SLED confirms it opened two investigations into Murdaugh trial Clerk of Court Becky Hill
The South Carolina Law Enforcement Division has confirmed it has opened two separate investigations into Colleton County Clerk of Court Rebecca “Becky” Hill, who rose to fame during the trial of former-lawyer Alex Murdaugh.
One investigation concerns Hill’s alleged improper interactions with the jury during Murdaugh’s six-week trial last winter for the murder of his wife, Maggie, and son Paul in Colleton County in early 2023, according to a SLED spokesperson. The second investigation concerns allegations that Hill used her elected position for personal gain.
The investigations, first confirmed by FITSNews, are a stunning turnaround for the well-liked Hill, a first-term clerk of court who gained admiration for her charm, humor and calm demeanor during Murdaugh’s six-week trial that drew international attention to the town of Walterboro, South Carolina.
Although it has been known that SLED agents have been questioning Murdaugh murder trial jurors about jury tampering allegations, the agency rarely acknowledges publicly that it is investigating a case, leaving a matter open to speculation until indictments or arrests are issued.
Controversy began to swirl around Hill early last September following the publication of her insider memoir of the trial, “Behind the Doors of Justice,” when Murdaugh’s attorneys publicly alleged in court filings she had improperly influenced at least some jurors.
A 12-person jury took only three hours to find Murdaugh guilty of two counts of murder. During the trial, jurors heard from more than 70 witnesses and visited the murder site, located at the now-former Murdaugh family estate, Moselle, in rural Colleton County. Murdaugh testified during the trial that he was innocent.
Even before the jury tampering allegations, two ethics complaints had been quietly filed against Hill last summer alleging that she had misused her position as clerk of court. One of the complaints, reviewed by The State, alleged that Hill had improperly allowed a documentary crew to film in the courthouse and had misappropriated a donation. As clerk, Hill makes $101,256 a year,
In September, Murdaugh defense attorneys Jim Griffin and Dick Harpootlian filed a motion requesting a new trial. The lawyers accused Hill of tampering with the jury in order to secure a guilty verdict. Among other charges, they say that she had inappropriate, private conversations with jurors, denied jurors permission to take smoke breaks during the deliberations, and instructed jurors “not to be fooled” by evidence presented by his defense team.
Murdaugh’s lawyers also alleged that Hill successfully plotted to have a juror who she believed was not convinced of Murdaugh’s guilt kicked off the jury.
Griffin and Harpootlian have alleged that Hill tampered with the jury because she believed that a guilty verdict would improve the sales of a book she eventually wrote about the trial with co-author Neil Gordon.
Hill has vigorously denied the allegations of jury tampering. In a sworn affidavit filed in November, she refuted more than two dozen accusations of jury tampering laid out in the defense team’s motion. She also hired two prominent attorneys, State Rep. Justin Bamberg, D-Bamberg, and former assistant U.S. attorney Will Lewis.
Neither Bamberg nor Lewis responded to a request for comment.
Problems have continued to mount for Hill.
In November, her son, Colleton County technology director Jeffrey Hill, was arrested and charged with wiretapping. While the details of the allegations against Jeffrey Hill, 34, are unknown, the case has been taken up by the South Carolina Attorney General’s Office. Following his arrest, Hill was fired from his $90,537-a-year job.
A trove of Hill’s emails released just before Christmas revealed that Hill had expressed interest in writing a book about the trial before it started.
While none of the emails prove that Hill tampered with the jury, some of her messages contained cryptic comments that could appear troubling given the charges against her.
In one email, sent the day the jury began deliberating, Hill wrote to an attorney who regularly attended the trial, “Let’s hope for swift and firm justice today!”
Following the release of her emails, it was discovered by Gordon, her co-author, that Hill had plagiarized parts of the introduction of her book from an article that ran in the BBC. The plagiarism was discovered when Hill’s emails revealed that the article’s author had mistakenly sent Hill a draft of the story. Gordon subsequently pledged to donate a portion his share of the book’s profits to a charity, and the publication of the book is being halted.
As things now stand, Hill is potentially a key witness for the state in a three-day court hearing beginning Jan 29 that will air allegations of jury tampering.
With numerous allegations swirling about her, from her admitted plagiarism, to the SLED criminal investigations, to her emails with helpful tips sent to prosecutors, Hill is likely to have serious credibility issues, lawyers familiar with her case have said.
Her multiple problems even raise the possibility that Hill might invoke her 5th Amendment right not to testify, attorney Eric Bland said recently.
It is “a shame,” Bland told The State, that Hill “has become the focal point of an Alex Murdaugh trial where the state and the county had spent an untold amount of resources.”
This story was originally published January 9, 2024 at 5:04 PM.