Alleged Murdaugh accomplice Russell Laffitte moves to dismiss charges, give wife assets

Attorneys for former Hampton banker Russell Lucius Laffitte, the primary alleged accomplice of accused former South Carolina attorney Richard “Alex” Murdaugh, have filed a flurry of pretrial motions in both state and federal courts — including a motion to dismiss criminal charges and a motion to give Laffitte’s wife half of his frozen assets.

Laffitte was indicted by both the South Carolina State Grand Jury and a federal grand jury on allegations that he aided Murdaugh in stealing from multiple personal injury clients in an alleged decade-long, multi-county crime spree. The charges include bank fraud and conspiracy to commit bank fraud.

In defense, Laffitte’s legal team filed recent motions in both state and federal courts, and both federal and state prosecutors have responded in opposition.

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Russell Laffitte files motion to dismiss charges, claims factual errors

Following state charges, Laffitte was first indicted in federal court on July 20, and then a superseding indictment was handed down Aug. 17. He was indicted a third time in a second superseding indictment and arraigned on the latest indictment Sept. 23 in U.S. District Court in Charleston, where he pleaded not guilty as with the original charges.

On Sept. 26, Laffitte's attorneys, Bart Daniel and Matt Austin, filed a motion to dismiss the federal government's second superseding indictment because of alleged excessive factual errors. According to the motion, federal prosecutors told the court it was filing the second superseding indictment to correct an error in one paragraph of the first superseding indictment while there were actually corrections made in 16 paragraphs of the indictment.

The motion further claims that the government exceeded its authority, adding that having so many factual errors was hindering Laffitte’s ability to prepare a criminal defense. Laffitte's attorneys asked for the indictment — and all charges — to be dismissed with prejudice.

Some of the factual errors were minor, such as the age of one alleged victim, while others affect the extent of the criminal charges, Laffitte’s defense attorneys claim.

On Oct. 2, Assistant U.S. Attorneys Emily Limehouse and Winston Holiday Jr. filed their response in opposition, saying that the law doesn’t support Laffitte’s request for dismissal and that it is up to the federal government what charges its brings before a grand jury prior to trial.

The counter motion also states that the latest, most accurate indictment does not bring any new criminal counts against Laffitte, and the possible penalties against him remain the same.

The counter motion further says the earlier factual errors came after Laffitte gave false information in his own “sworn misrepresentations to the Probate Court,” as well as documents he signed, and further investigations and witness interviews by federal officials produced more accurate information.

No hearing date has been set to consider these motions.

Laffitte moves in state court to give wife assets, not victims

On Sept. 14, Laffitte’s attorneys filed a motion in state court regarding his forfeited assets.

Laffitte was indicted on state grand jury charges May 4, and during his May 6 bond hearing the court ordered that his assets be frozen to prevent waste and ensure alleged victims could potentially be compensated.

Later that month, Laffitte’s family home in Varnville was sold, netting $317,000 for the legal trust account. The Sept. 14 motion requests that Laffitte’s wife, Susanne Laffitte, be given a large portion of that money.

Laffitte contends that since he and his wife purchased the home together in 2001, it is in both their names, and she is not charged with any crimes, that half of the proceeds of the sale should rightfully go to her.

The accused banker’s motion asks that more than half of the net proceeds, or $250,000, be paid to Susanne Laffitte.

On Sept. 27, the SC Attorney General’s Office responded, filing a counter motion saying that Laffitte’s claim is premature pending results of the charges and suits against him.

The counter motion also says that Laffitte’s wife should not be able to simply “raise her hand” and claim half of the proceeds of Laffitte’s alleged illegal activity, adding that the law says the “uninvolved spouse should not receive a windfall at the expense of the victim where community assets were acquired with funds that were stolen from the victim…”

The AG’s Office also stated that it had reached out to some of Laffitte’s alleged victims, and they were all opposed to such a disbursement, and the appropriate time to hear this motion would be in a follow-up restitution hearing if Laffitte is convicted and all the facts are known.

Previous coverage:Former banker Russell Laffitte hit with federal indictments for conspiracy, wire fraud, bank fraud

Related:Hampton County bank, law firm settle with several alleged victims of Murdaugh, Laffitte

Laffitte files motion to subpoena Murdaugh’s former family law firm

On Sept. 27, Laffitte filed a motion in federal court requesting Subpoena Duces Tecum powers to compel attorneys at the Parker Law Group, formerly PMPED, to provide records and documents before the trial.

On Oct. 8, the federal government files a response stating it had no objection in this matter.

Laffitte remains out on bond

Laffitte, who had been a fourth-generation banker in a financial institution his family founded in Hampton, is accused of using his position as Palmetto State Bank CEO to aid Murdaugh in stealing from his legal clients while serving as Murdaugh’s hand-picked personal representative and conservator for those clients.

Laffitte was terminated from that position at the bank in January 2022.

Out on a $1 million bond, Laffitte is on location-monitoring that restricts him to Hampton and Allendale counties unless he is going to court in Charleston or has court approval to travel elsewhere.

This article originally appeared on Greenville News: Murdaugh saga: Laffitte moves to dismiss charges, give wife assets