Murdaugh defense seeks dismissal of murder charges over evidence handling

Summarised from 2 outlets · Updated 5 Nov, 05:03 · Archive

Alex Murdaugh's attorneys are asking a judge to dismiss murder indictments, alleging investigators mishandled evidence and misled a grand jury.

Alex Murdaugh's attorneys are asking a judge to dismiss the murder indictments against him, alleging investigators mishandled evidence, misled a grand jury and improperly used the State Grand Jury to build the case.

The defense's latest filing focuses on a white T-shirt Murdaugh wore the night his wife Maggie and son Paul were killed in 2021. His attorneys say laboratory tests on samples from the shirt did not detect human blood, but disputed blood-spatter evidence was presented to the grand jury that indicted him. They also allege that subsequent chemical processing altered or ruined the fabric, raising questions about whether the shirt could be evaluated again.

Murdaugh's attorneys allege investigators pressured an outside expert to change his initial opinion about stains on the shirt. They argue the alleged misconduct warrants dismissal of the indictments. The defense previously accused the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division of withholding the negative testing results from prosecutors and outside experts.

Judge Debra McCaslin has not ruled on the dismissal request. The defense submitted a 235-page collection of exhibits in October in support of its request, having first moved to dismiss the indictments in August.

How it is being reported

• Murdaugh defense seeks dismissal of murder indictments, challenges T-shirt evidence and grand jury investigationAlex Murdaugh’s attorneys are asking a judge to dismiss the murder indictments against him, alleging investigators mishandled evidence, misled a grand jury and improperly used the State Grand Jury to build the case against him.WISTV · 5 Nov, 00:08
• Murdaugh defense seeks dismissal of murder indictments, challenges T-shirt evidence and grand jury investigationAlex Murdaugh’s attorneys are asking a judge to dismiss the murder indictments against him, alleging investigators mishandled evidence, misled a grand jury and improperly used the State Grand Jury to build the case against him.Live5News · 5 Nov, 00:08

In this story: Alex Murdaugh · Maggie Murdaugh · Paul Murdaugh · Judge Debra McCaslin · South Carolina Law Enforcement Division · South Carolina Attorney General's Office · South Carolina

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