Alex Murdaugh Takes the Stand in Double Murder Trial

On Thursday, Feb. 23, 2023, Alex Murdaugh took the stand at his own double murder trial at the Colleton County Courthouse in Walterboro, South Carolina.^[0] Murdaugh is facing 99 additional charges for an array of alleged financial crimes and is being accused by prosecutors of murdering his wife and son in order to divert attention from them. The disbarred attorney has been stripped of his title.^[1]

Murdaugh, 54, is the scion of an influential Lowcountry legal dynasty and once led the Palmetto State's powerful trial lawyers' lobby.^[2] He is accused of killing his wife, Margaret “Maggie” Murdaugh, 52, and her son, Paul Murdaugh, 22, on June 7, 2021, at their residence in Islandton, S.C., near the dog kennels on their sprawling property.^[3]

The prosecution believes Murdaugh killed his wife and son to deflect from his theft of nearly $9 million from his law firm and clients.^[4] Creighton Waters, the prosecutor, fiercely questioned Murdaugh on his possible financial offences during cross-examination. Murdaugh acknowledged that he had taken money which did not belong to him, and accepted that it was an inappropriate behaviour.^[5]

But Murdaugh was emphatic in his denial that he shot and killed his wife and son, insisting in response to Griffin’s questions, “I didn’t shoot my wife or my son, anytime, ever.”^[6] Murdaugh confessed to having misled investigators due to his paranoia, which was a result of his opioid dependency.^[4] Murdaugh declared to the jury that he had not been the one to fire the gun despite the fact that it had caused him to distrust law enforcement.^[0]

Murdaugh made a series of astonishing admissions to the jury, saying that he was with his wife Maggie (52) and son Paul (22) at the family's hunting estate's dog kennels only minutes before they were both fatally shot on June 7th, 2021. A cellphone video later recovered from Paul Murdaugh's phone showed that his voice was heard at the kennels at 8:44 p.m., which was in conflict with his alibi. This video placed him at the murder scene minutes before his son, Paul, and wife, Maggie, were killed.

Murdaugh stated that he kept the badge he had obtained as a volunteer assistant solicitor in his vehicle, noting that he would “get better treatment” if he was stopped by law enforcement.^[0]

0. “Live video from the courtroom as Alex Murdaugh testifies at double murder trial” WJCL News Savannah, 24 Feb. 2023, https://www.wjcl.com/article/murdaugh-trial-live-stream-21/43056007

1. “Alex Murdaugh admits he lied to investigators about his whereabouts the night of his wife and son’s killings and stole from his clients” Boston News, Weather, Sports | WHDH 7News, 24 Feb. 2023, https://whdh.com/news/alex-murdaugh-admits-he-lied-to-investigators-about-his-whereabouts-the-night-of-his-wife-and-sons-killings-and-stole-from-his-clients/

2. “LIVE FEED – ‘Murdaugh Murders' Trial: Day Twenty-Four” FITSNews, 24 Feb. 2023, https://www.fitsnews.com/2023/02/24/live-feed-murdaugh-murders-trial-day-twenty-four

3. “Alex Murdaugh Claims Son ‘Paul Paul's' Killer Was Angry About Fatal 2019 Boat Crash: ‘The Most Vile Threats'” PEOPLE, 23 Feb. 2023, https://people.com/crime/alex-murdaugh-claims-sons-killer-angry-fatal-2019-boat-crash-threats

4. “Alex Murdaugh admits he first claimed he was at dog kennels in court” Fox News, 24 Feb. 2023, https://www.foxnews.com/us/alex-murdaugh-admits-first-claimed-dog-kennels-court

5. “LIVE: Day 24: Alex Murdaugh to face 2nd day of cross-examination” Live 5 News WCSC, 24 Feb. 2023, https://www.live5news.com/2023/02/24/live-day-24-alex-murdaugh-face-2nd-day-cross-examination

6. “‘Paranoid' Murdaugh Drops a Bombshell on the Witness Stand” The Daily Beast, 23 Feb. 2023, https://www.thedailybeast.com/alex-murdaugh-expected-to-take-the-stand-in-his-own-defense