The trial of Alex Murdaugh: disgraced lawyer convicted of murdering his wife and son.
The jury deliberated for less than three hours before finding Alex Murdaugh, 54, guilty of two counts of murder after a six-week trial.
He faces 30 years to life without parole on each murder charge. Maggie and Paul Murdaugh were shot and killed on June 7, 2021 in their family home.
Alex Murdaugh viral video footage
Alex Murdaugh was not happy to know what would happen to him during a hearing Thursday night in Walterboro.
“Today’s decision shows that no one, no matter who you are in society, is above the law,” said South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson.
Power, privilege, murder and the fall of the dynasty What we learned from the murder trial of Alex MurdaughThe case — which highlights the alienation of a family born into power and privilege — has drawn national attention, leading to documentaries on Netflix and HBO.
Murdaugh was the worst prosecutor in the state, and for decades, until 2006, members of his family were the top prosecutors in the county.
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Their influence was so great that the jurisdiction became known as Murdaugh Country. But the trial heard he spent years robbing his law partners and clients while they took painkillers and lived a life of excess.
How Alex Murdaugh’s son helped seal guilty verdict from beyond the grave with a 50-second video
Murdaugh has pleaded not guilty to murdering his wife and youngest child in an attempt to cover up a years-long financial fraud – a fraud he himself admitted to in court.
After the 12-person jury deliberated, a crowd of onlookers gathered behind the courthouse as police quickly tossed Murdaugh into a black car.
It took investigators more than a year to get their hands on Murdaugh as they unraveled the twisted story.
In a dangerous move for anyone accused of murder, Murdaugh took to the witness stand to convince the jury that he was shocked by the death in a boating accident in 2019.
Paul may kill his son out of revenge. “I would never hurt Maggie, and I would never hurt Paul – ever – under any circumstances,” Murdaugh said.
The charges against him are based entirely on circumstantial evidence. No evidence – such as a murder weapon, blood on his clothes, or an eyewitness – was presented during the trial.
Instead, prosecutors focused on a disturbing Snapchat video made by Murdaugh’s son shortly before his death.
Alex Murdaugh and his two sons love to hunt in the Moselle with many guns. Prosecutors allege Murdaugh used one of them — a .300 Blackout assault rifle — to kill Maggie, and another to kill Paul.
But they could not find the gun and showed it in the trunk. Maggie was shot four or five times, depending on the case, and their son was shot twice.
