All language subtitles for The Fall of the House of Murdaugh s01e03.eng

how does
alex murdaugh,

A self-proclaimed loving
father and husband...

hey, bus!

- Would you say alex shows
display of affection

And love to maggie and
to paul and buster?

- Yes, sir.

become
their executioner?

- Alex murdaugh is
facing four charges,

Two murder charges

And two gun charges
related to the deaths.

- This was the act
of a desperate man.

- He goes from just a
normal everyday dad,

Laughing with his wife and son,

To a cold-blooded murderer.

- Maybe he just snapped.

But still, it was hard
to grasp a parent doing

This to their child.

- He's torn down an
entire legacy, a law firm.

I'm mad as hell.

- No one, no matter how
close they thought they were,

And so many people did think

They were close
to alex murdaugh,

Nobody knew who he really was.

and if alex's
life has been a lie.

does his
family even know him?

- It was all a lie.

- And he lied to you?

- He did.

- Alex's only living
child, buster,

Tells his side of the story

In an exclusive interview.

How did that make you feel?

- It made me feel horrible.

And what made me
feel even worse was

What he was actually
trying to do.

and for
the first time,

Alex murdaugh reads excerpts

From a journal he says
he kept during the trial.

- When I look up the
definition of psychopaths,

Like someone who can
completely get away with lying

And acting normal
and carrying through,

As if nothing's happening,

Does that describe your dad

When you look at those
definitions of that?

- I'm not prepared to sit here

And say that it
encompasses him as a whole,

But certainly I think
there are characteristics

Where you look at
the manipulation

And the lies and the
carrying out of that such.

And I think that's
a fair assessment.

- If I were a betting person,

I'd say there may
be one more twist

Or one more turn in
the murdaugh saga.

mr. Murdaugh, do
you hope to testify this week?

- Where were you the night
that stephen smith was killed?

- Those who know, know...

And those who don't know,

Just make things up.

- Thank you, ma'am.

just start the top.

Take your time.

in the early
morning after the murders,

Sled investigators
interview alex.

he claims he was
never at the moselle kennels.

but a video
recorded that night

Exposes the truth.

- Very big moments
in court today.

Cell phones took center stage

In the colleton
county courtroom.

- It was around March of 2022,
I believe,

Where they were able to
crack into paul's phone.

And this is what, nine months
after the murders occurred,

And they were able
to find a video

Several moments
before the murders.

- On the video, we hear
maggie's voice and paul's voice

And then someone we
don't expect to hear.

- Whose voices did you
recognize on that video?

- Paul murdaugh, maggie
murdaugh, and alex murdaugh.

and how
sure are you?

100%.

- So that became huge.

We had alex at the
scene with the victims

Just moments before they died

And he had been lying about it.

- Your dad had told you that

He didn't go down to the
kennel that night?

- That's right.

He told everybody that.

- And you went to the
scene where alex was,

Is that right?

I did.

- And did he deny ever
going down to those kennels

To his buddy and law
partner of 34 years?

- He said that he ate dinner,
laid down on the couch,

Took a nap, and then left.

and now
you know that's not true

From seeing the
kennel video, right?

- I do.

- So when you discovered
that he had lied about that,

What'd you think?

- I thought it was very odd.

I was confused.

I didn't know why you would
lie about such a thing.

- Why do you think he did?

- I don't know.

I'd still like to understand,
you know, why that was,

You know, needed
to be lied about.

- Why do people lie?

People lie because they knew
they did something wrong

And they're trying to
avoid accountability.

- Now, clearly he lied
about where he was,

But you can hear alex and
maggie in the background.

- The tone is very convivial.

They're almost
laughing about it.

- According to the
state's theory,

Within just that few minutes,

He goes from just a
normal everyday dad,

Laughing with his wife and son,

To a cold-blooded murderer.

- I don't understand fully
how he could lie about that.

What else is he lying about?

were you concerned
about his lie in the courtroom?

- Yeah, most definitely.

When the kennel video
surfaced in the trial,

I think that you
have to get up there

And you have to say to the
jury what made you lie.

And that was very,
very important.

- Will alex murdaugh testify

In his own double-murder trial?

We asked the disbarred
attorney about his plans

As he entered the
courthouse this morning.

mr. Murdaugh,
do you hope to testify

This week?

- It was a high-stakes
thing either way,

But the kennel video
kind of forced him

To take the stand, I think.

He had to explain why he
hadn't told the truth.

- Mr. Murdaugh, if
you'll come forward.

- Anytime you put the
accused on the witness stand,

There is substantial danger,

But the cat was outta the bag
and it was a bad cat.

