Overview
- The South Carolina Supreme Court, which ruled Wednesday, unanimously vacated the 2023 verdicts and sent the case back for retrial.
- The opinion says Colleton County clerk Becky Hill improperly swayed jurors by urging them not to trust Murdaugh’s testimony and to watch his body language, and she later pleaded guilty to related misconduct.
- The justices also faulted the trial judge for allowing extensive evidence of Murdaugh’s financial crimes, warning it risked unfair prejudice and signaling tighter limits in any retrial.
- Attorney General Alan Wilson said he will aggressively pursue a new murder trial, a step that could face hurdles over venue, timing, and finding jurors who have not been influenced by years of coverage.
- Murdaugh remains incarcerated on long state and federal sentences for stealing millions from clients, so the reversal does not result in his release.