Why Is Madoff Just Now Talking?

Bernie Madoff in his first interview (published here in the New York Times) is saying that the banks and hedge funds were “complicit” in his Ponzi scheme. Why didn’t Madoff speak during his trial? He could have saved his son’s life. Madoff’s son committed suicide, I would agree with Madoff that the press coverage of the suicide of his son was “disgraceful”.