South Carolina Supreme Court justices voted unanimously to overturn the murder convictions for Alex Murdaugh, who was found guilty of killing his wife and son in 2021.
The justices placed blame on county clerk Becky Hill, who they said “placed her fingers on the scales of justice.”
Murdaugh, 57, was sentenced to two consecutive life terms without parole for the murders of his wife, Maggie, and their son Paul, 22.
The convictions came after a six-week trial in 2023.
“Although we are aware of the time, money, and effort expended for this lengthy trial, we have no choice but to reverse the denial of Murdaugh’s motion for a new trial due to Hill’s improper external influences on the jury and remand for a new trial,” the justices wrote in their ruling.
Murdaugh’s lawyers appealed the murder convictions by arguing the trial was affected by Hill.
They alleged Hill tampered with the jury during the trial.
The South Carolina Supreme Court said prosecutors’ efforts get a conviction of Murdaugh, a prominent lawyer in his own right, “were in vain because Colleton County Clerk of Court Rebecca Hill placed her fingers on the scales of justice, thereby denying Murdaugh his right to a fair trial by an impartial jury.”
Hill pleaded guilty in December to obstruction of justice, perjury, and two counts of misconduct in office. She admitted she showed sealed crime scene photos to a reporter and lied about it.
She also admitted to promoting her book about the trial through her public office.
Hill was sentenced to probation.
