SC Supreme Court assigns outside judge to oversee Alex Murdaugh criminal cases
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Alex Murdaugh Coverage
The Murdaugh family saga has dominated the news after another shooting, a resignation and criminal accusations — with Alex Murdaugh at the center of it all. Here are the latest updates on Alex Murdaugh.
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A judge outside of the Lowcountry circuit will now oversee all court matters related to Alex Murdaugh’s criminal investigations and any deaths being investigated that are tied to the Murdaugh family, according to a new court order.
South Carolina Supreme Court Chief Justice Donald Beatty has assigned Circuit Judge Clifton Newman, of Kingstree, to handle pretrial matters related to “criminal investigations concerning Richard Alexander Murdaugh,” said the order signed Tuesday.
Newman takes over as investigations into Alex Murdaugh and his family grow. There are now at least six ongoing investigations and two arrests have been made in the Sept. 4 alleged murder plot of Murdaugh. Questions have also arisen regarding the impartiality of local judges in cases involving the Murdaughs, a prominent legal family.
Newman’s jurisdiction will stretch over all circuits, it states.
Newman is also vested with handling “all pending and future criminal investigations concerning the deaths of Margaret Kennedy Bransetter Murdaugh, Paul Terry Murdaugh, Gloria Harriott Satterfield, and Stephen Nicholas Smith, including any criminal charges which may hereafter be brought by law enforcement or the prosecutor assigned to these matters.”
The judge’s responsibilities will include issuing arrest warrants, search warrants and subpoenas. He’ll also handle any motions or orders before trial necessary in the investigation or future prosecution.
Newman is an at-large judge, and not assigned to a specific judicial circuit.
“I couldn’t think of a better judge they could put on this pile of awful that’s going on,” said Jared Newman, a Port Royal-based defense attorney.
Newman, who has no relation to the judge, said the unusual circumstances of the Murdaugh case with an increasing amount of criminal investigations justifies the need for a judge to oversee it all.
There are six criminal investigations looking into the family or actions that may be tied to them, which includes a possible obstruction of justice inquiry into the 2019 boat crash that killed Mallory Beach.
Judge Newman will act as a “case manager” and it will help speed up the process, according to Jared Newman.
Most recently, the judge presided over the high-profile fake Uber trial in Columbia, sentencing Nathaniel Rowland to life in prison for the murder of University of South Carolina student Samantha Josephson in March 2019.
Judicial switch
Typically, Circuit Judge Carmen Mullen, who is assigned to the 14th Circuit, would most likely oversee the case.
Mullen’s law clerks did not respond to an emailed inquiry and a voicemail asking whether Mullen recused herself.
In the 2019 boat crash, when Alex Murdaugh’s son, Paul, was charged with boating under the influence resulting in death, Mullen recused herself from the case along with another local judge.
The Murdaugh family has been a steadfast presence in the 14th Circuit.
Murdaugh’s father and grandfathers served as solicitors and head prosecutors for the circuit. The family law firm, Peters Murdaugh Parker Eltzroth & Detrick, was started in 1910 and has made millions of dollars for clients in personal injury lawsuits.
Newman, the lawyer, said he couldn’t think of any specific ties between Mullen and the Murdaugh family other than former Solicitor Randolph Murdaugh III and members of PMPED have argued cases in front of her.
Recently, a lawyer representing the sons of Murdaugh’s nanny and housekeeper, who died after sustaining injuries in a fall on the Murdaugh property, said the sons never received insurance money owed to them by Murdaugh.
The money was supposed to come from a wrongful death lawsuit. The lawyer said it found a missing judge’s order, believed to be signed by Mullen but not confirmed, approving a $2.76 million settlement that was never filed. Mullen’s clerks did not respond to requests for comment.
The S.C. Law Enforcement Division is investigating Satterfield’s death and related financial matters.
The decision for Judge Newman to take over will help restore public confidence, which, “on the surface, (has) been breached” Jared Newman said.
“That is nothing to demean Judge Mullen at all,” he added. “We’re all down here and all just a little close to the situation.”
This story was originally published September 29, 2021 at 2:30 PM with the headline "SC Supreme Court assigns outside judge to oversee Alex Murdaugh criminal cases."
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