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The unusual hearing Monday comes in response to allegations by Murdaugh's attorneys that a clerk of court tampered with the jury that convicted him of murder last year. Jury tampering is the basis for Murdaugh's appeal, but Judge Jean Toal’s rulings after a pretrial hearing this month have set a difficult standard for his lawyers to prove. Toal ruled the defense must prove that potential misconduct including alleged comments by Hill warning jurors not to trust Murdaugh when he testifies directly led jurors to change their minds to guilty. The hearing will be televised, but their faces cannot be shown and they will only be identified by their juror numbers. They said this enabled prosecutors to smear Murdaugh with evidence not directly linked to the killings.

Persons: — Alex Murdaugh, who'll, Becky Hill, Murdaugh, lording, Jean Toal’s, Toal, Hill, Murdaugh’s, Clifton Newman, He's, Paul, Maggie, Murdaugh hasn't Organizations: COLUMBIA, BBC Locations: South Carolina, Colleton County, Colleton, Richland

☆ A hearing to see if Alex Murdaugh gets a new murder trial begins today
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-29 | by ( Dakin Andone | Dianne Gallagher | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

The South Carolina Attorney General’s office, which led the prosecution against Murdaugh, has urged the courts to deny the motion. The evidentiary hearing Monday is expected to include the testimony of 11 jurors from the original murder trial and Hill. Murdaugh’s attorneys had indicated they also wanted to call alternate and dismissed jurors, as well as prosecutors and Judge Clifton Newman, who presided over the murder trial, as witnesses. Colleton County Clerk of Court Rebecca Hill listens as prosecutor Creighton Waters makes closing arguments in Alex Murdaugh's murder trial at the Colleton County Courthouse on March 1, 2023, in Walterboro, South Carolina. Alex Murdaugh's defense attorneys Dick Harpootlian, left, and Jim Griffin before a hearing on January 16 at the Richland County Judicial Center in Columbia.

Persons: Alex Murdaugh, Murdaugh, Colleton, Rebecca “ Becky ” Hill, Hill, “, ” Hill, Dick Harpootlian, Clifton Newman, Jean Toal –, Newman, –, Rebecca Hill, Creighton Waters, Alex Murdaugh's, Maggie, Paul, Alan Wilson, Ms, ”, ‘, ” Hill’s, Neil R, Gordon, Justin Bamberg, Will Lewis, Jim Griffin, Gavin McIntyre, ” Murdaugh’s, Judge Toal, ” CNN’s Devon Sayers Organizations: CNN, South Carolina Attorney, South Carolina Supreme, The State, TNS, Getty, Prosecutors, South Carolina, Judicial Center, Courier, South, South Carolina Law Locations: Colleton County, South Carolina, Colleton, Walterboro , South Carolina, The, Columbia , South Carolina, Richland, Columbia

Toal took over the request for a new trial after the judge overseeing the case, Clifton Newman, recused himself late last year. Hill has sworn that she did not ask jurors about Murdaugh’s guilt and never suggested that he committed the murders. State police are investigating the jury tampering and misuse of office allegations against Hill but have not charged her with any crimes. He said Hill told an assistant during the trial that a guilty verdict would be good for her book sales. Toal also expressed openness to other ways of ensuring the jurors' privacy, such as obscuring their faces during testimony.

Persons: Alex Murdaugh, Becky Hill, Jean Toal, Toal, Hill, Clifton Newman, “, Jan, Newman, Murdaugh, Maggie, Paul, Jim Griffin, Griffin, ” Toal, Creighton Waters, Waters, Dick Harpootlian, Joe McCulloch, ”, ___ Pollard Organizations: South Carolina Supreme, Defense, Court, Associated Press, America Statehouse News Initiative, America Locations: Colleton

☆ Alex Murdaugh reaches plea deal days before trial in financial crimes case
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-17 | by ( Juliette Arcodia | Erik Ortiz | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Convicted killer Alex Murdaugh struck a plea deal Friday, days before the start of his trial in South Carolina's sprawling case against him in dozens of financial crimes. For more on the case, watch "The Murdaugh Murders: Inside the Investigation" on "Dateline" at 9 ET/8 CT Friday. Murdaugh has proclaimed his innocence in the fatal shootings of his wife and son since a grand jury indicted him in the murders last year. Prosecutors alleged he killed them to gain pity before he would be exposed for a slew of financial crimes. In return, his federal sentence must run at the same time as any sentence imposed in his state case.

Persons: Alex Murdaugh, Clifton Newman, Gloria Satterfield, Creighton Waters, general's, Murdaugh, Margaret, Paul, Murdaugh's Organizations: Prosecutors Locations: Colleton, South, Beaufort County, South Carolina's

☆ Alex Murdaugh Pleads Guilty to Spate of Financial Crimes
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-17 | by ( Nicholas Bogel-Burroughs | More About Nicholas Bogel-Burroughs | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

Why It Matters: Mr. Murdaugh is trying to get his murder conviction thrown out. But Mr. Murdaugh’s lawyers are seeking to get the conviction thrown out based on what they say was questionable behavior by the court clerk. What Happens Next: Mr. Murdaugh’s financial victims may confront him in court. Mr. Murdaugh is scheduled to be sentenced for the financial crimes on Nov. 28, at which point some of his victims may address the court. Creighton Waters, a prosecutor with the South Carolina Attorney General’s office, said in court on Friday that at the heart of the financial crimes was Mr. Murdaugh’s abuse of people’s trust, and his greed.

