Alex Murdaugh trial — live: Timeline reveals defendant’s restaurant search minutes after murders discovered
The prosecution in Alex Murdaugh’s double-murder trial brought its case to a close with a detailed timeline piecing together four weeks of dramatic testimony.
Among the revelations in the 88-page timeline was an internet search on Murdaugh’s phone for restaurant minutes after he called 911 about finding his wife and son’s bodies.
Over four weeks, the jury heard an extraordinary amount of detailed evidence from 61 prosecution witnesses. The final few were tasked with pulling all the strands together.
New revelations included Murdaugh’s plea for money from his bank manager days before the murders; that victims Maggie and Paul had discovered his stash of opioids; and that he called 911 only 20 seconds after allegedly discovering their bodies — having previously claimed he checked their pulses and tried turning Paul over.
Bombshell testimony from a SLED agent who pieced together a timeline from a multitude of data sources followed a gripping recreation of the brutal murders by a crime scene expert. The jury also heard about the “roadside shooting” in which Murdaugh confessed to orchestrating a purported botched assassination plot targeting himself.
The defence began presenting its case shortly before court adjourned for the holiday weekend.
Alex Murdaugh murder trial
Timeline reveals Murdaugh search for restaurant minutes after murders discovered
Murdaugh wife and son found ‘bags of pills’ month before murders
New car data places Murdaugh at the spot where wife’s phone was dumped
Murdaugh attorney mocked for ‘spicy’ cross-examination of agent
Alex Murdaugh trial shown sketch of fake shooter in failed hitman plot
Alex Murdaugh trial: Killer ambushed son and shot wife as she fled
Murdaugh police interview exposes wild inconsistencies between his alibi and witness accounts
ICYMI: New Alex Murdaugh police interview exposes wild inconsistencies in his alibi and witness accounts
05:15 , Maroosha Muzaffar
Dramatic footage has revealed Alex Murdaugh being confronted by law enforcement about wild inconsistencies in his alibi in a police interview two months on from the murders of his wife Maggie and son Paul.
Footage of the 11 August 2021 interview with Mr Murdaugh was played in court on Wednesday last week as the prosecution nears the end of its case in the disgraced legal scion’s double murder trial in Colleton County, South Carolina.
In the interview, which has never been seen before, the discrepancies between Mr Murdaugh’s version of events on the night of 7 June 2021 and the trove of evidence and witness testimony revealed at his murder trial were laid bare.
Read the full story by Rachel Sharp here:
Prosecutors reveal flurry of steps after killings
04:40 , Oliver O'Connell
After nearly an hour of no activity, Alex Murdaugh‘s cellphone suddenly showed a flurry of steps just before he drove away in his SUV some 16 minutes after investigators think his wife and son were killed, a state agent testified Friday at the disgraced South Carolina lawyer’s double murder trial.
GPS data from Murdaugh’s SUV and cellphone data also shows Murdaugh called 911 less than 20 seconds after he arrived at the kennels where the bodies of his son and wife were, a short distance from their home. Murdaugh told the 911 operator he checked them to see if they were alive before the made the emergency call.
Read on:
Murdaugh prosecutors reveal flurry of steps after killings
ICYMI: A ‘confession’, bloody dog kennels and ‘clean’ shirt: Key revelations from the Alex Murdaugh murder trial
04:15 , Maroosha Muzaffar
Alex Murdaugh’s high-profile trial is under way at Colleton County Courthouse in Walterboro, South Carolina. Rachel Sharp explains the most crucial moments so far.
‘Confession’, bloody scene and ‘clean’ shirt: Key moments from Alex Murdaugh trial
Alex Murdaugh looked up local restaurant minutes after police arrived at scene of murders
03:15 , Maroosha Muzaffar
Disgraced legal scion Alex Murdaugh looked up a restaurant online just minutes after finding the butchered bodies of his wife and son, records show.
Prosecutors in Mr Murdaugh’s double murder trial on Friday presented a timeline of the evening on 7 June 2021, when Paul and Maggie Murdaugh were shot dead on their property in Islandton, South Carolina. Mr Murdaugh is accused of executing the slayings to distract from his growing legal and financial troubles.