- Mr. Murdaugh, have
you made a decision

As to whether you're
gonna testify?

- Yes, sir.

and what
is your decision?

- I am going to testify.

I want to testify.

- All right, very well,
thank you.

thank you, your honor.

- Do you swear or affirm
that the testimony

You give today will be
the truth,

The whole truth, and
nothing but the truth?

- Yes ma'am.
- Thank you.

- Were you, in fact, at
the kennels at 8:44 pm

On the night maggie
and paul were murdered?

- I was.

- I think people were surprised
when alex took the stand.

But he was probably
thinking, you know what,

I'm still alex murdaugh.

I know my way
around a courtroom.

These are my people.

- Alex, why did you lie

About the last time you
saw maggie and paul?

- As my addiction
evolved over time,

I would get in these situations

Or circumstances where
I would get paranoid.

- Now, what type of addiction
are you referring to?

- My addiction is to

Opiate painkillers.

And that night, June 7th,

I'm sitting in a police car

With david owen asking
me about my relationship

With my wife and my son.

And all those things caused
me to have paranoid thoughts

And I lied about
being down there.

- He says he was having

This paranoia the
night of the murder.

But then he had more
interviews with law enforcement

Where he lies again.

So how long was he planning
to continue the lie?

And I believe he was gonna
continue the lie

Forever

If this video did not emerge.

but you continued
lying after that night,

Did you not?

- But once I lied,
I continued to lie.

- Yes, sir.
- why?

- You know, oh what a
tangled web we weave.

- Tell me what was going on
from where you were sitting,

Watching that play out?

- Nobody wants to be
sitting in the sixth row

Of the colleton
county courthouse,

You know, been there
for 4 1/2 weeks

Of a murder trial that
your father is accused

Of killing your mom and brother
and now all of a sudden,

You need to watch him
defend his innocence.

during approximately
10 hours of testimony

Over the course of two days,

Alex murdaugh confronts
his many lies and misdeeds.

you agree
that the most important part

Of your testimony here
today is explaining your lie

For a year and a half,

That you were never down
at those kennels at 8:44?

- I agree, that is an
important component.

- All right.

And what was the discussion?

You said that they
were going down there,

But you didn't wanna go,
is that right?

- I wasn't gonna go.

I said I'm not gonna go.

- So why'd you change your mind?

- Because maggie wanted me to.

- You pulled up, you get
out of the golf cart.

- No, when I pulled up I
stayed on the golf cart.

- Stayed on the golf cart.

How long did you stay
on the golf cart?

- However long I was down there.

- And what did
you do after that?

- I left.

- You left?

Are these convenient
facts in your new story

That have to fit
with the timeline

Now that that evidence has
been thrown in your face?

- No, sir.

- Once he made the
decision to testify,

He was not going to
get off the stand easy.

How many pills were
you using a day?

- Anywhere from 1,500
milligrams maybe

To more than 2,000
milligrams a day.

- All right, so
you're taking 60 a day

Or something like that?

- There were days where
I took more than that.

And I was an addict
for more than 20 years.

- I don't know if he was
really taking 60 pills a day

And walking around
acting otherwise

Normal and functioning.

- Alex taking that many
pills in x amount of years,

If you do the math,
after a couple hours,

That would've been a
lethal amount of oxy.

- Your mom and paul
were very concerned

About your dad's drug use.

Did paul mention that to you?

- Yeah, so there were times
where they mentioned it to me.

It would be a little
bit of a scenario

Of maybe they discovered
like pills or found pills.

But never in my wildest
imagination could I think,

Like, oh man, I mean,

This guy's battling a
20-year opiate addiction

Where he's taking, you know,
however many pills a day.

- So when did you start
stealing money from clients?

How long did it take before
you started doing that?

- I'm not sure when the
first time I did that is.

alex claims
his addiction

Not only caused him to lie,

It forced him to steal
millions of dollars

To fund his opioid habit.

let's start
with natasha thomas.

Do you remember her?

I do.

she was
underage, correct?

- Yes, she was underage.

I do believe that.
- Right.

So you got $800,000 attributed
to you with the firm,

But that was not enough.

You also stole money from that
teenager, is that correct?

- That is correct.

- He'd been stealing
money for years.

Hundreds of thousands,
millions of dollars.

No one had found him

Because he was able
to stay one, two,

And three steps
ahead of everybody.

- Tell me about ms. Melley.

So she lost her daughter,
correct?

- That is correct.

- Very, very sweet lady.

Correct?

- Very sweet lady.
- Right,

And you stole all of
the money, didn't you?

- I don't dispute that.

