Alex Murdaugh will get a new trial after the South Carolina Supreme Court overturned his murder convictions on Wednesday, saying that a court clerk “placed her fingers on the scales of justice.”
Murdaugh’s trial, which drew national attention thanks to a popular Netflix documentary, was tainted by Colleton County Clerk Rebecca Hill, who attempted to influence the outcome of the trial, “thereby denying Murdaugh his right to a fair trial by an impartial jury,” justices ruled. The decision was unanimous.
“Our justice system provides — indeed demands — that every person is entitled to a fair trial, which includes an impartial jury untainted by external forces bent on influencing the jury toward a biased verdict,” the justices wrote. “Although we are aware of the time, money, and effort expended for this lengthy trial, we have no choice but to reverse the denial of Murdaugh’s motion for a new trial due to Hill’s improper external influences on the jury and remand for a new trial.”
Jurors stated that Hill told the jury “not to be fooled” by evidence provided by Murdaugh’s attorneys and “to watch him closely.”
One juror said she “felt influenced to find Murdaugh guilty by Hill’s remarks before she entered the jury room, and once deliberations began, she felt additional pressure from the other jurors to reach a guilty verdict,” according to an affidavit.
Other jurors testified to hearing Hill’s comments but claimed her statements did not affect their decision. The South Carolina Supreme Court’s opinion states that Hill denied making “most of the comments the jurors related” and also denied attempting to influence the jury.
The trial began in late January 2023 and quickly gained attention thanks to the documentary series “Murdaugh Murders: A Southern Scandal,” which premiered on February 22, 2023. A guilty verdict was delivered on March 2, 2023.
In July of 2023, Hill published a book along with two co-authors titled “Behind the Doors of Justice: The Murdaugh Murders.” Rhonda McElveen, a court clerk who assisted Hill with the trial, told the South Carolina Supreme Court that Hill “repeatedly told her she wanted to write a book so she could buy a lake house, and a guilty verdict would be the best way to sell books.” McElveen also revealed that Hill gave a juror a ride home.
McElveen said she did not hear Hill make inappropriate comments to the jurors, but that Hill would make comments to her, staff, and the press that were “strikingly similar to those Juror Z reported.”
Hill has denied “wanting a guilty verdict because it would sell more books” and claimed that the “outcome of the trial did not matter to her.”
Ultimately, the South Carolina Supreme Court wrote, “We are accordingly constrained to reverse the post-trial court’s denial of Murdaugh’s motion and remand for a new trial consistent with this opinion” due to Hill’s “shocking jury interference.”
The so-called “Southern Scandal” involved one of South Carolina’s most powerful families. Murdaugh was charged with brutally killing his wife and son. He was later found guilty of committing financial crimes in 2023 and faced scrutiny after a fatal boat accident in 2019 involving his other son. Murdaugh broke with tradition by testifying in his own defense, adding to the intrigue as all the layers of the shocking story came to light inside the small-town South Carolina courtroom.
During the first trial, journalists and cameras were permitted in the courtroom, allowing the public to follow the trial in real time.
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