FILE – In this file pool photograph, Alex Murdaugh, convicted of killing his wife and youngest son, listens as his attorneys Dick Harpootlian, left, and Phil Barber speak during a judicial hearing at the Richland County Judicial Center in Columbia, S
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The South Carolina Supreme Court has overturned the murder conviction and life sentence for Alex Murdaugh.
Alex Murdaugh murder conviction
The backstory:
Murdaugh was convicted in 2023 in the killings of his wife and his younger son.
Murdaugh has admitted to stealing money and insurance fraud but adamantly denied the killings since finding his wife and son dead in 2021.
South Carolina Supreme Court decision
What they’re saying:
The high court ruled unanimously Wednesday that the conduct by the court clerk “egregiously attacked Murdaugh’s credibility” by suggesting to jurors his testimony could not be trusted. They also said the trial judge went too far in allowing evidence of Murdaugh’s financial crimes into his murder trial.
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Dig deeper:
The justices ruled Colleton County Clerk of Court Becky Hill, assigned to oversee the evidence and the jury during the trial, influenced jurors to find Murdaugh guilty. She hoped to improve sales of a book she was writing about the case. She has since pleaded guilty to lying about what she said and did to a different judge.
His lawyers detailed the lack of physical evidence — no DNA or blood was found splattered on Murdaugh or any of his clothes, even though the killings were at close range with powerful weapons that were never found.
What’s next:
But Murdaugh won’t be getting out of prison. The 57-year-old pleaded guilty to stealing around $12 million from his clients and is currently serving a federal sentence.
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