Read the full story by Andrea Blanco here:
Alex Murdaugh looked up restaurant minutes after police arrived at murder scene
Watch: Dramatic bodycam footage shows Alex Murdaugh sobbing and asking ‘are they dead’
02:40 , Oliver O'Connell
Murdaugh attorney mocked for ‘spicy’ cross-examination of agent
00:40 , Oliver O'Connell
Alex Murdaugh’s defence attorney has been mocked for his “spicy” cross-examination of a law enforcement official who testified about the accused killer’s botched hitman plot.
Dick Harpootlian resorted to shouting at SLED Senior Special Agent Ryan Kelly during an intensely combative exchange on Friday, which marked day 20 of Mr Murdaugh’s trial for the double murders of his wife Maggie and son Paul.
Rachel Sharp has the story.
Alex Murdaugh attorney mocked for ‘spicy’ cross-examination of agent over hitman plot
22:40 , Oliver O'Connell
Newly obtained car data has placed Alex Murdaugh at the spot where his wife’s phone was later found dumped – before he quickly sped away from the scene.
The data, handed over by General Motors just last week, shows the disgraced legal dynasty heir left the family home in his 2021 Chevy Suburban at 9.07pm on the night of 7 June 2021 – just minutes after he allegedly shot and killed his wife Maggie and son Paul.
Here’s what we found out in court on Friday:
New car data places Alex Murdaugh at the spot where wife’s phone was dumped
Alex Murdaugh’s wife and son found his ‘bags of pills’ before murders
20:40 , Oliver O'Connell
A bombshell voicemail message has revealed that Alex Murdaugh’s wife Maggie and son Paul found “bags of pills” in the accused killer’s bag just one month before their murders.
The message, on 6 May 2021, shows Paul confronting his father about the discovery of the drugs – at a time when the disgraced attorney claims he was spending up to $60,000 a week to feed a 20-year opioid addiction.
Rachel Sharp reports.
Alex Murdaugh’s wife and son found ‘bags of pills’ one month before murders
A timeline of murders, financial fraud, unexplained deaths and arrest
18:40 , Oliver O'Connell
From a mysterious death on a South Carolina road eight years ago to the beginning of the trial, here are all the key events preceding Alex Murdaugh’s double-murder trial.
Alex Murdaugh: A timeline of murders, financial fraud, unexplained deaths and arrest
How Alex Murdaugh’s murder trial became a circus
16:40 , Oliver O'Connell
Bomb threat, obscene gestures, and a controversial GoFundMe...
And that was just in one week!
Bomb threat, outbursts and GoFundMe: How Alex Murdaugh’s murder trial became a circus
Full story: Alex Murdaugh’s spectacular fall from grace
14:40 , Oliver O'Connell
On the surface, Alex Murdaugh had it all.
He was a high-powered attorney who ran both his own law firm and worked in the local prosecutor’s office.
He was the son of a powerful legal dynasty that dominated the local South Carolina community for almost a century.
And he was a family man who lived with his wife and two adult sons on their sprawling country estate.
But over the last 20 months, Mr Murdaugh has experienced a spectacular fall from grace, culminating in what has been described as the “trial of the century” now taking place in a courtroom in Walterboro, South Carolina.
Rachel Sharp reports.
Alex Murdaugh trial: Story of the legal scion’s spectacular fall from grace
Murdaugh police interview exposes wild inconsistencies in his alibi
11:40 , Oliver O'Connell
Dramatic footage has revealed Alex Murdaugh being confronted by law enforcement about wild inconsistencies in his alibi in a police interview two months on from the murders of his wife Maggie and son Paul.
In the interview, which has never been seen before, the discrepancies between Mr Murdaugh’s version of events on the night of 7 June 2021 and the trove of evidence and witness testimony revealed at his murder trial was laid bare.
The Independent’s Rachel Sharp reports.
Alex Murdaugh police interview exposes wild inconsistencies in alibi
Watch: Pills discovered by wife and son before their murders
08:40 , Oliver O'Connell
Murdaugh trial hears dog caretaker describe strange state of kennels
05:40 , Oliver O'Connell
A man who took care of the dogs at Alex Murdaugh’s property has testified about strange details in crime scene photos at the disgraced legal scion’s murder trial.
