Alex Murdaugh verdict: Jury finds disbarred SC attorney guilty of murder of wife, son

In front of a mostly full courtroom, Colleton County Clerk of Court Rebecca Hill took her time reading the verdicts in the Alex Murdaugh double murder trial as if she were trying to build suspense, calling out each indictment number and case number, numeral by numeral.

But the verdicts were all the same - guilty on all counts of murder and possession of a weapon while committing a violent crime in the deaths of his wife and son.

South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson said Thursday's verdict provided "justice and a voice" for Maggie and Paul Murdaugh.

"Wow, what a great day for the people of South Carolina," said Wilson, who also commented on all of the "hard work, blood, sweat and tears" that went into the case, thanking every local, state and federal agency involved. "It was all worth it because we got to bring justice to Maggie and Paul and to the people of South Carolina.

"Our criminal justice system worked and gave a voice to Maggie and Paul Murdaugh ... We can't bring them back, but we can bring them justice. Today's verdict proves that no one, no matter who they are in society, is above the law."

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The scene in the courtroom when the verdict was read to Alex Murdaugh

Murdaugh, who had appeared confident, almost smug as the jury was being charged earlier in the day, looked less confident when the jury entered the room so quickly. He looked straight ahead as the verdict was read, then stiffened at the first "guilty," before turning and rocking just a little on his feet.

After nearly a month of hearing witness and expert testimony, the jury returned with a verdict in just over three hours.

Murdaugh's brothers were not in the courtroom, but his son, Richard "Buster" Murdaugh Jr., and his sister, Lynn Goattee, showed emotion but did not openly weep. Buster's faced turned dark red, and Goattee wiped her eyes.

As court security cuffed Murdaugh to lead him away, he turned and looked briefly at his son, nodding his head and mouthing a few words. Buster looked down, then looked away.

Members of the jury were thanked for their service and excused. The Murdaugh family was escorted from the courtroom before the public and media were allowed to exit.

More Thursday Murdaugh trial updates: Murdaugh guilty on two counts of murder in death of wife, son

Judge Clifton Newman quickly denied a motion for a mistrial and a motion to set aside the verdict from Murdaugh's attorneys. "We have been here 28 days" considering an "overwhelming amount of testimony," he said. "The evidence of guilt is overwhelming and I deny the motion."

Judge Newman will sentence Murdaugh at 9:30 a.m. on Friday after hearing from any victims or supporters of Murdaugh who wish to speak.

The minimum sentence for murder in South Carolina is 30 years, with life as the maximum. The State is asking for life without parole.

In thanking the jury, Newman said, "It's not often you are called upon to sit in judgement of your fellow man, and you responded. The circumstantial evidence, the direct evidence, all pointed to only one conclusion and that is what you all reached.

Creighton Waters, Alan Wilson hold press conference after verdict

After the verdict was read and the courtroom cleared, the S.C. Attorney General's Office held a press conference under the archway of the historic Colleton County Courthouse.

Creighton Waters, chief prosecutor, said that it had been a tough, demanding trial and thanked the jurors for their long and arduos service. "I want to be clear, this was a team effort and amazing work ... on a complex case. It doesn't matter how much money you have, if you do wrong, break the law, murder, justice will be done in South Carolina."

Murdaugh’s lawyers will almost certainly appeal the conviction based on the judge allowing evidence of the financial crimes, which they contend were unrelated to the killings and were used by prosecutors to smear Murdaugh’s reputation.

Dick Harpootlian said that while the defense was disappointed, it would not be proper to comment on the verdict tonight.

Rev. Raymond Johnson, a pastor from Pisgah Baptist Church in Marion, S.C., was on hand after the verdict carrying a sign that read, "Justice."

"Justice is here," said Johnson. "He (Murdaugh) needs an Academy award for his performance (in the court) but he could not outperform God ... A Daddy is supposed to protect his wife and children, you aren't supposed to hurt your wife and child."

Wilson thanked everyone from the Colleton County first responders, law enforcement and court staff to the FBI and the Secret Service.

"When you go home tonight, hug your loved ones, hug your spouse, hug your children. You can't take them for granted," Wilson added Thursday night.

