South Carolina Circuit Court Judge Clifton Newman sentenced disgraced lawyer and convicted murderer Alex Murdaugh to 27 years for his financial crimes Tuesday.
Murdaugh, who is serving two life terms in prison for the 2021 murders of his wife and son, agreed to plead guilty to 22 counts — including breach of trust, money laundering, forgery and tax evasion — out of about 100 total counts totaling as much as $10 million in exchange for a 27-year prison sentence.
“I did terrible things,” Murdaugh said in a Beaufort County courtroom on Tuesday. “Each of you placed your trust in me. I was very proud of that, and I am still today honored by that fact.”
South Carolina prosecutor Creighton Waters said “there were so many individuals that were trusting of Alex Murdaugh, and that is how this decade-long scheme was able to take place, and ultimately, we had people who came to Mr. Murdaugh for help — people that he told he was going to help — and, in many instances, there was significant funds that Mr. Murdaugh paid to those individuals, but that was how the scheme usually worked. It was a sleight of hand.”
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South Carolina prosecutor Creighton Waters, left, said Alex Murdaugh’s trustworthiness, “power” and “influence” among community members, lawyers and banks in the area helped him get away with financial crimes. (Andrew J. Whitaker / Post And Courier via AP / Pool)
He added that Murdaugh’s trustworthiness, “power” and “influence” among community members, lawyers and banks in the area helped him get away with financial crimes.
Murdaugh addressed the courtroom and the victims of his financial crimes after hearing from several of them and their lawyers.
“Your pain and your hurt is palpable. I get it. It’s reasonable, and I promise you that it resonates with me,” he said. “I hope that the time will come when you can look back and, despite the things that I did, I care about each one of you, because I do.”
Alex Murdaugh on Tuesday continued to deny that he killed his wife, Maggie, and his son, Paul, in 2021 despite being found guilty and sentenced to two life sentences for the crimes. (Fox News)
Murdaugh added that he was, and is, “proud” of his relationships with the clients that he tricked and defrauded. He also said he took “more and more and more pills because” he was “attempting to hide the realities of the things” he was doing to his victims. He later denied killing his wife, Maggie, and his son, Paul, in 2021.
“I would never hurt Maggie and I would never hurt Paul, and I want you to know that.”
He also apologized for his son, Buster, for having to endure scrutiny from the media. He reminded his eldest son that his family, including his mother, love him.
“Rational, reasonable people never make as much noise as the haters do,” Murdaugh said in his apologies to Buster.
Alex Murdaugh cries as he addresses the court during his sentencing for stealing from 18 clients, Nov. 28, 2023, at the Beaufort County Courthouse in Beaufort, South Carolina. (Andrew J. Whitaker / Post And Courier via AP / Pool)
Newman called Murdaugh “empty” in his closing statements, delivered just over a month before the judge is set to retire.
Satterfield family
The family of Murdaugh’s late housekeeper, Gloria Satterfield, were present in the courtroom on Tuesday and got the opportunity to confront Murdaugh. The former lawyer’s financial crimes include a scheme to steal $4 million in life insurance funds from Satterfield’s estate.
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“He’s not just guilty of 22 crimes … he’s guilty of all 100 crimes,” Eric Bland, an attorney representing the Satterfield family, said of Murdaugh in court on Tuesday.
Attorney Eric Bland, right, standing with members of the Satterfield family, addresses the court during Alex Murdaugh’s sentencing for stealing from 18 clients, Nov. 28, 2023, at the Beaufort County Courthouse in Beaufort, South Carolina. (Andrew J. Whitaker / Post And Courier via AP / Pool)
“I feel good knowing [Murdaugh] will never breathe a fresh breath of air again.”
Tony Satterfield, Gloria’s son, told Murdaugh that he “lied, cheated and stole” but forgave him anyway and said he would pray for the convicted killer “every day.” Murdaugh, in return, said, “Thank you.”
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In February 2018, the Murdaugh family reported that Satterfield tripped and fell on some steps at the Murdaugh family estate in Islandton. She later died in a hospital.
