Alex Murdaugh prison appeal heads to South Carolina Supreme Court

Nearly three years after disgraced lawyer Alex Murdaugh was convicted of slaughtering his wife and son, he is keeping his head down and nose clean while his lawyers craft an appeal.

The imprisoned scion of a South Carolina legal dynasty is working a prison job, staying largely out of trouble, and pressing forward with his case, according to a report.

Murdaugh, 57, is serving two life sentences without parole for the June 2021 killings of Maggie and Paul Murdaugh. 

He is also serving concurrent 40-year federal and 27-year state sentences for financial crimes.

South Carolina Department of Corrections records show Murdaugh has worked as a wardkeeper’s assistant since August 2023.

A wardkeeper’s assistant is responsible for day-to-day operations at a prison, such as helping manage the housing unit where inmates live.

That same month, he was disciplined for feeding information to a documentary crew and barred from phone use and canteen purchases for 30 days, according to his inmate record. He has remained infraction-free since.

His attorney, Dick Harpootlian, said Murdaugh spends much of his time focused on his appeal.

“You can talk to him, unlike normal clients who have no concept of the appellate process or how all this works,” Harpootlian told the Daily Mail. “He is interested because he is a lawyer, so we talk about where we’re at and what we think the grave issues are with the case and what our weaknesses are.”

Harpootlian said they speak weekly and described his client as being in good spirits.

“I think Alex understands he did a bad thing in stealing all that money,” Harpootlian said. “He is adamant he didn’t kill Paul and Maggie. He always has been … and when we get a fair trial, I think the jury will determine he didn’t do it.”

Murdaugh is hopeful about a new trial, his attorney said, but cautioned the inmate is “not confident of anything.”

Behind the scenes, the family dynamic appears far more strained.

Murdaugh’s surviving son, Buster, and daughter-in-law, Brooklynn, have stayed away, a source told the outlet.

The insider said Buster carries “a lot of anger about the loss of his mom and brother” and avoids discussing the case.

“Whether or not Alex killed them, he definitely did enough to tarnish Buster’s name forever, and he’s angry about that,” the source said.

Murdaugh’s appeal heads back to court Feb. 11, when his legal team and the South Carolina Attorney General’s Office will argue before the state Supreme Court in Columbia.

The appeal centers largely on allegations that former Colleton County Clerk of Court Becky Hill tampered with the jury during Murdaugh’s murder trial.

Hill pleaded guilty in December to obstruction of justice, perjury, and two counts of misconduct in office after admitting she showed sealed crime scene photos to a reporter and lied about it. 

She also admitted to promoting her book about the trial through her public office.

Hill was sentenced to probation. Prosecutors said they found insufficient evidence to prove jury tampering.

Attorneys for Murdaugh argue that Hill’s conduct tainted the trial and jurors should not have heard extensive testimony about his financial crimes.

“By the time the jury heard two-and-a-half weeks of testimony about him stealing $12 million from invalids and orphans, he was so vilified it didn’t matter what [Murdaugh] said on the stand,” Harpootlian said.

Prosecutors maintain the verdict was sound. 

Former South Carolina Supreme Court Justice Jean Toal previously ruled Hill’s conduct did not affect the outcome.

Harpootlian said he still believes two shooters carried out the killings.

“There is strategic evidence to indicate that’s correct,” he said. “Two different guns shooting two different people … The forensics supports two people [committing the crime].”