EXCLUSIVE: Sunny Hostin's Jury Decision Could Free Convicted Killer
Sunny Hostin's jury decision could pave the way for a convicted killer's release from prison.
Oct. 23 2026, Published 7:00 a.m. ET
Notorious NYC cannibal Daniel Rakowitz – who was spared prison after being found not criminally responsible for murder by reason of insanity in 1991 by a jury that included The View's Sunny Hostin – was reportedly moved to a lower-security area of the psychiatric facility where he's been locked away for years, RadarOnline.com can reveal.
Now, sources said the change may put the 65-year-old butcher one step closer to freedom.
Sunny Hostin Reveals Her Role in Notorious Murder Trial
Sunny Hostin served on the jury that found Daniel Rakowitz not criminally responsible for Monika Beerle's murder by reason of insanity.
Lawmen said Rakowitz killed his dancer roommate, Monika Beerle, 26, in 1989 by punching the occasional stripper in the throat, causing her to suffocate. He then dismembered her corpse and boiled some of her remains for soup.
Investigators said the sicko bragged that he ate Beerle's brain and fed the ballerina broth to homeless people.
As RadarOnline.com previously reported, the horrific incident recently returned to the spotlight when Hostin revealed on The View that she was a holdout juror in that case as the ABC chat-fest hosts discussed alleged kid killer Lindsay Clancy's insanity defense, mistrial and attempts by the gal's lawyer to question a holdout juror.
Sunny Hostin Recalls Being Holdout Juror in Grisly Murder Case
The 'View' cohost revealed she was a holdout juror in Rakowitz's 1991 murder trial.
Speaking of Massachusetts mom Clancy – who's accused of strangling her three children amid postpartum mental health struggles – Hostin, 58, said, "I thought absolutely she was not criminally responsible by reason of insanity.
"And the reason I felt that – I feel so strongly about this holdout juror is because I was a holdout juror in a case in the Daniel Rakowitz case."
At the time, Hostin – who would become a trial attorney for the U.S. Department of Justice and a federal prosecutor before landing her gig on The View – was a 22-year-old paralegal known by her birth name, Asuncion Cummings.
She and her fellow jurors ultimately determined that Rakowitz wasn't responsible due to his mental state.
Notorious Killer Could Be Released After Move to Lower-Security Facility
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Before becoming a federal prosecutor, Hostin served on Rakowitz's jury at age 22 under her birth name, Asuncion Cummings.
Rakowitz was sent to Kirby Forensic Psychiatric Center on the Big Apple's Wards Island. In 2020, the ghoul was moved to the Manhattan Psychiatric Center – but sources say two years ago, he was relocated to its less secure civilian side.
"Ninety-nine percent of patients who are released" get moved to lower security first, a source said.
"They're letting people out prematurely every day. He may be one of those that end up getting out."