Jay Bender, the trial's liason between the court and media, said statewide media represented itself well amid the national and international attention.

"Judge Newman showed great sensitivity for the role of the press in our society, and the press handled its part with professionalism and talent, and I was honored to be a part of it."

Prosecution hammers Alex Murdaugh about lies

Testimony culminated in Murdaugh’s appearance on the witness stand this week, when he admitted stealing millions from clients and lying to investigators about being at the dog kennels where the shootings took place but steadfastly maintained his innocence in the deaths of Maggie and Paul Murdaugh.

“I did not kill Maggie, and I did not kill Paul. I would never hurt Maggie, and I would never hurt Paul — ever — under any circumstances,” Murdaugh said.

Murdaugh’s 52-year-old wife was shot four or five times with a rifle and their 22-year-old son was shot twice with a shotgun at the kennels near their rural Colleton County home on June 7, 2021.

Prosecutors didn’t have the weapons used to kill the Murdaughs or other direct evidence like confessions or blood spatter. But they had a mountain of circumstantial evidence, led by a video locked on Paul Murdaugh’s cellphone for more than a year — video shot minutes before the killings that witnesses testified captured the voices of all three Murdaughs.

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Alex Murdaugh had told police repeatedly after the killings that he was not at the kennels and was instead napping before he went to visit his ailing mother that night. Murdaugh called 911 and said he discovered the bodies when he returned home.

But in his testimony, Murdaugh admitted joining Maggie and Paul at the kennels, where he said he took a chicken away from a rowdy yellow Labrador named Bubba — whose name Murdaugh can be heard saying on the video — before heading back to the house shortly ahead of the fatal shootings.

Murdaugh lied about being at the kennels for 20 months before taking the stand on the 23rd day of his trial. He blamed his decadeslong addiction to opioids for making him paranoid, creating a distrust of police. He said that once he went down that path, he felt trapped in the lie.

“Oh, what a tangled web we weave. Once I told a lie — I told my family — I had to keep lying,” he testified.

Waters grilled Murdaugh about what he repeatedly called the lawyer’s “new story” of what happened at the kennels, walking him moment by moment through the timeline and assailing his “fuzzy” memory of certain details, like his last words to his wife and son.

A state agent also testified that markings on spent cartridges found around Maggie Murdaugh’s body matched markings on fired cartridges at a shooting range elsewhere on the property, though the defense said that kind of matching is an inexact science.

Murdaugh comes from a family that dominated the local legal scene for decades. His father, grandfather and great-grandfather were the area’s elected prosecutors for more than 80 years and his family law firm grew to dozens of lawyers by suing railroads, corporations and other big businesses.

The now-disbarred attorney admitted stealing millions of dollars from the family firm and clients, saying he needed the money to fund his drug habit. Before he was charged with murder, Murdaugh was in jail awaiting trial on about 100 other charges ranging from insurance fraud to tax evasion.

Prosecutors told jurors that Murdaugh was afraid all of his misdeeds were about to be discovered, so he killed his wife and son to gain sympathy to buy time to cover his tracks.

Waters commended the jurors for seeing through what he described as more lies by Murdaugh.

“We had no doubt that when we had a chance to present our case in the court of law that they would see through the one last con that Alex Murdaugh was trying to pull. And they did,” Waters said after the verdict.

-Jeffrey Collins of the Associated Press contributed to this report

What charges does Alex Murdaugh still face?

As the news of the mother and son's deaths began to be known on June 8, 2021, no one knew it would lead to multiple indictments of Alex Murdaugh and more than 100 charges and a tale that had media and true crime buffs wondering, what's next? And even with the verdict that question remains.

Murdaugh still has 100 other charges ranging from tax evasion to drug possession, still to come even though the double homicide charges have been dealt with.

Altogether, through 19 state indictments containing charges against Murdaugh, the State Grand Jury has indicted Murdaugh for schemes to defraud victims of $8,789,447.77 and the State of South Carolina of $486,819, stated a release from the S.C. Attorney General's Office.

State v. Richard a. Murdaugh Jury Charge by USA TODAY Network on Scribd

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This article originally appeared on Greenville News: Alex Murdaugh guilty on two counts of murder in deaths of wife, son