Alex Murdaugh will be back in court Friday for a pretrial hearing in Lexington as his team prepares to defend him again on charges he murdered his wife and son in 2021.
The presiding judge, Debra McCaslin, has already ruled that the once convicted killer can appear before the media unshackled and in civilian clothing so as not to prejudice his case. But she will have plenty of other issues to consider as both sides have filed several motions over the past week.
For instance, the defense wants a change of venue for the new trial and is requesting Charleston County. The state says that won’t work if Murdaugh is looking for an impartial jury because Charleston is in the same media market as Colleton County where Murdaugh was originally convicted.
The state, meantime, is asking to use Murdaugh’s own sworn testimony during his new trial. The 58-year-old took the stand in 2023, admitting he lied about his alibi that he was nowhere near the crime scene. A video from his murdered son’s cellphone showed he was there. The defense adamantly opposes the use of Murdaugh’s previous testimony.
And there’s still a battle over whether the defense should be allowed to independently test DNA evidence found beneath Maggie Murdaugh’s fingernails. They argue the state’s testing only showed that the DNA was from an unknown male. They say new testing could be more conclusive.
Several other arguments are expected as well. They include Murdaugh’s phone records and his previous financial fraud convictions.
Murdaugh's double murder convictions were overturned earlier this year after the state Supreme Court found that the former Colleton County clerk of court tampered with jury members.
Friday’s hearing begins at 10 a.m. at the Lexington County courthouse. A new trial date has been set for April 5, 2027.
