Murdaugh attorneys say new trial will differ after state Supreme Court overturns conviction

COLLETON COUNTY, S.C. (WCIV) — Alex Murdaugh’s attorneys say a new trial in his double murder case will look “substantially different” after the South Carolina Supreme Court unanimously overturned his conviction and granted him a retrial.

READ MORE | SC Supreme Court overturns Alex Murdaugh’s 2023 murder conviction, orders new trial

Defense attorneys Dick Harpootlian and Jim Griffin said they expected the decision and argued the prosecution overreached during the original trial.

In an interview with ABC News, Harpootlian said, “There’s substantive evidence that [Becky Hill] tampered, she obstructed justice in tampering with this jury. It’s gonna cost the state millions to retry it, wasted millions, and it’s gonna cost us a lot of money too.”

Griffin said the court’s ruling applied both federal and state constitutional law. “And what we had here was an unprecedented attempt and actually successful jury tampering caught. And we unearthed that the clerk of court engaged in this misconduct, illegal misconduct,” Griffin said.

The appeal centered on jury interference by Colleton County Clerk of Court Becky Hill, who resigned from her position in 2024 and later pleaded guilty to misconduct this past December. Murdaugh’s defense argued the interference denied him his constitutional right to a fair trial and filed a motion for a new trial that was denied before the Supreme Court granted the appeal.

Griffin said the defense welcomed the court’s direction on what comes next. “We were, frankly, appreciative of the Supreme Court offering guidance on what that second trial looks like,” he said.

Murdaugh’s legal team said strategies on both sides could change in a retrial, including what evidence is allowed. “The Supreme Court clearly said that Mr. Waters and his prosecution team overreached and that a next trial will not include all the financial evidence that they offered in the first trial. It will be substantially different,” Griffin said.

It is not clear whether Murdaugh would testify again. Harpootlian said, “She did tamper with the jury or attempted to tamper what the jury which under the case laws enough to get a new trial.”

Griffin added that testimony decisions can be pivotal and are typically made late in the process: “If a defendant takes a stand, the trial then rises or falls based upon whether the jury believes him. They were, Alex didn’t get a chance. And that would be the difference if he chooses to testify on a second trial. And that decision will not be made until the day of the trial when it comes time for a defense to put up.”

There is no timeline for when Murdaugh will return to the courtroom, but Attorney General Alan Wilson said his office is pushing to retry the case as soon as possible.