Alex Murdaugh trial leaves SC Lowcountry, world with heroes and villains

Just as the Apostle Peter thrice denied Jesus upon his arrest, Richard "Alex" Murdaugh thrice denied killing his wife and son — early on with his "not guilty" plea, and twice after conviction during his sentencing hearing on Friday.

Murdaugh, indicted July 14, 2022, for the June 7, 2021, killings of Maggie and Paul Murdaugh, took the South Carolina criminal justice system and the media-following world on a wild, six-week adventure from the historic courthouse of Colleton County to a plantation at the county's edge, Moselle, where Murdaugh family blood stained the ground and the sin of murder still haunts the community.

For his transgressions, Murdaugh was convicted and sentenced to two consecutive life sentences.

This two-year investigation and prosecution were a criminal and legal adventure that left the curious and the involved with more answers and some closure — but it was also a journey that has left the masses following the case with some clear heroes, and of course, villains.

Heroes emerge from tragic Murdaugh crime saga

They are the basic tenants in storytelling — there must be conflict, setting, plot and there must be a hero or villain — and the Murdaugh crime saga has it all.

Set in the scenic Lowcountry of South Carolina, this plot took followers on a wild ride from a fatal boat crash in 2019 to a double murder in 2021, then the plot thickened as Murdaugh stood beside an isolated country road covered in his own blood by Labor Day weekend.

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But it has taken this trial to bring out the heroes, and "bo," to steal from the local dialect, they are a'plenty.

We have Dale Davis, the kennel master, who can tell you the proper way to roll up a hose and take care of animals; Cash and Bubba, the Lab retrievers, who may have helped crack the whole case; Judge Clifton Newman, whose calm, soft-spoken, but firm demeanor has endeared him to audiences.

And then we have Dr. Kenny Kinsey.

Dr. Kinsey is a rare breed. He holds a Ph.D. He's a cop and forensic expert who has worked thousands of homicides and suicides. And he's a college professor and expert witness. If Doc Kinsey tells you how someone died, you can pretty well take it to the bank.

Kinsey impressed jurors and viewers alike with his folksy, smooth Southern voice, as well as his knowledge. Before sentencing on Friday, the jurors asked to speak to Kinsey, who went back to the jury room and spent some time talking to them and bonding with them over their experiences.

Throngs of media also converged on Kinsey outside the courtroom Friday, rolling television footage and grabbing quotes. But for this expert witness, it wasn't about being in front of cameras.

Kinsey credited the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division and the Attorney General's Office for their hard work, adding that he "came to the party late" to help in the courtroom.

"But I was motivated by Maggie and Paul," he added.

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Of course, we have our jury: a dozen of Colleton County's rank-and-file, men and women who had better things to do but had to sit through more than 70 witnesses, roughly 400 exhibits of evidence, and six full weeks of court proceedings.

Most of the jury sat in the gallery Friday when Murdaugh's sentence was handed down, to see the conclusion of the story they helped write, and many have begun speaking to journalists and major television networks about their experience in the case.

And then we have the prosecutors as well as local and state law enforcement who, it can be argued, probably wish they could have gone back and rewritten a few chapters of this investigative story.

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Much maligned for poor or unethical police work by the defense during the trial, and even after in a press conference, SLED agents and prosecutors hugged one another when the verdict was read, and again when the sentence was handed down.

"I am very proud of our agents for the work they have done and proud of our partnership with the Attorney General's Office," said SLED Chief Mark Keel. "But there are no winners today. Today is not the end, it's the next step in a long road to justice for all the victims of Alex Murdaugh."

The Villain: The monster Alex Murdaugh had become

Judge Clifton Newman said that this was one of the most troubling cases to ever come before him.

No one spoke on Murdaugh's behalf at sentencing, despite the fact that he had family members in the courtroom every day of the trial. Despite the conviction, he continued to deny he was a family annihilator.

"I'm innocent. I would never hurt my wife Maggie, and I would never hurt my son, Paul Paul."

"Maybe it wasn't you," said Newman, referencing his drug addiction. "Maybe it was the monster you have become."

"But you have to see Paul and Maggie in the nighttime when you go to sleep, and they continue to visit you."

"All day, every day," confirmed Murdaugh grimly, before being led away to the South Carolina Department of Corrections, where he will be evaluated for 30 days and then assigned to a specific state prison to begin his service.

Alex Murdaugh's attorneys pledge to file appeal on murder conviction

But the conflict isn't over for Murdaugh. In addition to the 99 other criminal charges, mostly financial in nature, that Newman promised to deal with quickly, his attorneys have pledged to file an appeal on the murder conviction within ten days.

Murdaugh's attorneys contend that the State won the case the moment the judge allowed in all of Murdaugh's alleged financial crimes and other "bad acts," and other legal rights were violated during the trial.

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An appeal would take months to schedule, attorneys said, but they are prepared for the long haul.

"If we lose in state court, we will take it to the federal court," said Murdaugh attorney Jim Griffin, adding that they would go all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court if necessary.

The story of a once prominent lawyer who has fallen from grace isn't over.

But perhaps it's only fitting that a crime saga that began in a courtroom end in yet another.

This article originally appeared on Greenville News: Murdaugh trial leaves SC Lowcountry, world with heroes and villains