Prosecutors are fighting numerous defense motions ahead of Alex Murdaugh’s 2027 double-murder retrial.
Following Murdaugh’s Monday court appearance in Lexington County, South Carolina, Circuit Court Judge Debra McCaslin set a new trial date for April 5, 2027.
McCaslin’s decision in May 2026 ruling that granted a retrial for Murdaugh, who was convicted in 2021 murders of Maggie Murdaugh, 52, and their son, Paul Murdaugh, 22.
On Monday, according to Court TV, the prosecution rejected three defense motions after Murdaugh’s lawyers pushed for:
- Independent testing on DNA from Maggie’s fingernails, to determine if it “from an unknown and unrelated male.”
- A laptop for Murdaugh, to give him access to review evidence.
- A change of venue to make a fair retrial possible.
In regards to the laptop, the state brought up Murdaugh’s unauthorized prison technology use, arguing that his history of violating security rules should disqualify him from laptop access.
The state highlighted a pair of August 2023 infractions resulting in disciplinary measures by the South Carolina Department of Corrections (SCDC). The violations allegedly involved an abuse of standard privileges and the illicit use of an alternate inmate’s PIN.
The prosecution also argued that the SCDC should not be required to facilitate unsupervised laptop access for the defendant.
“Murdaugh has demonstrated that he will break the rules and circumvent security if given the chance,” the prosecution stated.
“He has shown he will come up with all manner of schemes to get money, and a laptop can be used for all sorts of nefarious purposes.”
As Criminal Enterprise previously reported, Murdaugh was was sentenced to two life terms for the murders of Maggie and Paul, crimes the defense said took place amid a backdrop in Murdaugh’s millions of dollars in financial crimes.
He previously pleaded guilty in federal court to stealing $12 million from clients and is serving 40 years in prison. The new ruling has nothing to do with that case.
The South Carolina Supreme Court threw out the double-murder convictions after then-elected Clerk of Court for Colleton County, Rebecca Hill, unconstitutionally pressured the jury to deliver a quick guilty verdict to help boost sales for her book.
McCaslin denied the request for laptop access, and is expected to rule on the motions at the next pretrial conference, scheduled for August 14.
Check back for updates.
[Featured image via South Carolina Department of Corrections]
