Will Alex Murdaugh appear at ex-SC banker Russell Laffitte’s federal trial? Judge to decide

On the eve of the first trial related to Alex Murdaugh’s alleged crimes, a federal judge indicated on Monday he will soon decide whether to allow the accused killer to appear as a witness at the trial of former bank CEO Russell Laffitte.

Laffitte, 51, is accused in a six-count federal indictment of conspiring with Murdaugh, who is mentioned by his initials but not named, to misappropriate settlement money owed to some of Murdaugh’s clients that he instead steered to Laffitte’s Palmetto State Bank.

Murdaugh is currently being held without bail in the Richland County jail, charged with murder in the June 2021 slayings of his wife, Maggie, and son, Paul.

Laffitte will stand trial starting Tuesday at Charleston’s federal courthouse. Jury selection begins at 10 a.m.

Federal Judge Richard Gergel said in an hourlong pretrial hearing Monday that he hopes to hear opening statements by the defense and prosecution later in the day Tuesday, and then prosecutors can put up their first witness.

The trial is expected to run into next week and possibly longer.

Murdaugh’s lawyers, Columbia’s Dick Harpootlian and Jim Griffin, have made it clear the disbarred attorney will invoke the Fifth Amendment should Gergel allow him to be brought into court as a defense witness.

But Bart Daniel, one of Laffitte’s attorneys, told the judge Monday that he wants the jury to see Murdaugh in person and hear what he says, or does not say, on the witness stand.

Having Murdaugh appear is part of a defense strategy to show that Laffitte did not act alone and was, they say, a dupe of Murdaugh’s. Although the indictment with which Laffitte was charged implicates Murdaugh as a co-conspirator, Laffitte is the only defendant on trial at this time.

Laffitte is subject to 30 years in prison, but since he has no prior criminal record he would likely get far less.

Federal prosecutor Emily Limehouse objected Monday to having Murdaugh appear in person, only to take the Fifth Amendment and not say anything else.

Gergel told Limehouse and Daniel to write short briefs for his consideration on their respective positions by Monday evening. Gergel indicated he may decide the matter soon, since arrangements have to be made to transport Murdaugh from Richland County to Charleston.

“I have never heard of people called to (trial) just to take the Fifth,” Gergel told the court.

Judge says he won’t allow trial to become ‘circus’

Gergel told defense attorneys Monday that he would not allow them to try to get the jury to acquit Laffitte simply because Murdaugh might have played a greater role in any crimes they are accused of.

The judge likened that comparison to two people “racing down the road at 75 mph,” and a police officer stops only one of them.

“What you are basically doing is trying to try Alex Murdaugh instead of the defendant,” Gergel told Daniel. “You are saying, because somebody else did it, my client is innocent.”

Moreover, unless the defense has solid evidence that someone else is at fault, Gergel said he won’t allow the trial to turn into a “circus” where defense lawyers try to put up multiple conspiracy theories of others being at fault or somehow responsible for the crimes Laffitte is charged with.

Laffitte is a former CEO of Palmetto State Bank in Hampton; Murdaugh is a former partner of the law firm now know as the Parker Law Group, headquartered in Hampton. They have known each other since childhood.

For years, the law firm — which was known for winning big verdicts and getting large settlements — was one of the bank’s biggest customers. Often, the firm’s lawyers won money for underage clients or clients with disabilities, and the money was put into conservatorships overseen by the bank.

Indictments allege that Murdaugh and Laffitte misappropriated money in several conservatorships. Specifically, Laffitte is charged with conspiracy to commit bank fraud and wire fraud, as well as bank fraud and wire fraud.

Laffitte’s actions as a steward of various conservatorships he controlled will be questioned, and prosecutors said they expected to call members of Murdaugh’s former law firm, who also worked with Laffitte or his bank to set up conservatorships. Alleged victims also will be called testify.

Members of Murdaugh’s law firm are expected to explain their practices of handling client money that went into conservatorships, Limehouse told the judge Monday, implying that those practices differed from those of Murdaugh and Laffitte.

Gergel also made no decision Monday on whether a confidential report prepared by Columbia lawyer Greg Harris for Palmetto State Bank would become part of the trial. The bank fired Laffitte in January 2021 after getting a copy of the report.