Latest Alex Murdaugh lawsuit names 2 more prominent Hampton attorneys
The latest civil suit against disbarred, disgraced and detained South Carolina attorney Richard “Alex” Murdaugh now engulfs two more prominent attorneys at the Hampton law firm formerly known as Peters, Murdaugh, Parker, Eltzroth & Detrick, P.A. (PMPED) in the Murdaugh criminal and civil court saga.
The latest lawsuit was filed in Hampton County Court of Common Pleas on Friday, Oct. 7, on behalf of Manuel Santiz-Cristiani, a citizen and resident of Chiapas, Mexico, and former client of Murdaugh.
The suit names as defendants Murdaugh, PMPED (now known as Parker Law Group), Palmetto State Bank and its former CEO, Russell Laffitte, Ronnie L. Crosby, a partner and shareholder at the former PMPED, and William F. Barnes III, a former attorney at the former PMPED.
The Hampton County Guardian reached out to all parties for comment Monday night.
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Lawsuit claims settlement funds stolen
The suit centers around allegations that settlement funds were stolen from Santiz-Cristiani after Murdaugh and PMPED handled a personal injury lawsuit for him, then deposited the funds in the care of Laffitte at Palmetto State.
"I am aware of this lawsuit," Barnes said in a written statement Tuesday. "Any allegation of wrongdoing on my part is false. The trust of this community is something I have worked hard to earn during my career as a lawyer, and I intend to defend my reputation."
Crosby said Tuesday that he had not yet been served with the lawsuit, but was made aware of it Monday.
“Any allegation in this lawsuit that I did anything improper is false, and the Plaintiff and his attorneys know any such claim is false," Crosby said in a written statement. "I call upon them to immediately dismiss me from this lawsuit.”
Murdaugh, who was already facing more than 90 S.C. State Grand Jury criminal charges, is now facing 12 lawsuits – one federal and 11 in state courts – after an alleged decade-long, multi-county financial and drug crime spree.
Laffitte has been indicted in both state and federal courts as Murdaugh’s primary alleged accomplice. This is the second lawsuit levied against Laffitte and the bank founded by his family, Palmetto State, but the first to name other attorneys at the former PMPED.
Santiz-Cristiani was injured in a Nov. 4, 2008, accident while traveling as a passenger in a car along Interstate 95 in Colleton County when the thread separated from a tire, causing the vehicle to overturn, states the complaint. He then hired PMPED to represent him in a suit against the driver, the vehicle maker and the tire maker.
The suit further alleges that PMPED attorneys Murduagh, Crosby and Barnes filed the products liability suit on Aug. 30, 2011.
On Sept. 24, 2013, PMPED attorneys negotiated a settlement with Ford Motor Company and Michelin North America, Inc. for an amount unknown to Santiz-Cristiani, and the case was dismissed the same day, the suit adds.
The complaint also alleges that PMPED’s attorneys then deposited the settlement funds in Palmetto State Bank, where Laffitte served as conservator of the funds, but failed to inform Santiz-Cristiani that any money had been recovered on his behalf.
According to the suit, as claims for relief, breach of fiduciary duty, civil conspiracy, conversion, negligent hiring and supervision and a full, accurate accounting of all funds are owed to Santiz-Cristiani from every defendant.
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Another possible jury trial for Murdaugh and Laffitte
Santiz-Cristiani, who is represented by Orangeburg attorneys Glenn Walters Sr. and Korey L. Williams, is demanding a jury trial and seeking actual as well as punitive damages.
Murdaugh was terminated from PMPED in September of 2021, while Laffitte was terminated as CEO of Palmetto State Bank in January of 2022, the same month that PMPED attorneys rechartered the firm under the name Parker Law Group.
Murdaugh’s family founded PMPED, and Laffitte’s family founded Palmetto State more than a century ago and both are Hampton institutions that have grown over the decades and now have multiple locations around the S.C. Lowcountry.
In addition to allegations of financial crimes, Murdaugh is also facing murder charges in the June 2021 shooting deaths of his wife, Maggie, and son Paul.
Laffitte is out on a $1 million bond while awaiting trial, while Murdaugh remains detained in Richland County’s Alvin S. Glenn Detention Center on a $7 million bond he has been unable to meet.
This is a developing story and may be updated if defendants wish to comment.
This article originally appeared on Greenville News: Latest Alex Murdaugh lawsuit names more Hampton, SC attorneys