Persons: Murdaugh, Maggie, Paul, Mr, Clifton Newman, “, ”, Newman, Creighton Waters, Waters Organizations: Prosecutors, South Carolina Attorney Locations: South Carolina

☆ Alex Murdaugh pleads guilty to state financial charges
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-17 | by ( Dianne Gallagher | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

Murdaugh was facing dozens of state charges in alleged schemes to defraud victims of millions. Lead prosecutor Creighton Waters said the deal would bring “finality to the matter” and ensure Murdaugh would “stay in state prison for a very long time.” The agreement, if approved, would see Murdaugh spend a total of 27 years in a South Carolina state prison, according to Waters. “Alex Murdaugh’s guilty plea will finally allow his financial victims to begin the process of healing,” Eric “EB” Bland and Ronnie Richter, attorneys for some of the victims, said in a statement. It also only covers the state financial charges and does not address any of the remaining county charges Murdaugh faces. Judge Newman sentenced Murdaugh to two consecutive life sentences in a South Carolina state prison, which Murdaugh is currently serving.

Persons: CNN —, Alex Murdaugh, Creighton Waters, Waters, Murdaugh, Clifton Newman, “, ” “, ” Murdaugh, ”, ” Newman, Newman, “ Alex Murdaugh’s, Eric “ EB, Bland, Ronnie Richter, Judge Newman, Alan Wilson, ” Wilson, Maggie, Paul, Becky Hill Organizations: CNN, Carolina Constitution, South Carolina, Murdaugh Locations: South Carolina, Beaufort County, Murdaugh, Waters, Carolina, Colleton

They said the court clerk, in charge of helping jurors and ensuring the trial ran efficiently, also had private conversations with the jury foreperson and pressured jurors to come to a quick verdict. And she pressured jurors to reach a guilty verdict quickly so she could profit from it,” defense attorneys Jim Griffin and Dick Harpootlian wrote. Hill’s book discusses how her Christian faith helped her navigate the sudden fame and responsibility that came with the Murdaugh trial. She said she became convinced of Murdaugh’s guilt when jurors and court officials visited the family home where the shootings happened. “I was mostly concerned about Alex being found innocent when I knew in my heart he was guilty,” Hill wrote.

Persons: —, Alex Murdaugh, Rebecca Hill, Clifton Newman, Murdaugh, Hill, “, Jim Griffin, Dick Harpootlian, didn't, Neil Gordon, “ I’ve, ” Gordon, Alex, ” Hill, Murdaugh didn't Organizations: COLUMBIA, Hampton County Guardian, South Carolina Attorney General's Locations: South Carolina, Colleton, Southern, Hampton County

COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — Attorneys for convicted murder Alex Murdaugh want a new trial, accusing the court clerk of improperly influencing the jury. They're accusing the court clerk at his double murder trial of telling jurors not to trust him when he testified in his own defense. They say she also had private conversations with the jury foreperson, and pressured jurors to come to a quick verdict. The request filed by Murdaugh's lawyers on Tuesday also accuses Colleton County Clerk of Court Rebecca Hill of giving jury members business cards from reporters. Murdaugh's lawyers said Hill's conduct was so egregious, it tainted the entire trial.

Persons: Alex Murdaugh, They're, Rebecca Hill, ” “, Hill, ”, Jim Griffin, Dick Harpootlian, Murdaugh, Murdaugh's, Clifton Newman, “ I’m, “, Hill's Organizations: COLUMBIA, South, South Carolina Court of, Associated Press, Division Locations: Colleton, New York City, South Carolina, Hill, Carolina

☆ A judge temporarily halted South Carolina's law that would ban most abortions at 6 weeks, a day after it was signed
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-27 | by ( Sarah Al-Arshani | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Henry McMaster signed a new restrictive abortion law on Thursday without any notice. Just a day later, a state judge ruled to temporarily halt the new restrictive law. By Friday, Judge Clifton Newman ruled to temporarily revert back to the state's previous law of banning abortions after 20 weeks. South Carolina's restrictive law is just one of many across the country after the Supreme Court's ruling to overturn Roe v. Wade last June. The law signed by McMaster was first passed in the state's General Assembly earlier in the week.

☆ South Carolina judge temporarily blocks six-week abortion ban
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-26 | by ( Julia Harte | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/6] Protesters gather inside the South Carolina House as members debate a new near-total ban on abortion with no exceptions for pregnancies caused by rape or incest at the state legislature in Columbia, South Carolina, U.S. August 30, 2022. REUTERS/Sam WolfeMay 26 (Reuters) - A South Carolina judge on Friday temporarily blocked the state's new law that bans most abortions after about six weeks, ruling that it should be considered by the state Supreme Court before taking effect. One of the Supreme Court justices in the majority on that decision has since retired, leaving it unclear how the court will rule on the new measure. Republican state lawmakers defending the bill said in legislative hearings this week that the measure remedied the errors that caused the state Supreme Court to strike down its predecessor. If upheld by the state Supreme Court, the six-week ban would allow abortions up to 12 weeks in cases of rape and incest, and provide an exception for medical emergencies.