- You don't really understand

What the potential
destruction of a legacy

And of a life that
alex is facing

Until you understand all
that he's been doing.

All the years and years

Of alleged misappropriations
and thefts.

And this was as tangled a web

As I think anyone has ever seen.

alex doesn't just
steal money from clients,

He even targets people
who were close to him,

Like the sons of his
beloved housekeeper,

Gloria satterfield.

- Do you remember looking
tony satterfield

In the eye

And lying to him?

- Yeah.

he was the son

Of your longtime
housekeeper, gloria,

Who had served your
family for many years

And you stole millions
from those boys.

- I-I stole those funds.

I hate that I did it.

I'm embarrassed for my son.

- And what was your
response when you heard

That he was stealing
$3.8 million

From the satterfield family?

- So it was all,
I mean, you know,

Obviously I had been
privy to the information.

Like I knew there were
financial wrongdoings.

But I mean, yeah,
to get the details

And to get the understanding

Of who he took money
from is heartbreaking.

- These are all real people,
yes or no?

- They're all real people

And a lot of 'em are
people that I love.

- Yes, you hurt the
people that you love.

I know.

- It became a case more about
the accused being a liar

And a thief than it became
about being a murderer.

Alex murdaugh, by any account,
is a bad person,

But that is not what
he was on trial for.

nevertheless,
the state continues

To shine a light on
alex's financial misdeeds

And the upcoming $10 million
civil lawsuit

For the 2019 boat crash
that killed mallory beach.

- Mark tinsley made
it very clear to alex,

You're gonna have to pay

And you're gonna have
to pay a lot of money.

And alex's defense team
says alex can't do that.

You had been told by
the defense essentially

That alex had no money, correct?

- He's broke.

- All right, did they
say he could cobble

Together a certain amount?

- A million dollars.

Did you believe that
that was accurate?

- It couldn't have been.

- And that's when mark tinsley
said, okay, fine,

Then show me the books.

Show me his finances.

And that was one of the
big issues on the table

For the June 10th
hearing in the boat case.

in the weeks
leading up to the murders

On June 7th, 2021,

Alex murdaugh is facing
a civil lawsuit hearing

That may force him to expose
his personal finances.

- The boat accident was putting
financial pressure on him

That his finances were
gonna come to light.

- I believe the beach family
lawsuit against alex murdaugh

And all those other
parties contributed

To his fear of being exposed

For stealing money from
the firm and from clients.

- Were you concerned that
your house, financial house,

Was going to be opened
up for the world

As a result of that hearing?

no.

I personally have
never been able

To get a judge to order
the kinda information

That mark tinsley was
saying he was seeking.

- Yeah, the boat crash was
definitely a grenade pin

That set lots of
things into motion.

- On the day of the murders,

The cfo of the murdaugh
law firm testified

She had gotten suspicious
about like missing fees

And just some financial
irregularities,

And she came to alex.

- You asked him for proof,
is that correct?

- Yes.

And that he'd get the records

And they would get
everything that we needed.

- And what was your concern then

Back at that point
in time on June 7th?

- That he was trying to hide
income from the boat wreck.

And that is hiding assets

And we're not going to be
part of any wrongdoing.

- That's a very
significant confrontation

That that's going on.

He's being asked, show
me where those fees are

'cause I think you took them.

the
prosecution argues

That that confrontation
motivates alex

To murder his wife and son.

- Now he is a victim, a grieving
father, a grieving husband.

Murdering his wife and son was
the horrible, dramatic price

That he was willing to pay.

- This motive of,

He got questioned about
stealing $750,000 that day

And went home and
killed his wife and son

To distract attention
from this thievery

Is the worst malarkey I've
ever heard in my life.

How does that,
in anybody's mind,

Justify him going home

And executing the love of his
life and the apple of his eye?

- After the murders happened,

Was anybody at all concerned
about getting the proof?

- We weren't gonna go in there
and harass him about money

When we were worried
about his mental state

And the fact that this his
family had been killed.

Um.

It just wasn't even on
our mind at that point.

- He was on the cusp of
facing financial ruin,

Legal ruin,

And all those inquiries
that people were making,

All those things that
were coming to a head,

They immediately stop.

When you were facing
accountability,

Suddenly you became a victim
and everyone ran to your aid,

Isn't that true?

- There were no
accountability issues

On my doorstep on June the 7th.

- That's what you say,
not what other people say.

- To me, that made
no sense at all.

Like, killing two people would
clearly bring more attention

To his life, his finances.

It wouldn't distract
from any of it.

the
prosecution's theory

That playing the victim to
get sympathy is all part

Of alex murdaugh's mo
is demonstrated again

In September of 2021,

Just three months
after the murders.

