Prosecutors seek third life sentence for convicted killer Alex Murdaugh over financial crimes
COLUMBIA, SOUTH CAROLINA: The prosecutors who convicted the murderer Alex Murdaugh for killing his wife and son, seek a third life sentence without parole. They are now pursuing a third life term for financial crimes. Authorities assert that they would pursue charges against Murdaugh until every one of his victims in a number of financial fraud and theft frauds receives justice, and a third conviction would guarantee the legal scion dies in jail.
Murdaugh might appear in court again in each of the five South Carolina counties where the acknowledged offenses occurred since he is currently facing 99 outstanding financial crime counts. In an exclusive interview with ABC4News, Alan Wilson, the state's attorney general, and Creighton Waters, his deputy, told that they are "100%" determined to pursue the third conviction. The disgraced legal scion is now imprisoned in one of South Carolina's most notorious prisons, Kirkland Correctional Institution, Daily Mail reported.
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'Three strikes' rule
A third conviction for a life sentence would mean that Murdaugh will serve the remainder of his life in prison under the state's "three strikes" rule, even though he was spared the death penalty for the killings of his wife Maggie and son Paul. His murder conviction is presently being appealed, but the state is requesting three further convictions for trust breach totaling at least $10,000.
He would be sentenced to life in prison and lose his chance of parole after three further convictions on the breach of trust counts. Prosecutors assert that they won't stop with only three further convictions. "These victims deserve their day in court, and we are going to pursue every case that involves every other victim," state AG Wilson noted."They get their shot, they get their day in court," he added.
The prosecutor, Waters, who is handling the cases against Murdaugh stated that he desires to seek justice for all the alleged victims who became prey to his financial fraud and theft schemes through the upcoming trials, "We are talking about somebody who allegedly has abused the trust that comes with that diploma on the wall that we (lawyers) all have, and did so in a way that is unparalleled," he stated in the interview with ABC4 News.
Paul Murdaugh was convicted after two years
Murdaugh was ultimately apprehended when critical evidence was given at his trial, over two years after he killed his wife and children. The incriminating evidence included a video that showed him at the crime site just before the killings, a "confession" to the police, and an appalling act on the witness stand. A video captured by Murdaugh's kid at the kennels just before he and his mother were shot to death was at the heart of the State's case. While he had informed police he was never at the crime site, it proved to be the disbarred lawyer's downfall.
His last-ditch attempt to change his alibi failed to persuade the jury when he took the stand during his trial and claimed he only lied because his drug addiction made him nervous. Video footage that appeared to depict a confession from Murdaugh just three days after the killings was also among the horrifying evidence shown during the six-week trial. Murdaugh is heard saying, "I did him so horrible," in the video.
While Murdaugh was found guilty in last month's high-profile trial, there are still many unanswered issues regarding the circumstances behind the deaths. What led Murdaugh to kill his wife and kids is the key enigma surrounding the unanswered questions. The prosecution put up the notion that Murdaugh killed his wife and son because his life was becoming out of hand, but they were unable to pinpoint a particular motive for the killings. Throughout his testimony, he described how his chronic opiate addiction was causing him significant financial difficulties as well as reports that his marriage was in trouble. Police also failed to produce a murder weapon, and although prosecutors claimed that a gun that Alex purchased for his son would have been a match, it was never discovered.
