Disgraced legal scion Alex Murdaugh achieved two significant legal victories Friday as he prepares for a retrial in the murders of his wife, Maggie, and son, Paul. A judge granted his defense team permission to test unidentified male DNA found under Maggie Murdaugh's fingernails and ordered the retrial moved from Colleton County due to extensive publicity.
Circuit Judge Debra McCaslin ruled that the retrial must be transferred out of the Fourteenth Judicial Circuit, accepting the defense's argument that the intense media coverage and the conduct of the former Colleton County clerk of court, Becky Hill, had compromised the local jury pool. "I believe the defendant cannot receive a fair and impartial trial in Colleton County," McCaslin stated. "I'm transferring it not only from Colleton, but out of Colleton County completely."
McCaslin called Hill's involvement "presumptively prejudicial," citing the Murdaugh family's long-standing ties to the area and the fact that fewer than 15% of prospective jurors qualified for the first trial. The judge did not immediately specify a new location for the retrial, reserving that decision for a written order. Murdaugh's attorneys have proposed Charleston, while prosecutors have suggested other locations including Spartanburg and Florence.
In a separate ruling, McCaslin permitted Murdaugh's lawyers to seek independent DNA testing on a sample recovered from beneath Maggie Murdaugh's fingernails. The court heard that the sample is composed of 99% Maggie's DNA and 1% from an unknown male. The defense intends to have the sample analyzed by Othram, a genetic genealogy lab, hoping to build a family tree and potentially identify the unknown individual. This could allow the defense to argue that another person was present at the scene on the night of the murders.
Murdaugh appeared in court on Friday in street clothes, unshackled, and in a calmer demeanor than in previous appearances. He was convicted in 2023 of the murders of Maggie and Paul, who were killed on June 7, 2021, at the family's Moselle estate. The South Carolina Supreme Court overturned that conviction in May, citing jury tampering by clerk Becky Hill.
Despite the victories, McCaslin ruled that Murdaugh's testimony from his first trial, including his admission of lying about his alibi, can be used against him in the retrial. The judge reasoned that sworn testimony carries consequences, regardless of the circumstances of the retrial.
Murdaugh is currently serving a 40-year federal sentence for financial fraud and a concurrent 27-year state sentence for related offenses. His defense team is reportedly working the retrial pro bono, citing a lack of funds after the first trial.
The next pre-trial hearing is scheduled for November 13 in Lexington.