- In the aftermath
of the murders,

You get confronted
about your thefts

From the law firm, correct?

No wiggling out of
this one, correct?

- I didn't try to
wiggle outta this one.

- Things took a very
bad turn for alex

On September 3rd, 2021

When the partners at his law
firm basically approached him

With a lot of irregularities
and they made him resign.

- Just when we thought it
couldn't get any crazier,

Then there's this labor day
shooting incident

Where he claims he
was fixing a flat tire

And that somebody came
and tried to kill him.

- And then it came out, well,
in fact, it was all a setup,

That he had gotten in touch
with a remote relative

And friend and he
hired curtis smith

To shoot him in the road

So buster, his
sole surviving son,

Would get a life
insurance policy.

- We saw the symmetry
between, wait a minute,

Alex is facing accountability
again, and guess what?

Now he's suddenly the victim
of the side of the road

And everybody's rushing
to his aid again,

Just like what happened,
you know, with the murders.

But we knew that there
was something here.

Again, the motive, the means,
the opportunity,

And the acts of a guilty person.

They're all there with alex.

Lie that you told of
an unknown assailant

Was to try to make people think

That the quote real guy bad guys

Were back again
to finish the job.

Isn't that true?

- No, sir, that's not true.

- That's not the effect
that you intended

That story to have?

That's the story that you told.

- That is the story I told.

But that's because

The man who shot me did
not shoot me that day

As I intended.

And I had to have a story
as to how I got shot,

So I lied.

- Whatever his motivations were,

He was using lies
to cover his trail

Until he couldn't any longer.

This was the act
of a desperate man.

- It had nothing to
do with the murder.

It wasn't relevant
to the murder.

It was about a financial
house crumbling.

- Did you ask him to shoot
you as a sympathy ploy?

- I meant for him to
shoot me so I'd be gone.

and why did
you wanna be gone?

- I mean, I knew all this
was coming to a head.

I knew how humiliating it
was gonna be for my son.

I'd been through so much.

At the time, in the
bad place that I was,

It seemed like the
better thing to do.

how did
that make you feel?

- It made me feel horrible.

And what made me
feel even worse was

What he was actually
trying to do.

And to understand
that he thought

That that was going to
be some kind of benefit,

Giving all the things that
I had gone through prior,

You know, disappointed me.

And you know, I told him.

He was like, I mean,
you should know that,

That this is not the
way to handle it.

This is not what I needed.

You know, I needed you
here not, you know,

Attempting some kind
of suicide stunt.

- So what can we believe
from alex murdaugh now?

I mean he's just digging
his hole deeper and deeper.

What in the world is he doing?

alex admits
to a litany of lies,

But the biggest is that
he isn't at the kennels

Moments before maggie and paul's
phones go silent at 8:49,

Which the prosecution
says gives him 17 minutes

To kill them and
leave moselle at 9:06.

- The timeline is very,
very key and it damns alex.

- Paul and maggie are murdered

Sometime during the 8:49 minute.

And then at 9:06,
alex gets in the car

To drive to alameda
where his mother is.

- Under the attorney
general's theory,

He would've had to
have killed maggie,

Killed paul close to 8:50.

And their expert and our
expert said whoever shot paul

Would be covered in blood,
head to foot.

so the question is,

What happened to
all of that blood?

- Sled didn't do its job.

And the best evidence of
this fumbling the ball

Was this t-shirt that had
a pattern of something

Which would be consistent
with blood spatter.

blood spatter
on alex's shirt

Was a significant piece of
evidence the state needed

To bring him to
trial for murder.

- The cornerstone that they went

To the grand jury
on wasn't true.

We got a trial date set

And then they found out
it wasn't human blood.

That just shows there
was no forensic evidence

Tying him to the murder.

- It's very clear
that alex took off

Whatever he was
wearing and rinsed off.

I mean, he's down
there at the kennels

Where you've got that hose
and a very, very bloody scene.

What were you doing?

- What I wasn't doing
is doing anything,

As I believe you've implied

That I was cleaning off
or washing off,

And I can promise you that
I wasn't doing any of that.

- He apparently becomes
a lowcountry john wick

With lots of activity,
killing and cleaning off.

What still amazes me is
he's killed these two people

In a very bloody,
violent fashion,

Very close quarters
with his son,

But didn't get any blood on him.

He's completely clean.

- So he had less than 17 minutes

To get in like the golf cart,

Go back up to the main house,

Dispose of the weapons,

Dispose of the bloody clothes,

Put himself in new clothes,

And get into his car and leave.

