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Alex Murdaugh’s attorneys accuse clerk of court Rebecca Hill of jury tampering in motion seeking new murder trial

Alex Murdaugh’s attorneys sought a new murder trial to overturn his conviction because Rebecca Hill had pressured jurors to return a guilty verdict

COLLETON COUNTY, SOUTH CAROLINA: The double murder convict Alex Murdaugh’s attorneys brought a motion against the South Carolina Clerk of Court Rebecca Hill on Tuesday, September 5, accusing her of pressuring jurors to return a guilty verdict against the legal dynast. In their motion, they also sought a fresh trial.

Murdaugh, who is a former lawyer himself, was convicted of the June 2021 murder of his wife Maggie, and son Paul in March, 2023. He is currently serving two life sentences for the two crimes.

Why did Murdaugh filed a motion against Rebecca Hill?

Murdaugh’s lawyers filed the motion claiming Rebecca Hill who allegedly “tampered with the jury by advising them not to believe Murdaugh’s testimony and other evidence presented by the defense."

The court documents filed state Hill was "pressuring them to reach a quick guilty verdict, and even misrepresenting critical and material information to the trial judge in her campaign to remove a juror she believed to be favorable to the defense,” per CNN.

Murdaugh’s lawyers Dick Harpootlian and Jim Griffin claimed in the motion that Hill did this as she wanted to secure a book deal, saying, “Ms Hill did these things to secure for herself a book deal and media appearances that would not happen in the event of a mistrial.”

They also accused Hill of betraying the court while pushing for a new trial. “Ms Hill betrayed her oath of office for money and fame,” said the legal scion’s attorneys.

They continued in the motion, “Once these 2 facts are proven, the law does not allow the Court any discretion about how to respond. It must grant a new trial.”

The lawyers substantiated their case with three affidavits including one each from a juror and a dismissed juror along with excerpts from her ‘Behind the Doors of Justice: The Murdaugh Murders', which was published last month.

Murdaugh’s attorneys accused Hill of three things

The filing accuses Hill of three issues. To start with, it has been mentioned that Hill has in a way influenced the case by saying she “instructed jurors not to be ‘misled’ by evidence presented in Mr. Murdaugh’s defense. She told jurors not to be ‘fooled by’ Mr. Murdaugh’s testimony in his own defense.”

The filing noted, “Ms Hill had frequent private conversations with the jury foreperson, a Court-appointed substitution for the foreperson the jury elected for itself at the request of Ms Hill. During the trial, Ms Hill asked jurors for their opinions about Mr Murdaugh’s guilt or innocence.”

The attorneys noted that in an affidavit a juror stated that Hill asked the person to “watch him closely” and to “look at his actions” and “look at his movements,” which the juror admits that they “understood to mean that he was guilty.”

The filing further added that Hill pressured the jurors to take the decision in Murdaugh’s case. They claimed that Hill told them the jurors would be taken to a hotel had they not reached to a conclusion.

The smokers were also not reportedly allowed some breaks. It is to be noted here that the jurors came to their final verdict after three hours of deliberations. 

Murdaugh was given two life sentences during the trial at Colleton County Courthouse in Walterboro, South Carolina on Friday, March 3, 2023

Lastly, Hill is accused of being the reason for the dismissal of a juror by furnishing false information about her to the judge. They said in the filing that Hill targeted the juror because she thought her to be a positive vote instrumentary in Murdaugh’s acquittal.

South Carolina Attorney General said they are 'reviewing' the motion

In a latest press release, the South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson issued a statement where he noted, “We are currently reviewing the defense’s latest motion and will respond through the legal process at the appropriate time,” per The Independent.