Two weeks into the double homicide trial of South Carolina legal professional Alex Murdaugh, prosecutors haven’t introduced any direct proof that he killed his spouse and son at their house in June 2021.
There is not any confession, no surveillance digital camera pictures, no recording of the sufferers’ ultimate moments.
If discovered in charge of murdering his spouse, Maggie, 52, and their son, Paul, 22, Murdaugh faces 30 years to existence in jail with out parole. The disgraced attorney, who additionally faces about 100 different fees starting from stealing cash from shoppers to insurance coverage fraud, has adamantly denied fatally taking pictures his spouse and son.
Murdaugh’s attorneys mentioned he was once visiting his in poor health mom at the evening of the murders and police wrongly taken with him from the beginning, ignoring the chance that any one else killed them.
HOW ARE PROSECUTORS MAKING THEIR CASE?
Prosecutors are seeking to construct a mountain of circumstantial proof so top it eliminates any cheap doubt with jurors that Murdaugh is in charge.
In seven days of testimony, prosecutors have introduced crime scene images, weapons gathered from Murdaugh’s house, cellular phone knowledge and a video of Murdaugh dressed in other garments lower than 3 hours earlier than the time that he mentioned he came upon the our bodies at their Colleton County house.
They’ve additionally proven a video the son took 5 mins earlier than the sufferers unexpectedly stopped the use of their cell phones through which circle of relatives pals say they may be able to listen the voices of all 3 Murdaughs. Alex Murdaugh informed investigators early within the case that he wasn’t there.
They contend Murdaugh shot the 2 to distract consideration from his different crimes, for which he’s watching for trial.
HOW IMPORTANT IS THE CRIME SCENE EVIDENCE?
The proof on the scene is essential to unraveling what came about earlier than Maggie and Paul Murdaugh had been discovered shot with a minimum of one bullet to the pinnacle by means of two other weapons.
State brokers drove two hours from Columbia to swarm the Murdaugh house the evening of the killings, taking pictures of blood spots, shoe prints and guns casings. They gathered weapons, examined Murdaugh’s arms for gunshot residue and took DNA swabs.
“The crime scene is more or less a short lived factor. As soon as the crime scene has processed, you’ll’t return to it. So … you in point of fact attempt to duvet completely the entirety whilst you’re there,” mentioned Kenneth Moses, a forensic scientist who led the crime scene investigations unit on the San Francisco Police Division and now works as a specialist, most commonly for legal defendants.
However there have been issues that weren’t carried out. In cross-examination, brokers have mentioned they didn’t take a look at bathe and sink drains for blood. They didn’t seek the house of Murdaugh’s mom for months despite the fact that that’s the place he was once earlier than he mentioned he discovered the our bodies. And so they didn’t keep tire tracks.
Protection attorneys are in search of a mistake, or possible mistake, that can resonate with a jury, Moses mentioned.
It’s “other than police, who don’t care about juries in any respect. They’re having a look to make an arrest,” Moses mentioned.
WHAT ABOUT CELLPHONE EVIDENCE?
Murdaugh wasn’t charged with homicide till 13 months after the killings. Thru testimony, in spite of everything getting knowledge from Paul Murdaugh’s telephone seems to be a key construction round that point.
Brokers testified they couldn’t pull off the information off Paul Murdaugh’s telephone till advances in generation were given previous the protection options Apple places on iPhones.
The telephone contained a 50-second video Paul Murdaugh took about 8:45 p.m. close to the canine kennels had been each our bodies had been discovered. His pals testified they heard all 3 Murdaughs’ voices. Alex Murdaugh informed police a minimum of two times he was once now not on the kennels that evening.
However cellular phone proof seems to have helped the protection, too.
Alex Murdaugh became his cellular phone over to investigators and proof has it at his SUV nonetheless parked on the area on the similar time his spouse’s cellular phone was once being thrown at the facet of the street a half-mile (800 meters) from the valuables, protection attorneys mentioned.
Each side are seeking to get their model of Murdaugh, who comes from a circle of relatives that’s well known in native judicial circles, earlier than the jury.
The protection needs to painting a loving circle of relatives guy and has requested any witness who knew the Murdaughs about their relationships. All have mentioned Murdaugh and his spouse seemed satisfied in combination and Alex Murdaugh was once a doting father.
Prosecutors are seeking to display an legal professional dwelling a double existence who was once so scared it might be came upon he stole thousands and thousands of greenbacks that he dedicated the killings to check out to shop for time to hide up his different crimes. They requested each and every officer who encountered Murdaugh after he discovered the our bodies of his spouse or son if he was once crying and all mentioned he turns out disenchanted and distraught, however and not using a tears.
WHAT DOES THE DEFENSE SAY?
Protection attorney Dick Harpootlian contends prosecutors incorrectly locked in on Murdaugh’s guilt from the beginning and feature attempted to jam bits of proof that may be defined away or depart an incomplete image right into a tale that frames the fallacious guy.
“There’s no direct proof. There’s no eyewitnesses. There’s not anything on digital camera. There’s no fingerprints. There’s no forensics tying him to the crime. None,” Harpootlian mentioned.
Maryclaire Dale in Philadelphia contributed to this document.