Alex Murdaugh says 'I'm innocent' after getting 2 life terms for double murder of wife Maggie and son Paul
WALTERBORO, SOUTH CAROLINA: Alex Murdaugh, the convicted murderer maintained his innocence before he was sentenced to two consecutive life sentences on Friday morning, March 3, for the brutal 2021 killings of his wife Maggie, 52, and son Paul, 22. Murdaugh remained stone-faced throughout the court hearing at the Colleton County Courthouse in Waterboro where he learned his fate.
"I’m innocent," said the 54-year-old disgraced lawyer when it was his chance to address the court. He said, "I would never hurt my wife Maggie and I would never hurt my son Paw Paw." While his younger brother John Marvin Murdaugh was seen emotional during the hearing, Murdaugh's surviving son Buster remained emotionless, reported New York Post.
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Murdaugh's guilty verdict just took 45 minutes for jurors
The unanimous decision of Murdaugh's guilty verdict was reached by juror Craig Moyer and 11 others in just 45 minutes based on the six-week-long trial with over 70 witnesses and numerous pieces of evidence displayed, chronicled on media for more than one-and-a-half year and garnered national attention. After he was found guilty, Judge Newman handed down the sentences and said it was "heartbreaking" to see his former colleague's downfall.
"When will [the lies] end?" asked Newman as Murdaugh once admitted to deceiving his family and partner all under the influence of his drug habit. He also admitted to lying to the investigators throughout the double-murder probe starting from the questions on his whereabouts on the night of the killing. Newman said, "I know you have to see Paul and Maggie during the nighttime when you’re attempting to go to sleep," to which Murdaugh said that he sees them "all day and every night."
Acknowledging the role of the former lawyer's drug addiction in the horrifying murder, Newman said, "[The murderer] might’ve been the monster you become when you take…opioid pills. Maybe you became another person."
Why did Murdaugh murder his wife and son?
The once-prominent legal scion shot and killed his wife and son on June 7, 2021, at the family's hunting lodge in Islandton. The state's attorney argued during the testimony of four weeks that Murdaugh, who was the heir of a 100-year-old family legal dynasty, murdered them to cover up his financial crimes which were about to be discovered. However, the defense highlighted his life as an addict and portrayed him as a guilt-ridden patriarch.
The crucial moment in the investigation that was keenly watched trial was the audio of the part of an interview between investigators and Murdaugh that took place three days after the grisly murders. "I did him so bad!", sobbed Murdaugh when he was shown the image of his younger son's body that was beyond recognition. However, the defense countered the argument by playing a slowed-down version of the audio and argued that he actually sobbed "They did him so bad!"
Initially, Murdaugh maintained that at the time of the murder, he was visiting his mother who was diagnosed with advanced Alzheimer's disease. Contradicting his statement, the disgraced lawyer testified that the voice recorded by his son Paul at 8.45 pm in a Snapchat clip was his. According to experts, the video was recorded just five minutes before Maggie and Paul were fatally shot.
John Wright, an ex-friend of the family opined on the conviction, and said, "The evidence is overwhelming but I can’t believe the jury was brave enough to convict him," and added, "I honestly didn’t think they would. Everyone knows these guys, and in addition to that, they had a lot of influence here. I thought the jury might be more reticent or fearful about convicting him." With a total of over 700 years in prison, the disgraced lawyer also faces dozens of alleged financial crimes in addition to the convictions of murder, reported Law and Crime.