COLLETON COUNTY, S.C. (WSAV) — We now know when and where Alex Murdaugh will stand trial for the murder of his wife and son.
Maggie and Paul Murdaugh were found shot to death on the family’s Moselle property in Colleton County on June 7, 2021.
On Jan. 30, 2023, Alex Murdaugh will stand trial in a Colleton County courtroom for allegedly killing both of them.
The pair were found shot with two different guns near the dog kennel at the front of the property.
It is a case that both sides say could take three weeks for evidence to be presented and witnesses to be called.
So far prosecutors have “not” offered many details on what happened that night including what may have led Alex to commit the crime.
Murdaugh’s attorneys Jim Griffin and Dick Harpootlian said the following:
“We appreciate the court accommodating our request for a speedy trial. Alex is looking forward to his day in court and we are confident that he will be acquitted after an impartial Colleton County jury considers all the evidence. Alex continues to hope that everyone responsible for Maggie and Paul’s death will eventually be brought to justice.”
The South Carolina Attorney General’s Office only offered this comment: “This is the date the state wanted and the defense agreed to it.”
Alex, himself, and the estate of Maggie and Paul have petitioned a judge a second time to delay the civil case filed by the family of Mallory Beach until after that criminal trial.
The judge changed his decision last month, denying their original request, saying the civil trial could start trial Jan. 9 of next year.
Alex’s lawyers say having to defend a civil case first will “substantially affect” his ability to prepare for his criminal case and get a fair trial in both cases.
Murdaugh is accused of trying to cover up the fact his son Paul was drunk and driving the boat that crashed in Archer’s Creek in Beaufort back in 2019. A crash threw 19-year-old Mallory Beach into the water. Her body was not found until seven days later.
If that isn’t enough, Alex Murdaugh now faces another civil complaint.
Manuel Santiz-Cristian says Murdaugh as well as Ronnie Crosby and William Barnes, two other lawyers from the PMPED firm Murdaugh once worked for, stole an insurance settlement from Ford and Michelin meant for Cristian after a car crash.
Those lawyers as well as Palmetto State Bank and its former CEO Russell Laffitte are also named as defendants in the case.
That crash happened in 2008 and Cristian says he has never seen a dime.
The suit claims “the Plaintiff (Cristian) was a passenger in a vehicle traveling along Interstate 95 in Colleton County, South Carolina when the tread separated from the right rear tire of the vehicle causing it to overturn with the Plaintiff inside.”
On Aug. 30, 2011, Cristian and PMPED filed a product liability lawsuit against the driver, the maker of the vehicle (Ford), and the maker of the tire (Michelin).
About Sept. 24, 2013, “PMPED negotiated a settlement of Plaintiff’s case with Ford Motor Company and Michelin North America, Inc. for a sum amount unknown to the Plaintiff, and it agreed to dismiss the Plaintiff’s Product Liability Case with prejudice.”
The suit continues on to say PMPED deposited the settlement money into Palmetto State Bank, and “to this date, the Plaintiff has never received the funds from the Product Liability Case.”
Cristian is asking for full payment and damages.
