- In the SLED interview, Murdaugh appears to say “It’s so bad, I hurt him so much, talking about his son, Paul.
- In a follow-up SLED interview, Murdaugh told police the last time he saw victims was when they had dinner; but the state says it has cellphone video that proves otherwise.
- Cross-examination of SLED Agent Jeff Croft is scheduled to begin at 9:30 a.m. Tuesday.
The video at the top of the story will show a live stream or replay at the end of today’s proceedings.
Day six of Alex Murdaugh’s murder trial ended with additional testimony from SLED Senior Special Agent Jeff Croft about 300 Blackout rounds and 12-gauge shotgun shells found elsewhere on the estate of the Moselle, AR-15s being custom-built for Murdaugh and video footage of an SLED. interview with Murdaugh which appears to contain questionable statements from the suspect.
During the afternoon session, Croft testified that other areas of the Moselle, including the gun shed and a pond, were littered with 300 Blackout casings and 12-gauge shotgun shells. like the ones used to kill Maggie and Paul. The prosecution released body camera footage of Croft and other SLED officers recovering those cartridges.
The state also released video footage of Murdaugh during a June 10, 2021 follow-up interview with SLED — the second time Murdaugh spoke to state police following the killings. The interview was conducted inside a vehicle at a hunting lodge owned by his brother, John Marvin Murdaugh.
After talking to officers, Murdaugh relays his recollection of the timeline of events on the day of the murders. As the video plays, lead prosecutor for the SC Attorney General Creighton Waters stops and repeats some key information to the jury, or asks Croft to elaborate or repeat parts of Murdaugh’s statements for the jury. .
In the video, as Murdaugh described his final moments with Paul, driving around the property, he broke down and cried, as SLED officers comforted him and handed him tissues.
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In court, Murdaugh, while watching the video, began rocking back and forth and appeared to become emotional, grabbing a handkerchief from the defense table.
Croft testified that Murdaugh told SLED the last time he saw Maggie and Paul was when the family had dinner. However, earlier in the trial, Waters told the jury that the state had cellphone video evidence that put Murdaugh in the kennel later.
Asked about his relationship with his wife, Murdaugh, who again looked upset in the video, replied: “I had a wonderful wife, she was a wonderful mother. She didn’t work, but she took care of me and boys. “
Murdaugh sniffled throughout the interview, then openly cried at times. During a moment of sobbing in grief, Murdaugh appears to have said this about Paul: “It’s so bad. I hurt him so badly.” When Waters repeated this to Croft, he verified that was indeed what he had said.
During the interview, SLED agents downloaded Murdaugh’s phone and had him spit out his wad of chewing tobacco in order to do an oral “bubble swab” to collect DNA.
Croft’s cross-examination is scheduled to begin Tuesday at 9:30 a.m.
The Alex Murdaugh Murder TrialKey revelations and unanswered questions after week 1.
Alex Murdaugh Murder Trial: Day 6 Updates at the Colleton County Courthouse
The second week of the Alex Murdaugh double murder trial began on Monday with often grueling cross-examination from one SLED officer and extensive gun and ammunition evidence from another.
The cross-examination of SLED senior criminalist Melinda Worley, who handled much of the crime scene evidence, was conducted by Murdaugh’s defense attorney Richard Harpootlian, who often grilled Worley with investigations questioning national and local police practices and the integrity of the crime scene.
At some point early in cross-examination, Harpootlian asked Worley, “What’s so special about a special agent?”
Harpootlian questioned the fingerprint and ballistic evidence collected at the scene, as well as the methods used by the police to take it. After questioning the bullet trajectory information presented by Worley, he asked, “Doesn’t that tell you there were two shooters? Is it possible there was two shooters?
At times, Harpootlian sounded like the veteran lawyer that he is, asking the tough questions that raise reasonable doubt in the minds of the jury. At other times, he appeared as a man who had lost his car keys, searching for exhibits and delaying courtroom action. On several occasions, Judge Clifton Newman rushed the defense and at one point gave the jury a break while the defense arranged their exhibits and presentation.
When testimony and evidence was presented about possible blood spatter on Murduagh’s t-shirt that night, Harpootlian wondered if the spatter was from blood or other substances, such as water bleach or rust. When testimonies and evidence were presented about the “biological material” found on an ATV near Maggie’s body, he wondered if it was human material or if it could have been from a deer.
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Later on day six of the trial, SLED Senior Special Agent Jeff Croft spoke. Croft’s video testimony and evidence included four firearms taken from Murdaugh’s gun room – an AR-15 chambered for 300 Blackout rounds and three 12-gauge shotguns – as well as ammunition from the gun room. guns and other areas of Murdaugh’s estate.
According to prosecutors, the ammunition found on the estate and in the gun room matches the type of ammunition found at the murder scene.
Murdaugh’s attorney, Jim Griffin, objected to the guns and ammunition being entered into evidence, citing they were not the murder weapon, but Judge Newman ruled they were relevant and dismissed the objections.
Croft also presented snapshots of cellphone conversations between victim Paul Murdaugh and his friend Rogan Gibson, which help establish more information about the evening’s timeline.
Several attorneys from the Murdaugh family’s law firm, PMPED, including Lee Cope, Mark Ball and Ronnie Crosby, were present during Croft’s search of Murdaugh’s estate the morning after the murders.
Video footage also shows Croft and SLED officers rummaging through bins in Moselle, where they found empty shotgun bosses and, strangely enough, a credit card receipt with a Gucci purchase of 1,021.10 $ circled above. Prosecutors did not comment on the significance of the credit card receipt or the Gucci purchase.
Notable people present at today’s session included SC Attorney General Alan Wilson, Fox News anchor Nancy Grace and even several students on a field trip from an area law school. It should also be noted that several members of the general public, who appear to be following the case closely, brought notebooks into the courtroom and took careful notes.
The hearing will resume at 2:40 p.m. with further testimony from Croft.
Throwback to Friday in Colleton County Court
Although the attorney general’s office is not commenting on the next witnesses to appear next week, the state has released a list of 255 possible witnesses in that trial, which is expected to last until around February 10.
The opening week of the double murder trial of disbarred Hampton attorney Richard “Alex” Murdaugh featured graphic and often gory testimony, images and video, and revealing witness statements that contradicted reports that Murdaugh had previously provided to authorities, and the second week should be just as engrossing and revealing.
Week 1 recapWhat happened in court and what’s to come.
Throughout the week, testimony presented the state’s claim that a family gun was used in at least one of the June 7, 2021 murders of Murdaugh’s wife, Maggie, and youngest son. , Paul, at their home in Colleton County, while thought-provoking. prompting questions about the timetable Murdaugh gave to police and contradicted his statements that he checked the pulses of both bodies when he found them.
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This widely watched and highly publicized murder trial – a media “mini-city” has been established around the courthouse square which includes a media overflow room, food trucks and luxury portable potties
This widely watched and highly publicized murder trial – a media “mini-city” has been established around the courthouse plaza which includes a media overflow room, food trucks and a luxury porta pottie