☆ South Carolina attorney Murdaugh appeals conviction of murdering wife, son
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-09 | by ( Industry Insight | What A Law Firm Client Development Manager Says About Client Listening Programs | Sarah Thompson | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

March 9 (Reuters) - Richard "Alex" Murdaugh, the South Carolina lawyer convicted last week of murdering his wife and son, appealed his conviction and life sentence on Thursday, according to court records. Murdaugh, 54, a member of a powerful South Carolina family, was found guilty on March 2 on two counts of shooting his wife Maggie, 52, and youngest son, Paul, 22, on their family estate on June 7, 2021. For decades until 2006, Murdaugh family members served as the leading prosecutor in the area, and Murdaugh was a prominent personal injury attorney in the state. Murdaugh's lawyers tried to paint their client as a loving family man who, while facing financial difficulties and a drug addiction, would never harm his wife and child. Reporting by Brad Brooks in Lubbock, Texas; Editing by David GregorioOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

On Thursday a South Carolina jury declared Murdaugh, 54, guilty on two counts of gunning down his wife Maggie, 52, and youngest son, Paul, 22 on their family estate on June 7, 2021. Murdaugh, the scion of an influential legal family in an area west of Charleston, faces 30 years to life in prison for each of the two counts of murder under South Carolina law. After listening to testimony over five weeks, the jury took only three hours to deliberate before reaching their verdict. The case has drawn intense media coverage given the family's immense political power in and around Colleton County, where the trial took place. Throughout the trial, prosecutors portrayed Murdaugh as a serial liar and argued that only he had the means and the opportunity to commit the murders.

March 1 (Reuters) - Closing arguments are set to start on Wednesday in the trial of Richard "Alex" Murdaugh, the now-disbarred South Carolina lawyer charged with gunning down his wife and son in a complex and grisly case that has garnered international attention. Newman said he expected the jury would be back in court for closing arguments around 11 a.m. Murdaugh, who has said he had nothing to do with the murders, faces 30 years to life in prison if he is found guilty. In addition to the murders, Murdaugh has been charged with dozens of financial crimes, including an alleged scheme to have himself killed so that his older son, Buster, could collect a $10 million insurance payout. During the trial, Murdaugh admitted to stealing from clients and his law firm.

☆ Alex Murdaugh Says He Lied About Key Detail but Didn’t Kill Son and Wife
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-23 | by ( Joshua Jamerson | Valerie Bauerlein | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

WALTERBORO, S.C.—Disbarred lawyer Alex Murdaugh took the stand Thursday in his double-murder trial, saying during emotional testimony, “I didn’t shoot my wife or my son,” while admitting he lied to investigators about his whereabouts the night of the killings. “I want to testify,” Mr. Murdaugh said Thursday morning as Circuit Court Judge Clifton Newman advised Mr. Murdaugh of his rights. Mr. Murdaugh’s testimony will continue Friday.

On the night that Alex Murdaugh's wife and son would be fatally shot on the grounds of their rural estate in Colleton County, South Carolina, the 22-year-old sent out a video on Snapchat to several friends. Newman is expected to hear arguments on the motions once the jury of 12 plus six alternates is seated. Newman has already ordered representatives from Snapchat, as well as Google, to be subpoenaed to testify at the trial to attest to evidence on electronic devices. Besides potential digital evidence, forensics may also play a key part during the trial. There is DNA from the victims on Murdaugh's shirt, but his defense said that was the result of coming into contact with their bodies, which were lying near dog kennels on the property.

But the perceived spectacle means that not only will Murdaugh be on display — so will the county seat of Walterboro, population 5,460. “We didn’t want this, but it’s happening, and it’s here,” Scott Grooms, Walterboro’s director of tourism and downtown development, said last week. A portrait of Randolph "Buster" Murdaugh Jr., Alex Murdaugh's late grandfather, was removed from the Colleton County Courthouse ahead of Alex Murdaugh's trial. From left, Paul, Margaret and Alex Murdaugh. While he didn’t know Alex Murdaugh personally, he said few with longstanding ties in the area had not been touched by the Murdaughs’ orbit in one way or another.

Then, in 2019, Paul Murdaugh was involved in a boat crash that resulted in injuries and claimed the life of a 19-year-old passenger, Mallory Beach. Waters said that the plaintiffs were expecting to get a "personal recovery" from Murdaugh, whose financial situation was growing increasingly bleaker. via FacebookState grand jury subpoenas had been issued in the boat crash case in 2021, and at the time of the killings of Margaret and Paul Murdaugh on June 7, Paul Murdaugh was facing trial. The bodies of the wife and son were discovered by Alex Murdaugh at the family's hunting estate in rural Islandton, about 65 miles west of Charleston. But with the death of his wife and son, Murdaugh benefited because his law firm halted its questioning and a hearing in the boat case was canceled, according to Waters.

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