Alex Murdaugh Returns To Court Monday For The First Time Since His Murder Convictions Were Overturned

Alex Murdaugh walked into the Lexington County Judicial Center in shackles Monday morning for his first court appearance since the South Carolina Supreme Court unanimously overturned his murder convictions in May.

The hearing before Circuit Court Judge Debra McCaslin, who is now overseeing the case after taking over from the original trial judge, was primarily a scheduling conference.

No major rulings were expected and none came. Dozens of members of the public showed up before dawn hoping to get a seat in the courtroom.

Media tents lined the parking lot. A sign outside read "JUSTICE COMING SOON."

The backstory: Murdaugh was convicted in March 2023 of murdering his wife Maggie and 22-year-old son Paul at their Islandton, South Carolina property in June 2021.

He was sentenced to life in prison. His attorneys appealed, arguing that Becky Hill, the county clerk who oversaw the jury, had improperly influenced jurors by implying his guilt and telling them not to be fooled by his testimony.

Hill later pleaded guilty to obstruction of justice, perjury and misconduct in office.

The state Supreme Court ruled unanimously in May that Hill had "placed her fingers on the scales of justice" and that there was no remedy short of a new trial.

Prosecutors intend to retry him. The state attorney general has said the death penalty could be part of that retrial. Murdaugh's attorneys filed several pretrial motions last week, requesting a change of venue, further DNA testing of evidence found under Maggie's fingernails from an unidentified man, and computer access for Murdaugh behind bars.

They also asked that he be allowed to appear in regular clothes without shackles at future hearings.

Murdaugh is not going free regardless of the murder retrial outcome.

He pleaded guilty to stealing roughly $12 million from clients and family members and is serving concurrent federal and state sentences of 40 and 27 years for those financial crimes.