South Carolina Supreme Court overturns Alex Murdaugh convictions
The South Carolina Supreme Court overturned alex murdaugh’s murder convictions on Wednesday morning, vacated the life sentences imposed by Judge Clifton Newman, and sent the case back to circuit court. The unanimous ruling leaves prosecutors to decide whether to try him again for the June 7, 2021 killings of Maggie Murdaugh and Paul Murdaugh.
South Carolina Supreme Court ruling
The five-member court said Rebecca “Becky” Hill, the former Colleton County clerk of court, made comments to jurors about Murdaugh’s testimony during the trial in Walterboro, South Carolina. In its decision, the court said her conduct created a presumption of prejudice that the state was unable to rebut.
The justices wrote that Hill “placed her fingers on the scales of justice, thereby denying Murdaugh his right to a fair trial by an impartial jury.” They also described her conduct as “shocking jury interference” and said the violation of his right to a fair trial was “egregiously” improper.
Alex Murdaugh murder convictions
The ruling reversed the outcome of a case tied to South Carolina’s so-called Trial of the Century. A Colleton County jury had convicted Murdaugh more than three years after the killings of his wife and younger son.
Murdaugh, 57, remained incarcerated in the South Carolina Department of Corrections because he had previously pleaded guilty to numerous financial crimes at the state and federal level. The court’s decision did not automatically grant him a new trial.
Retry decision in circuit court
The justices wrote, “We have no choice but to reverse the denial of Murdaugh’s motion for a new trial due to Hill’s improper external influences on the jury and remand for a new trial.” Attorney General Alan Wilson and the four candidates vying to replace him said they would retry Murdaugh.
No deadline was given for that decision, and no judge had been identified for a second trial. For now, the murder convictions are gone, the life sentences are vacated, and the next move sits with state prosecutors in circuit court.
