insurance policy in his name that had Calder as the beneficiary. But about three days before the attack, Pamela had demanded that she be made the irrevocable trustee. This meant if Michael died, Calder would receive the money, but Pamela would control how it was spent. In the years following the attack, Jacob and Pamela were convicted in relation to the attack.
Michael Weiss is a Proud Family Man Today
Michael was not resentful toward Jacob, saying, “I have no personal desire to punish Jake. I understand that a long prison sentence will not undo what has happened or restore the sense of security that has been forever taken from me. While I am able to forgive Jake for the attack on me, I am not able to forgive him for the impact that the attack will have on my son when he inevitably learns that his cousin and mother attempted to murder his father.”
As for Pamela, Michael believed that she would do anything to harm him. In December 2015, a family court judge ruled that Michael would receive full custody of Calder and barred Pamela from any contact for five years. Despite the trauma, the psychiatrist has done his best to move on and care for his son. Michael received his medical degree from the University of Miami in Florida and has since been running his practice in Manhattan. He has more than two decades of experience and, in the past, he served as an instructor and a consultant. In other words, today, he’s a proud family man, entrepreneur, as well as board certified psychiatrist.
Read More: Where is Jacob Nolan Now?
