Alex Murdaugh’s defense attorneys say the clock is ticking to the once convicted killer’s retrial next spring, and they want evidence from the state now to prepare their case.
In a motion filed late last Friday, defense attorneys asked the judge to issue an order “compelling the state to produce three categories of evidence” that they say they’ve asked for in writing but has been “either refused or ignored.”
That evidence includes fingernail clippings from Murdaugh’s murdered wife, as well as swabs from her cell phone. Defense attorneys also want rifle cartridges found at the crime scene and raw data from a three-dimensional laser scan of the family’s property.
Murdaugh’s defense says it wants to conduct its own tests on DNA found beneath Maggie Murdaughs’ fingernails. It says state testing showed only that the DNA belonged to an unknown male, not related to the Murdaugh family. The defense hopes to identify the man and perhaps point to a killer.
Defense attorneys say their independent lab warns it could take 60 to 90 days to complete such DNA testing. The trial, scheduled for April 5, 2027, is now just months away.
As for the ballistics evidence, the defense says six .300 Blackout cartridge cases recovered near Maggie Murdaugh’s body “are the only physical evidence connecting any firearm to her death.” The murder weapon was never recovered. The state had argued those cartridge cases were fired from a Murdaugh family rifle. The defense wants to prove otherwise.
Finally, Murdaugh’s defense team is asking for the raw data used to produce a three-dimensional laser scan of the crime scene. Attorneys argue that the kennel area on the family’s property has since been demolished and the data is the only “geometric record of the scene that exists.” They say their own reconstruction experts need access.
The state has yet to respond to the defense's motion. Murdaugh’s next pre-trial hearing is scheduled for November 13th.