Murdaugh defense fights over death penalty, venue change and evidence – what could change in second trial

The South Carolina Supreme Court conscionable wiped the slate cleanable for Alex Murdaugh, but the 2nd circular of his double-murder proceedings is already poised to beryllium a antithetic beast.

Just days aft his convictions were unanimously overturned successful the murders of his wife, Maggie, and son, Paul, prosecutors and defence attorneys are previewing large disputes implicit the decease penalty, assemblage selection, financial-crimes grounds and floating an alternate fishy theory.

Here’s what could alteration the 2nd clip around:

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Alex Murdaugh reacts arsenic helium addresses the tribunal during his sentencing for stealing from 18 clients astatine the Beaufort County Courthouse successful Beaufort, S.C., connected Nov. 28, 2023. (Andrew J. Whitaker/The Post And Courier)

1. The decease punishment is present connected the table

South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson confirmed that his bureau is considering seeking the decease punishment against Murdaugh if helium is recovered blameworthy again — contempt not pursuing it during the archetypal trial.

Defense lawyer Dick Harpootlian blasted the anticipation Monday, accusing Wilson of making a politically motivated determination tied to his gubernatorial ambitions.

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"Here’s the question: What does helium cognize contiguous helium didn’t cognize 5 years ago?" Harpootlian said during a defence quality league Monday. "Why is helium saying he’s going to question the decease penalty? Is determination immoderate caller portion of evidence?"

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Wilson pushed backmost hard connected that criticism, calling Harpootlian’s allegations governmental theatre and insisting the reconsideration is based connected ineligible realities that person changed since 2022.

"In 2022, erstwhile we were archetypal faced with these decisions, the decease punishment was not a applicable information for america due to the fact that determination hadn’t been a decease punishment execution successful 13 years," Wilson told Fox News’ "America Reports" Monday. "We didn’t person the quality to transportation it out. That has changed since then."

Wilson said that prosecutors are "considering everything" due to the fact that the retrial resets the lawsuit to "ground zero."

2. The defence wants the proceedings moved

Harpootlian has already confirmed that the defence plans to question a venue change, arguing it whitethorn beryllium intolerable to find an impartial assemblage successful the aforesaid region wherever the archetypal nationally televised proceedings unfolded.

"This has got an bonzer notoriety dissimilar astir different cases I’ve ever tried," Harpootlian said.

The defence besides wants attorney-conducted voir dire, meaning lawyers themselves would straight question imaginable jurors, on with imaginable sequestration and heavy dives into prospective jurors’ societal media histories.

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"We present person the quality to get people’s societal media, their Instagrams, each of that," Harpootlian told Fox News Digital. "And we’ll scour that earlier they ever get a accidental to appear."

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Wilson told Fox News that they are "looking astatine the venue," and whitethorn see different options.

"We person the existent volition of trying to spell backmost to the aforesaid venue, but we're gonna measure each of our options and see each decision," helium said. "We whitethorn alteration our minds. We whitethorn spell the absorption we've already decided to go. This happening is precise caller and precise raw, and we privation to get it right."

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3. Prosecutors whitethorn look tighter limits connected financial-crimes evidence

The South Carolina Supreme Court ruled prosecutors tin inactive usage immoderate of Murdaugh’s financial-crimes grounds due to the fact that it is applicable to motive, but criticized however extensively it was presented during the archetypal six-week trial.

Harpootlian argues the prosecution spent astir 2 weeks turning Murdaugh into a "character assassination" lawsuit earlier jurors adjacent afloat considered the execution evidence.

"So, by the clip we got to the existent evidence, [the jury] wasn’t funny successful proceeding it due to the fact that helium was specified a horrible, evil antheral and a liar," Harpootlian said.

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The Supreme Court likewise criticized prosecutors for spending astir 12.5 hours presenting inflammatory details that could person been covered acold much briefly.

That means the retrial could diagnostic a importantly narrower presumption of Murdaugh’s thefts and fiscal misconduct.

4. The defence whitethorn interval alternate suspect

Harpootlian besides accused authorities investigators of suffering from passageway imaginativeness instantly aft arriving connected the Murdaugh household spot disconnected Moselle Road successful Colleton County, South Carolina, connected June 7, 2021.

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"They decided that nighttime helium was the feline and everything they did aft that excluded immoderate different thought," Harpootlian told Fox News Digital Friday. "And that's wherefore they person nary grounds connecting him with the execution scene."

When asked astir caller grounds regarding an chartless antheral DNA illustration recovered nether Maggie Murdaugh's fingernails, Griffin criticized the handling of the lead.

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"We pointed retired during the past proceedings that they did find chartless antheral DNA who is not related to immoderate Murdaugh oregon immoderate of Maggie's household nether her fingernail," Griffin said. "That was not truly followed up on. We don't person possession of that DNA, truthful we can't bash thing with it. We can, possibly with a caller case, spell and question an bid from the tribunal to compel them to nonstop it disconnected to CODIS. If we were successful complaint and we had the facilities, the forensic laboratory they had, and we had hunt warrant abilities, we would person done things a batch antithetic and much timely. A batch of the accidental is lost."

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5. Alex Murdaugh whitethorn oregon whitethorn not attest again

Murdaugh’s melodramatic grounds during the archetypal proceedings became 1 of its defining moments. Whether helium takes the basal again remains an unfastened question.

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"That’ll beryllium a crippled time decision," Harpootlian said.

Alex Murdaugh is transverse examined by authoritative Creighton Waters aft taking the basal successful his execution proceedings astatine the Colleton County Courthouse connected Feb. 24, 2023. (Joshua Boucher/The State)

Prosecutors, meanwhile, are treating the retrial arsenic an wholly caller case.

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"Right now, we privation to dainty this arsenic if this proceedings has not occurred," Wilson told Fox News’ Sandra Smith and John Roberts.

6. Becky Hill and assemblage tampering volition loom

The retrial lone exists due to the fact that the South Carolina Supreme Court ruled erstwhile Colleton County Clerk of Court Rebecca "Becky" Hill improperly influenced jurors during the archetypal trial.

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The justices wrote that Hill "placed her fingers connected the scales of justice," denying Murdaugh his close to a just trial.

Now Murdaugh’s attorneys are escalating the combat by suing Hill successful national court, accusing her of violating his law rights and seeking damages tied to the archetypal trial.

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A broadside presumption of the location astatine the Murdaugh Moselle spot successful Islandton, S.C., connected March 1, 2023. (Andrew J. Whitaker/The Post and Courier/Pool)

The suit alleges Hill improperly pressured jurors against believing Murdaugh’s grounds due to the fact that she wanted a blameworthy verdict that would assistance merchantability books astir the trial.

Defense attorneys said Monday they mean to usage civilian find tools, including subpoenas and depositions, to further analyse Hill’s behaviour and find whether anyone other whitethorn person been involved.

"We’re going to find retired precisely what happened," Harpootlian said Monday. "Was she a lone wolf?"