Alex Murdaugh, a once-powerful and now-disbarred South Carolina lawyer, entered a not guilty plea on Wednesday to allegations that he killed his wife and kid 13 months ago. One of his defense lawyers demanded a quick trial to cleanse his name and encourage law enforcement to "go for the real perpetrators."
The 54-year-old Murdaugh made his first court appearance in Colleton County since being indicted in the murder case last week, donning a white face mask under his buzzed head and ankle shackles over polished leather shoes. He pleaded innocent but accepted a bondless jail sentence.
A bond hearing, according to one of his attorneys, Dick Harpootlian, could expose fresh details about the deaths and put possible witnesses at danger of bias when the case gets to trial. He added that Murdaugh cannot afford to post a cash bond for his release pending trial because he already has a $7 million bond on him for unrelated criminal allegations.
Since October, Murdaugh has been imprisoned on charges of financial irregularities and other wrongdoings that came to light following the murders of his wife Maggie, 52, and their son Paul, 22, at the family's Colleton County hunting home in June 2021.
Murdaugh wants to go to trial in the next three to four months, according to Harpootlian, who revealed this to the judge on Wednesday. He wants to prove that the State Law Enforcement Division of South Carolina's investigators targeted the wrong man.
"He thinks the killer or killers are still out there," Harpootlian said. "This would allow SLED to put this behind them and go after the real killers."
Deputy state attorney general and prosecutor Creighton Waters responded that a trial in January or sooner would be "extremely aggressive."
The overwhelming body of evidence in this case, according to Waters, "links back to Alex Murdaugh." There is forensic evidence supporting his guilt in these murders, in addition to other evidence.
Circuit Judge Clifton Newman only issued one decision in court—denying Murdaugh's request for a release. On the request for a quick trial and for a gag order to prevent attorneys and investigators involved in the case from speaking to news organizations, he said he would issue written orders later.
Murdaugh faces two counts of murder as well as two counts of having a weapon while committing a violent crime. According to the indictment, he fatally shot his wife with a rifle and killed his son with a shotgun.
After 13 months of investigation, authorities have not disclosed any evidence showing how police connected Murdaugh to the fatalities. The hearing on Wednesday also failed to shed any light on the motivations behind a man's desire to murder his own family members, despite the fact that he had no prior criminal record and belonged to a powerful, well-connected family that dominated Hampton's small town's judicial scene.
Since the beginning of the probe, the authorities have kept quiet. The late-night 911 call from Murdaugh in which he reported discovering the remains of his wife and kid outdoors near the dog kennels on his property was made public last year. Both fatalities had been shot several times, according to the coroner.
Judge Newman, who presided over Murdaugh's hearing on Wednesday, had previously rejected bond for Murdaugh in relation to the allegations of financial crimes. Later, a second court set Murdaugh's bond at $7 million, but he was unable to make the payment and has since remained in custody. His attorneys have repeatedly argued that the bond amount was unreasonably high and that Murdaugh was unable to purchase undergarments from the cell shop due to lawsuits and assets that had been frozen.
Murdaugh may spend anywhere between 30 years and life in prison if found guilty of murder. State law permits prosecutors to decide to ask for the death sentence if multiple people were killed.
The 80 more counts that have been brought against Murdaugh by the detectives who have closely examined every aspect of his life over the past year were added by the four fresh indictments related to the killings. For any of the cases, no trial dates have been scheduled.
Authorities claim that the formerly well-known lawyer defrauded clients out of more than $8 million in settlements and other funds, committed fraud, and misled investigators by attempting to arrange his own demise in order for his son to get a $10 million life insurance policy. Murdaugh was also accused of co-running a $2 million narcotics and money laundering network last month.
Because of Murdaugh's connections to the regional 14th Circuit Solicitor's Office, the South Carolina Attorney General's Office is pursuing the murder charges as well as other cases. Colleton County and Hampton County, where Murdaugh's father, grandfather, and great-grandfather served as elected prosecutors for 87 years straight, are included in the office's authority.
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