Roger Dale Davis, who handled Mr Murdaughs’ dog kennels in the sprawling property of Moselle in Islandton, South Carolina, was called by the state to testify on Tuesday at the Colleton County Courthouse in Walterboro.
Andrea Blanco reports on his testimony.
Alex Murdaugh trial shown new crime scene photos as dog caretaker testifies
Watch: Murdaugh’s attorney gets into testy exchange with witness
03:40 , Oliver O'Connell
Who are the key players in Alex Murdaugh murder trial?
01:40 , Oliver O'Connell
Rachel Sharp explains who’s who in the trial that is gripping the nation.
Who are the key players in Alex Murdaugh murder trial?
ICYMI: Both sides score wins in questioning of case’s lead agent
Saturday 18 February 2023 23:40 , Oliver O'Connell
A crime scene expert testified about where the shots were fired at the wife and son of Alex Murdaugh and in what order during Thursday’s testimony at the disgraced South Carolina attorney’s double murder trial.
Kenny Kinsey also told jurors that a mark on 52-year-old Maggie Murdaugh’s thigh appeared to be a tread from a golf cart tire that she fell on after she was shot near dog kennels on the family’s property. Defense lawyers had asked several witnesses about the blemish and whether it could be a mark from a shoe.
Prosecution, defense get wins with Alex Murdaugh lead agent
Murdaugh grimaces as trial hears his bizarre 911 call after being shot in the head
Saturday 18 February 2023 21:40 , Oliver O'Connell
A visibly uncomfortable Alex Murdaugh grimaced as prosecutors played the 911 call in which he reported being shot in the head - in what turned out to be a botched hitman plot.
Andrea Blanco has the story.
Alex Murdaugh reacts to trial hearing his 911 call after being shot in the head
Alex Murdaugh looked up local restaurant minutes after police arrived at murder scene
Saturday 18 February 2023 21:35 , Megan Sheets
Disgraced legal scion Alex Murdaugh looked up a restaurant online just minutes after finding the butchered bodies of his wife and son, records show.
Prosecutors in Mr Murdaugh’s double murder trial on Friday presented a timeline of the evening on 7 June 2021, when Paul and Maggie Murdaugh were shot dead on their property in Islandton, South Carolina. Mr Murdaugh is accused of executing the slayings to distract from his growing legal and financial troubles.
To build a chronology of the events, agents with the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division (SLED) pulled records from the disbarred lawyer’s phone, as well as the victims’. The information collected from 6pm to 11pm on the day of the shootings shows several interactions between Maggie, Paul, Mr Murduagh and other relatives.
The report also shows a bizarre search by Mr Murdaugh at 10.40pm, just 34 minutes after alerting 911 dispatchers that he had found his wife and son’s bodies by the property’s dog kennels — and 15 minutes after the first deputy arrived on the scene.
“Alex Murdaugh searched ‘Whaley’s Edisto’ in Safari browser,” the timeline states.
The restaurant in Edisto Island is nearly an hour and a half away from the Murdaugh’s hunting state.
The Independent’s Andrea Blanco has more:
Alex Murdaugh looked up local restaurant minutes after police arrived at murder scene
Watch: Moment Alex Murdaugh claims he was shot by gunman on side of the road
Saturday 18 February 2023 19:40 , Oliver O'Connell
Murdaugh spent $50,000 a week on drugs
Saturday 18 February 2023 17:30 , Oliver O'Connell
Alex Murdaugh spent a staggering $50,000 a week on drugs which he was buying from the man accused of being his co-conspirator in a botched hitman plot, jurors heard in dramatic courtroom testimony on Wednesday.
That seems like a lot. More than one person could physically consume.
Here’s our report:
Alex Murdaugh spent $50,000 a week on drugs before wife and son’s murders
Murdaugh’s detailed sketch of shooter... who never existed
Saturday 18 February 2023 15:30 , Oliver O'Connell
The jury in Alex Murdaugh’s trial has finally been presented with evidence of his botched hitman plot months after the murders of his wife and son - including a sketch of the nonexistent man he claimed shot him.
SLED Senior Special Agent Ryan Kelly was called by the prosecution on Thursday to testify about the day Mr Murdaugh was shot in the head on the side of a road in Hampton County on 4 September 2021.
Megan Sheets has the story.
