A man stands with a sign outside the Colleton County Courthouse on the penultimate day of the Alex Murdaugh double murder trial on Wednesday, March 1, 2023. (Via Law&Crime Network)
Jurors in Colleton County have spent 28 days in service of their duty to determine the fate of attorney Richard Alexander “Alex” Murdaugh, 54, whose trial ended during the mid-afternoon on Thursday.
The 54-year-old South Carolina legal scion – disgraced and disbarred soon after the murder allegations and alleged financial improprieties came to light – is accused of shooting and killing his wife, Margaret “Maggie” Murdaugh, 52, and their youngest son, Paul Murdaugh, 22, in early June 2021 with a rifle and a shotgun.
“You have heard the testimony, received the evidence and heard the arguments of the state and the defendant,” Judge Clifton Newman told the 12 jurors, seven men and five women.
Reading from a lengthy series of instructions, the court tasked the jury with their job: They will write the verdict on the back of each of the four indictments filed against Alex Murdaugh.
“You are the finders of the facts in this case,” the judge said. “This is a matter solely for you, the jury, to determine.”
The judge said the defendant stands accused of two counts each of murder, for each victim, and two counts each of possession of a weapon during the commission of a violent crime. The judge explained that jurors must find that Alex Murdaugh killed his family with malice aforethought, a legal term of art central to many definitions of murder in many U.S. jurisdictions.
“Malice is hatred, ill will, or hostility towards another person,” Newman said. “It is the intentional doing of a wrongful act without just cause or excuse – and with an intent to inflict an injury or, under the circumstances, that the law will infer an evil intent.”
SEE ALSO: ‘He became a family annihilator’: Prosecution delivers long-drawn-out closing statement against accused killer Alex Murdaugh
Newman said the jury must decide based on the “effect, value, and weight of the evidence” offered during the trial.
“You are to consider only the testimony that has been presented from this witness stand,” the judge explained, along with other evidence presented during the trial, including any agreements between the state and the defense.
“The statements made by counsel are not evidence,” Newman cautioned jurors. He told them to consider evidence based on their understanding and recollection of what occurred during the trial.
Lead prosecutor Creighton Waters provided closings in the case for the state, attorney Jim Griffin turned up for the defense, and the state’s final rebuttal was by veteran prosecutor John Meadors.
The court then apprised the jury of the fundamental rights afforded to criminal defendants and the standard for determining their guilt or innocence in the state and broader U.S. legal system.
“The presumption of innocence is like a robe of righteousness placed about the shoulders of the defendant – which remains with the defendant until it has been stripped from the defendant by evidence satisfying you of that guilt beyond a reasonable doubt,” Newman said. “The presumption of innocence is not a mere legal theory. It is not just a legal phrase. It is a substantial right to which every defendant is entitled. Unless you, the jury, are satisfied from the evidence of the guilt of the defendant beyond a reasonable doubt.”
“There are very few things we know in this world with absolute certainty,” Newman said. “And in criminal cases, the law does not require proof that overcomes every possible doubt. If based on your consideration of the evidence, you are firmly convinced of a crime charged, you must then find him guilty. If, on the other hand, you think there is a real possibility that he is not guilty, you must then give him the benefit of the doubt and find him not guilty.”
SEE ALSO: ‘They started fabricating evidence’: Defense lawyer accuses South Carolina cops of framing Alex Murdaugh
The defense asked an alternate juror to be kept in the courthouse just in case anything happened to one of the jurors. The state deferred to that request. Alex Murdaugh rose and told the judge he wanted to keep the alternate around.
Newman also told jurors not to use electronic devices to explore media about the case and implored them to limit their use of electronic devices for other purposes, even if they cannot reach a verdict by the end of the day on Thursday.
The court has instructed that jurors have until 10 p.m. EST to deliberate on Thursday. They will not be sequestered if their discussions go on for multiple days. Additionally, the court said, “there is no plan to order dinner for the jury.” They are being offered coffee, tea, water, and snacks.
According to Law&Crime correspondent Gigi McKelvey, Alex Murdaugh’s defense team said jurors would not deliberate over the weekend. If their decision remains elusive on Friday afternoon, they won’t return to court until Monday.
Deliberations will be allowed to go until 4 p.m. on Friday, the defense told reporters outside the courthouse.
“No one will have a right to criticize your verdict,” the judge said before sending the 12 off. “You have no friends to reward or enemies to punish.”
Have a tip we should know? [email protected]
