The South Carolina Supreme Court on Wednesday struck down two murder convictions of disgraced Lowcountry lawyer Alex Murdaugh.
The ruling shocked many across the nation, with one media outlet calling it a “stunning legal bombshell.”
The five-member court unanimously overturned the outcome of Murdaugh’s six-week trial from 2023, which convicted him in the brutal 2021 killings of his wife and son Maggie and Paul Murdaugh. Justices cited “shocking jury interference” and ordered a new trial.
“Our justice system provides — indeed demands — that every person is entitled to a fair trial, which includes an impartial jury untainted by external forces bent on influencing the jury toward a biased verdict,” the justices wrote in a unanimous opinion.
“Although we are aware of the time, money, and effort expended for this lengthy trial, we have no choice but to reverse the denial of Murdaugh’s motion for a new trial.”
The justices wrote that the Colleton County Clerk of Court Rebecca (Becky) Hill, who was assigned to oversee the evidence and jury during the trial, “egregiously attacked Murdaugh’s credibility and his defense,” constituting jury interference.
Murdaugh’s trial drew national attention, spawning countless news reports, podcast episodes and documentaries. He denied killing his wife and son but received two life sentences for the murder charges. He previously pleaded guilty to financial crimes, including stealing millions from clients and his law firm, which carried a 40-year federal sentence. He also pleaded guilty to a S.C. state court to financial crimes and was ordered 27 years in prison.
Murdaugh’s lawyers filed an appeal after his 2023 conviction, arguing that Hill influenced jurors during the trial and that the judge had allowed improper evidence. Prosecutors, however, argued the convictions should stand.
Hill later resigned as Colleton County’s clerk of court and, in December, pleaded guilty to criminal charges for showing sealed exhibits to a photographer and lying about it in court. She also pleaded guilty to two counts of misconduct in office for taking bonuses and promoting a book she wrote about the trial through her public office. She was sentenced to three years probation.
“Both the State and Murdaugh’s defense skillfully presented their cases to the jury as the trial court deftly presided over this complicated and high-profile matter,” the justices reportedly said. “However, their efforts were in vain because Colleton county clerk of court Rebecca Hill placed her fingers on the scales of justice, thereby denying Murdaugh his right to a fair trial by an impartial jury.”
Read previous City Paper coverage on the Murdaugh murder saga
September 2021: The ‘Murdaugh Murders’: Everything you need to know in 2 minutes. The convoluted stories surrounding the Murdaughs, a prominent South Carolina family, have taken strange twists and turns involving homicide, a fatal boating accident and a botched suicide attempt — all since early June.
February 2023: Defense to open its case Tuesday in Murdaugh trial. Disbarred lawyer Alex Murdaugh, who is being tried in Walterboro for the double murder of his wife and a son, had a cellphone with a flurry of activity just before he drove away quickly from where authorities believe the pair were killed, according to Friday testimony. Here are some takeaways from the trial after four weeks.
February 2023: Brack: Put yourself in a seat at the Murdaugh trial. “Though more than 200 people pack the 24 benches in the old courtroom in Walterboro, there’s a looming deathly quiet during the double murder trial of Alex Murdaugh, the disbarred lawyer whose rich family has been a big deal in the area for generations.”
April 2024: Ryan’s deep-dive into gripping Murdaugh saga is available now. As the nation-gripping saga of disgraced attorney and convicted murderer Alex Murdaugh and his myriad crimes continues to unfold, South Carolina author Jason Ryan dives deep into the whole Murdaugh family’s closet — which is chock-full of skeletons.
July 2024: Murdaugh asks S.C. Supreme Court for decision on new murder trial. Convicted murderer and serial fraudster Alex Murdaugh asked the S.C. Supreme Court to review a judge’s decision earlier this year denying his request for a new trial in the killings of his wife and son.
October 2024: Murdaugh settles lawsuit in teen’s boating death. Disbarred Lowcountry attorney and convicted murderer Alex Murdaugh has been dropped from a wrongful death lawsuit following an insurance payout to the family of a teen boating death victim, according to media reports.
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