Prosecutors say Murdaugh secured $4.3 million in insurance settlements for Satterfield’s family after her death, but the former attorney kept the money for himself and never alerted the family that he had secured a payout. (Brice Herndon Funeral Home | Joshua Boucher / The State via AP / File)
An autopsy was never conducted, and Satterfield’s death certificate said she died of natural causes, which her family and Hampton County Coroner Angela Topper later disputed because her injuries were inconsistent with that conclusion.
Prosecutors say Murdaugh secured $4.3 million in insurance settlements for Satterfield’s family after her death, but the former attorney kept the money for himself and never alerted the family that he had secured a payout.
Tony Satterfield addresses the court during Alex Murdaugh’s sentencing for financial crimes, Nov. 28, 2023, at the Beaufort County Courthouse in Beaufort, South Carolina. (Andrew J. Whitaker / Post And Courier via AP / Pool)
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Satterfield’s sons recovered a multimillion-dollar settlement from her death, but they wanted to hold the former personal injury lawyer accountable for his crimes during a trial that was set to begin Monday had Murdaugh not accepted a plea deal.
Pinckney family
The family of Murdaugh’s deceased former client, Hakeem Pinckney, also got the opportunity to confront the disgraced lawyer on Tuesday. A May 2022 indictment alleges that Russell Laffitte, Murdaugh’s friend and the former CEO of Palmetto State Bank, conspired with Murdaugh to misappropriate more than $309,000 in funds being held in trust for Pinckney and his estate at Palmetto State Bank.
Prosecutors say Murdaugh secured $4.3 million in insurance settlements for Satterfield’s family after her death, but the former attorney kept the money for himself and never alerted the family that he had secured a payout. (Andrew J. Whitaker / Post And Courier via AP / Pool)
Pinckney, his mother, Pamela, and his sister, Shaquarah, were injured in a 2009 car crash that left Hakeem severely disabled before his death.
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Murdaugh represented the Pinckney family in a lawsuit against the manufacturer of the tires on the vehicle. In total, the Pinckneys were entitled to between $800,000 to $1 million in settlement funds, but the family never received any of the money, attorney Justin Bamberg previously told Fox News Digital.
A May 2022 indictment alleges that Russell Laffitte, former CEO of Palmetto State Bank, conspired with Alex Murdaugh to misappropriate more than $309,000 in funds being held in trust for Pinckney and his estate at Palmetto State Bank. (Joshua Boucher / The State via AP and Justin Bamberg)
Bamberg, who represents the Pinckney family, said one of the most amazing things he has witnessed is the “grace” in which his clients have faced Murdaugh’s crimes, adding that there are many people who would “hate” Murdaugh for justifiable reasons.
“And although they have every reason to be selfish … they’re still willing to think about other people,” he said.
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Pamela Pinckney, Hakeem’s mother, quoted the Bible and said she forgave Murdaugh from her “heart,” to which he responded, “Thank you.”
Pamela Pinckney, Hakeem’s mother, quoted the Bible and said she forgave Murdaugh from her “heart,” to which he responded, “Thank you.”
Jordan Jinks
Murdaugh’s former close friend and client Jordan Jinks — the final victim to address the court on Tuesday — broke down while giving an emotional statement about the hundreds of thousands of dollars in settlement checks that Murdaugh stole from him.
He told Murdaugh that he would have given him the money had he asked for it, to which Murdaugh replied, “I believe that.”
“I knew I was going to break. … Judge, I need you to know, I’m not crying because of what he stole from me … but what he did to everybody … these kids, the people dying,” Jinks said before turning to Murdaugh.
“I got to ask you, what kind of animal are you?”
Jinks told Murdaugh that he wanted to be added to Murdaugh’s visitation list. Murdaugh responded by saying he would “like that.”
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Murdaugh previously pleaded guilty to 22 counts of financial fraud and money laundering in federal court.
His defense attorneys, Jim Griffin and Dick Harpootlian, have filed a motion to overturn the guilty verdict in Murdaugh’s double-murder case based on allegations that Colleton County court clerk Becky Hill had tampered with jurors by trying to sway them toward a conviction. She has denied the allegations.
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