Former South Carolina attorney Alex Murdaugh, 54, has pleaded not guilty. In the high-profile US trial of a former lawyer accused of murdering his wife and children, the defense has concluded its case.
In the sixth week of the trial, allegations of corruption, opioid misuse, and a botched hitman suicide plot have been presented.
The jury is set to begin deliberations later this week. Here is all the information you need to know.
What did Alex Murdaugh allegedly do?
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Alex Murdaugh, an experienced personal injury attorney, is the heir to a legal family that has dominated the Lowcountry region of South Carolina for more than a century.
On 7 June 2021, he claimed discovered his 52-year-old wife Maggie and 22-year-old son Paul dead near the dog kennels on the huge family estate.
For more than a year, no arrests were made, but Mr. Murdaugh was indicted last July on two counts of murder and two counts of weapon possession during a violent crime.
State prosecutors contend he shot the pair from close range with a rifle and shotgun, despite his assertions that he was not involved in the deaths.
He risks 30 years to life in jail without the chance of parole if convicted. The prosecution decided without seeking the death penalty.
Susan Williams, a local criminal defense attorney who was not engaged in the trial, stated,
“The Murdaugh name is extremely well-known in the area.” This is the largest example I have ever seen [here] in my lifetime.
What has the defense said?
Alex Murdaugh is additionally accused of embezzling millions from the family-founded legal company where he was a partner.
Authorities assert he murdered his wife and son to gain sympathy and deflect attention from his extensive wrongdoings.
In an effort to debunk Mr. Murdaugh’s alibi and uncover several contradictions in his story, they called more than sixty witnesses over the course of four weeks.
Investigators never located a murder weapon, but circumstantial evidence such as mobile phone data and gunshot residue were used to build the prosecution’s case.
In addition, they utilized a video shot by Paul minutes before his death, in which Mr. Murdaugh can be heard lying about not being at the kennels that night. Mr. Murdaugh has now admitted to his deception.
In his opening statement, lead prosecutor Creighton Waters stated,
“This has been a lengthy and comprehensive investigation, but you will reach an unavoidable verdict: he murdered Maggie and Paul.”
According to Neama Rahmani, president of the law firm West Coast Trial Attorneys, the prosecution’s lack of strong proof may be fatal.
In a case such as this, “far more forensic proof would be required,” he stated. There is no apparent motive for Alex to murder his wife and son.
He said, however, that the judge’s decision to include evidence of financial impropriety and drug usage could prove to be crucial.
What statements has the defense made?
Mr. Murdaugh’s attorneys assert that their client is a devoted husband and parent who fell victim to shoddy law enforcement operations.
Buster, the surviving son of Mr. Murdaugh and the first witness for the defense, claimed that his father was “devastated” and “heartbroken” after the murders.
The defense further contends that the defendant did not have sufficient time to commit murder, dispose of evidence, and drive to his alibi location.
With no eyewitnesses, no concrete evidence, and no blood found on any of Mr. Murdaugh’s clothing that night, they emphasize that the state’s case is nothing more than “a notion.”
The chief defense attorney Dick Harpootlian reminded the jurors, “He is presumed innocent.” “Your mental framework is that he didn’t do it, thus they must convince me beyond a reasonable doubt that he did,”
What did Murdaugh say during his testimony?
Mr. Murdaugh testified in his own defense for two days last week, an extremely risky move for any defendant.
He admitted for the first time that he was at the dog kennels that night, soon before the murders of his wife and son.
He admitted to investigators that he had lied multiple times, citing a long-standing addiction to prescription painkillers that made him “paranoid.”
And he admits to stealing from clients and people he “liked and cared about” for years in order to fund his opiate consumption.
Yet, he stated that none of these indicated his culpability. He referred to the victims as “Mags” and “Paw Paw” with tears, and stated,
“I would never knowingly harm either of them.”
Mrs. Williams informed BBC News that the evidence was Mr. Murdaugh’s “Hail Mary” She stated that as a former prosecutor, he was aware that juries enjoy hearing from a defendant and that he was required to explain why he claimed to have lied.
Anything else transpired?
Since the double homicide, a number of episodes with ties to the Murdaugh killings have come to light, which has contributed to the increasing interest in the case.
Gloria Satterfield, the family’s longtime maid, died in an apparent accident at their residence in 2018. Mr. Murdaugh urged her adult children to launch a case for wrongful death.
Mr. Murdaugh’s insurance company paid out $4.3 million, but the Satterfields received nothing. Thereafter, Mr. Murdaugh confirmed that he had preserved everything.
Authorities are also investigating Ms. Satterfield’s cause of death. The Murdaugh family asserts that she went down the stairs after tripping over their dogs.
The next year, Paul drunkenly capsized a boat, resulting in the death of Mallory Beach, one of his passengers.
At the time of his death, he was out on bond after having been charged with a crime. Mr. Murdaugh hinted throughout his testimony that he had received death threats following the incident.
In September 2021, three months after the deaths of his wife and son, Mr. Murdaugh was wounded in a roadside shooting. Later, authorities discovered that he had orchestrated a botched hit on himself with the help of a distant cousin in order to collect a life insurance payout.
In addition to the pending trial, Mr. Murdaugh faces legal liability in all three investigations. On the witness stand, he looked to contemplate his situation.
He exclaimed,
“Oh, what a tangled web we weave!”
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