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Who is Alex Murdaugh? South Carolina lawyer, 54, indicted on 2 counts for murders of wife and son

Alex Murdaugh told authorities he went outside for shooting and when he returned, he saw Paul and Maggie’s bodies in the estate

Update: The disgraced South Carolina legal scion Alex Murdaugh was charged Thursday, July 14, 2022, with the double murder of his wife and son. Murdaugh, 54 — a fourth-generation lawyer from a powerful legal family — was indicted on two counts of murder and two counts of weapons possession in the grisly shooting deaths of Maggie Murdaugh, 52, and Paul Murdaugh, 22, the state’s district attorney, Alan Wilson, announced.

South Carolina State Law Enforcement Division Chief Mark Keel called the indictment against Alex Murdaugh "one more step in a long process of justice for Maggie and Paul."  He was allegedly tied to the killings via blood spatter on his clothing along with a video that put him at the murder scene, according to reports

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ISLANDTON, SOUTH CAROLINA: The murders of Paul Murdaugh and his mother, Margaret aka Maggie, have sent shockwaves across South Carolina. The duo, who belonged to a prominent Lowcountry legal family, was reportedly found dead last Monday, June 7, at their hunting lodge in Islandton, South Carolina. It has been said the main target of the unidentified suspect(s) was the 22-year-old while his mother, the wife of Alex Murdaugh, was fatally shot because she was there by chance.

Who is Alex Murdaugh?

Alex is a lawyer and the successor to a powerful, wealthy legal dynasty. His full name is Richard Alexander Murdaugh Sr, who serves as a part-time prosecutor for the 14th Circuit solicitor's office. According to the website of Murdaugh’s law firm, PMPED, Alex graduated from Wade Hampton High School in 1986.

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It also adds, “He received a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Political Science from the University of South Carolina in 1990, a Juris Doctorate Degree in May 1994 from the University of South Carolina School of Law and was admitted to the South Carolina Bar in November 1994. Alex represents injured persons in all areas of personal injury law, including trucking cases, products liability and wrongful death.”

Where was he at the time of the murder?

Alex was the one who first found the dead bodies of his son and wife. It has been said that he told authorities he went outside for shooting and when he returned, he saw Paul and Maggie’s bodies a few distances apart from each other in the backyard of their sprawling estate.

Reports stated that Paul, who was accused in the February 2019 death of 19-year-old Mallory Beach, was shot with a shotgun in the head and upper body, while the 52-year-old Maggie was targeted with what seemed to be an assault rifle. A South Carolina Law Enforcement Division (SLED) spokesman said, “no additional information is available at this time while we are conducting an active investigation.”

After the tragedy, PMPED reportedly released a statement that read, “The Murdaugh family and PMPED wish to thank everyone for the many calls and condolences in the aftermath of the deaths of Maggie and Paul Murdaugh. We ask for your continued patience and prayers through this tragic time. Please contact law enforcement should you have any information that may be important.”

Meanwhile, the family of Mallory also released a statement while showing sympathy towards the Murdaughs despite suing them last year. The statement read, “The Beach Family extends its deepest and warmest sympathies to the Murdaugh family during this terrible time. Having suffered the devastating loss of their own daughter, the family prays that the Murdaughs can find some level of peace from this tragic loss. They would like the family and the community to know that their thoughts and continued prayers are with the Murdaughs. It is their most sincere hope that someone will come forward and cooperate with authorities so that the perpetrator of these senseless crimes can be brought to justice.

On Friday, June 11, a funeral service was held for Paul and Maggie in Hampton County, which was attended by hundreds. A family member, Elizabeth Murdaugh, described the mother-son duo “well lived and well loved”.