Alex Murdaugh pictured in court in 2023. His widely publicised case will have to be retried after jury interference. Photo / Getty Images
Alex Murdaugh pictured in court in 2023. His widely publicised case will have to be retried after jury interference. Photo / Getty Images
Alex Murdaugh’s trial for the killings of his wife and son inspired a Netflix series and quickly became one of the highest-profile criminal cases in American history.
The bizarre and tragic case, which was also captured in a dramatisation on Hulu, ended with the disgraced South Carolina lawyer behind bars,found guilty of double murder.
On Wednesday, however, Murdaugh was sensationally cleared of the killings and their accompanying life sentences overturned by South Carolina’s Supreme Court.
The court ruled that “shocking jury interference” by a clerk involved in overseeing jurors during the 2023 proceedings undermined the fairness of the trial, requiring the convictions to be thrown out and for a new trial to take place.
Murdaugh, 57, comes from a family of powerful lawyers who dominated South Carolina’s Lowcountry for nearly a century, with three generations serving as the chief prosecutor for the 14th judicial circuit.
He lived with his wife, Maggie Murdaugh, 52, and their younger son, Paul Murdaugh, 22, at a sprawling, rural hunting estate. In June 2021, his wife and Paul were found dead. Both had been shot at close range.
The killings remained unsolved for more than a year before Murdaugh was arrested and charged with their murders.
His live-streamed six-week trial, which captivated the nation, concluded in March 2023 when jurors returned guilty verdicts after less than three hours of deliberation.
Alan Wilson, the state attorney general, said the prosecution respected the court’s decision to overturn the ruling, but sought a retrial “as soon as possible”.
He said: “While we respectfully disagree with the court’s decision, my office will aggressively seek to retry Alex Murdaugh for the murders of Maggie and Paul as soon as possible.”
The defence said that they welcomed a new trial in a statement to NPR. Dick Harpootlian and Jim Griffin, Murdaugh’s attorneys, said: “We look forward to a new trial conducted consistent with the Constitution and the guidance this Court has provided.”
Soon after the conviction, Murdaugh’s legal team argued that the trial had been tainted by the conduct of Becky Hill, the Colleton County clerk of court, who was responsible for managing jurors and overseeing courtroom logistics.
Several jurors later testified that Hill made comments about Murdaugh during the trial, including warning them not to be “fooled” by his testimony and allegedly urging them to “watch [Murdaugh] closely”.
The juror who alleged the latter said the comments had influenced her decision to find Murdaugh guilty.
Hill, who read out the guilty verdicts in court, later resigned from her position.
In December, she pleaded guilty to charges of misconduct in office, obstruction of justice and perjury over accusations that she misused public funds as a clerk and shared sealed court information with a reporter.
Rebecca "Becky" Hill, the Colleton County clerk of court who was responsible for managing jurors and overseeing courtroom logistics. Photo / Getty Images
In Wednesday’s ruling, the five justices of the state supreme court said Hill had “placed her fingers on the scales of justice”, depriving Murdaugh of his right to a fair trial.
The added: “We have no choice but to reverse the denial of Murdaugh’s motion for a new trial due to Hill’s improper external influence on the jury.”
His lawyers also argued that Clifton Newman, the judge, was wrong to allow prosecutors to introduce evidence of Murdaugh’s extensive financial crimes during the murder trial.
Whatever the result of the new trial, Murdaugh will remain behind bars after pleading guilty to numerous crimes involving the theft of millions of dollars from clients and his former law firm.
He admitted stealing, embezzling and lying about his drug habit, which his attorneys said cost US$50,000 a week, but denied killing his wife and son.
- The Telegraph
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