Alex Murdaugh’s detailed sketch of fake shooter exposed at trial
Murdaugh trial hears how killer ambushed Paul before shooting Maggie
Saturday 18 February 2023 13:30 , Oliver O'Connell
Alex Murdaugh allegedly ambushed his son Paul in the feeding room of the family’s dog kennels before turning on his wife Maggie who tried to flee only to be shot and killed on her knees, according to chilling testimony from a top crime scene expert.
Dr Kenny Kinsey, an Orangeburg County sheriff’s deputy and crime scene expert, gave graphic testimony in the Colleton County Courthouse in Walterboro, South Carolina on Thursday, where he walked jurors through each moment of the horrific 7 June 2021 attack.
Rachel Sharp reports.
Alex Murdaugh trial hears killer ambushed Paul before shooting Maggie on her knees
‘Did you kill your wife and son?’
Saturday 18 February 2023 11:40 , Oliver O'Connell
Newly-released footage has revealed the dramatic moment that Alex Murdaugh was first confronted by law enforcement for the first time about allegedly killing his wife and son.
Footage of a police interview with the disgraced legal dynasty heir was shown for the first time in Colleton County Courthouse on Wednesday as the prosecution nears the end of its case in his double murder trial.
The interview was Mr Murdaugh’s third since the 7 June 2021 murders – and came two months on from the slayings on 11 August 2021.
Dramatic moment Alex Murdaugh is first asked by police if he killed his wife and son
Key revelations from the Alex Murdaugh murder trial... so far
Saturday 18 February 2023 08:40 , Oliver O'Connell
Need to catch up on the trial as the defence begins its case? Here’s what we’ve learned so far.
‘Confession’, bloody scene and ‘clean’ shirt: Key moments from Alex Murdaugh trial
Murdaugh attorney mocked for ‘spicy’ cross-examination of agent
Saturday 18 February 2023 05:40 , Oliver O'Connell
Alex Murdaugh’s defence attorney has been mocked for his “spicy” cross-examination of a law enforcement official who testified about the accused killer’s botched hitman plot.
Dick Harpootlian resorted to shouting at SLED Senior Special Agent Ryan Kelly during an intensely combative exchange on Friday, which marked day 20 of Mr Murdaugh’s trial for the double murders of his wife Maggie and son Paul.
Rachel Sharp has been watching the trial for The Independent.
Alex Murdaugh attorney mocked for ‘spicy’ cross-examination of agent over hitman plot
Watch: What was Buster Murdaugh’s reaction to today’s evidence?
Saturday 18 February 2023 03:40 , Oliver O'Connell
A trial watcher asked correspondent GiGi McKelvey @PrettyLiesAlibi if the demeanor of #AlexMurdaugh’s son, Buster, changed in court while the family murders timeline was presented. “His face was very red,” McKelvey said. pic.twitter.com/ssoucVcARk
— Law&Crime Network (@LawCrimeNetwork) February 17, 2023
Car data places Murdaugh at the spot where wife’s phone was dumped
Saturday 18 February 2023 02:40 , Oliver O'Connell
Newly obtained car data has placed Alex Murdaugh at the spot where his wife’s phone was later found dumped – before he quickly sped away from the scene.
The data, handed over by General Motors just last week, shows the disgraced legal dynasty heir left the family home in his 2021 Chevy Suburban at 9.07pm on the night of 7 June 2021 – just minutes after he allegedly shot and killed his wife Maggie and son Paul.
Rachel Sharp has the details.
New car data places Alex Murdaugh at the spot where wife’s phone was dumped
In pictures: Last day of prosecution case
Saturday 18 February 2023 01:40 , Oliver O'Connell
Murdaugh’s wife and son found his ‘bags of pills’ one month before murders
Saturday 18 February 2023 00:40 , Oliver O'Connell
A bombshell voicemail message has revealed that Alex Murdaugh’s wife Maggie and son Paul found “bags of pills” in the accused killer’s bag just one month before their murders.
The message, on 6 May 2021, shows Paul confronting his father about the discovery of the drugs – at a time when the disgraced attorney claims he was spending up to $60,000 a week to feed a 20-year opioid addiction.
Rachel Sharp reports.
Alex Murdaugh’s wife and son found ‘bags of pills’ one month before murders
