Alex Murdaugh, the once powerful attorney found guilty of killing his wife and son, will face a new trial after his murder convictions were thrown out by the South Carolina Supreme Court.
The court decided unanimously that Murdaugh did not receive a fair trial for the 2021 deaths because of interference by a court clerk who told the jury to “watch him closely” and not trust his testimony.
The case became an object of national fascination, spawning a podcast, documentary, miniseries, and more than one book.
Murdaugh’s defence team, buoyed by their success in having the convictions eliminated, are confident he will be found not guilty in a new trial.
They say Murdaugh is relieved to no longer be a convicted murderer.
Here’s what could happen next.
Prosecutors pledge to retry him as soon as possible
Murdaugh, 56, has been serving two life sentences for the murders of his wife Maggie, 52, and youngest son Paul, 22.
He is also serving a 27- and a 40-year sentence for state and federal convictions of financial crimes, which include stealing millions from client settlements in order to fund his drug habit. Those convictions have not been overturned.
A new trial for the murders has been ordered, and prosecutors say they are ready for another round.
Creighton Waters, the lead prosecutor on the case, said his team had the option to appeal the decision to the US Supreme Court, but would likely try the case anew.
“In the end, as we look at what’s best long term for this case, and what’s best for justice, it’s to retry this case and to do so as soon as we can,” Waters told Good Morning America.
South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson, in a statement, vowed to “aggressively seek to retry Alex Murdaugh for the murders of Maggie and Paul as soon as possible”.
State prosecutors are considering all legal options for the retrial, including the death penalty, according to US media reports.
Murdaugh’s lawyers say a ‘fair jury’ will find him not guilty
Murdaugh’s lawyers, Dick Harpootlian and Jim Griffin, have maintained their client is innocent and expressed confidence they would prevail in a retrial.
“We know this jury was lobbied by the court to convict, so I think a retrial with a fair jury gives him a chance for acquittal,” Harpootlian told the Today Show.
The state’s supreme court found the clerk, Rebecca Hill, had “placed her fingers on the scales of justice” with her interactions with the jury. A few months after Murdaugh’s trial, Hill published a tell-all book about the court proceedings.
Both of Murdaugh’s lawyers say Murdaugh would not consider a plea deal to avoid another trial because he would never plead guilty to killing his wife and son.
“Alec Murdaugh understands he did horrible things by stealing money from his clients,” Harpootlian told the BBC.
“And he pled guilty to that and has never, even during the first trial, admitted it on the stand. ‘Yes, I stole that money. I feel horrible about it.’
“But he has steadfastly denied killing Maggie and Paul and has steadfastly argued and said that he is not guilty.”
What would be different about this trial?
The state supreme court’s ruling “made clear that the retrial must look very different from the first,” the two attorneys said in a joint statement.
We will hear less about Murdaugh’s financial crimes in the new trial, after the South Carolina Supreme Court ruled prosecutors had gone too far in discussing them as a possible motive for the alleged murders.
The next trial court must “carefully and thoughtfully” apply the law in bringing in his financial crimes and must avoid “inflammatory details” that do not bolster prosecutor’s arguments, according to the ruling.
During the trial, Murdaugh admitted to the financial crimes, and later pleaded guilty to both state and federal charges that included money laundering, tax evasion, conspiracy, and fraud.
A new trial will require a new jury, and it will be hard to find impartial individuals in the relatively small community to consider the famous case. Colleton County residents – who would be in the jury pool – followed the trial especially closely.
Ultimately, the retrial could happen in another part of the state.
“They may have to hold the next trial on the moon if they really want to try to find a jury that is unbiased and uninformed and a clean slate, because this case has generated publicity all over the world,” said Joe McCulloch, an attorney who represented two of the jurors during Murdaugh’s appeal.
Harpootlian told the BBC that there are “several things that will help mitigate” the challlenge of finding an impartial jury.
“One is a change of venue out of Colton County,” he said.
“There’s a tremendous amount of resentment about the Murdaugh family in that community because of the power and the money they’ve had.
“So the average college and county resident is not a fan. We need to get it away from where they have that kind of notoriety.”
He added that the defence team would also request the judge grant a ‘voir dire’ – a process by which potential jurors are screened, which they hope will allow them to screen out people who are biased against Murdaugh.
Murdaugh also notably testified during his trial, but may not return to the stand in a retrial.
Asked if he would testify, Harpootlian told the Today Show: “The guy that can answer that question isn’t here this morning.”
Does he now go free?
Murdaugh remains behind bars for his financial crimes.
He could appeal against those convictions. If they are thrown out and he prevails in the murder retrial, then Murdaugh could go free.
Prosecutor Waters did not provide a timeline for a new trial, but has said the legal system moves more like a marathon than a sprint.
Maggie and Paul Murdaugh were found dead in June 2021, but Alex Murdaugh was not arrested until July 2022. His trial began roughly half a year after that.
Source: bbc.co.uk
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