How can you do
that in 17 minutes?

- You know how hard it
is to wash blood off?

It is very hard.

And there's no way in the
world you gonna wash it off

In no 10 to 15 minutes
and do a good job.

- He either changed shirts

Or he had on a barrier between
he and the business end,

The muzzle in of that shotgun.

- Well, maybe he was wearing
some sort of coverall

Or some reason that he was able

To very quickly get cleaned up.

- Did you get high-velocity
blood spatter

From being within a distance

Of shooting of maggie or paul?

- There's no way

That I had high-velocity
blood spatter on me.

- They tried to come up
with a suggestion

Without any evidence

That was down at the dog kennel.

- But there's no
evidence whatsoever.

And again, no forensic evidence

There was any blood
in any water.

- They never swabbed the sinks

To see if there's
blood in the sinks,

Dna in the sinks.

They were giving them a lot of,

You know, a lot of courtesies.

- It just shows the privilege
that the murdaughs had

And how law enforcement
treated them,

The way they wouldn't
treat anybody else.

You know, it was all
privilege and power.

- The sad situation is,

It was to alex's disadvantage

That they didn't go by the book
and search thoroughly.

And we believe those
opportunities that they missed

Would have or could have
exonerated alex.

without that
physical evidence,

The prosecution
focuses on digital data

From that critical time period.

- Alex's phone is
showing no activity

From the early part of the
eight o'clock hour until 9:02.

The fact that he didn't take his
phone down to the kennels

Is very telling.

- He left the phone at the house

And he personally went down

So that it couldn't be tracked
for his actual whereabouts.

- Let me ask you this,
mr. Murdaugh,

Did you take your phone
with you down to the kennels

According to the new facts

That you're testifying
to yesterday and today?

I must not have.

- You must not have?

- If this is accurate, no, sir.

- Is that typical for you?

- Sure it is.

Absolutely.

- His phone doesn't
move once until 9:02.

And between 9:02 and 9:06,

His phone takes over

280-something steps.

What is he doing during
that four-minute period?

He's running around the
house doing something.

- Preparing to leave
for my mom's house.

- Well, the real reason,
mr. Murdaugh,

Is that you as a
lawyer and prosecutor

Are up at 9:02,

Finally having your
phone in your hand,

Moving around and making
all these phone calls

To manufacture an alibi.

Is that not true?

- That's absolutely incorrect.

I never manufactured any alibi

In any way, shape, or form.

- Maybe he was stepping while
he was talking on the phone.

Maybe he was pacing.

I could think of
other explanations

For like taking a lot of steps

That didn't seem
that incriminating.

- Alex gets in the
suburban around 9:06.

Though he's called
maggie multiple times,

He does not drive
down to the kennels

Or say, hey guys, I'm
heading over to alameda.

What's going on? Why aren't
you answering the phone?

Doesn't do any of that.

You're obviously wanting
to get in touch with them.

Why didn't you go down to the
kennels that were so close by?

- It wasn't
important to do that.

Me- me making those phone calls
is simply me letting them know

That I'm leaving for a minute,
I'll be back.

And as far as not
going down there,

There was no sense of urgency.

Maggie was with paul.

You know,

She should be as safe

As she could be.

- So as you're listening
to them talk about

These timelines and
break it all down,

Did you second guess your belief

That it was somebody
from the outside?

- I still stand with my opinion

And, you know, I
don't, you know,

I just think it still was
somebody from the outside.

- And there's no evidence as
to who these people might be?

- I mean, not as that
have been found yet.

- Mr. Murdaugh,

Did you take this gun
or any gun like it

And blow your son's brains out?

- No, I did not.

did you fire it into
your wife maggie's

Leg, torso, or any part
of her body?

- No, I did not.

- Mr. Murdaugh, are you
a family annihilator?

- A family annihilator?

You mean like, did I
shoot my wife and my son?

- Yes.

- No.

Would never hurt
maggie murdaugh.

I would never hurt paul murdaugh

Under any circumstances.

the trial
for the murders

Of maggie and paul murdaugh

Was expected to
last three weeks,

But it stretches on for six,

Making it the longest and most
sensational criminal trial

In south carolina history.

- And now it's time
for closing arguments.

First by the state, mr. Waters.

- Good morning.

in his
closing argument,

Lead prosecutor creighton waters

Is out to demonstrate that,
even with all the privilege

That came with
the murdaugh name,

No one is above the law.

- On June 7th, 2021

At the moselle property
in colleton county,

Maggie murdaugh and
paul murdaugh

Were brutally and maliciously
murdered at the kennels

By alex murdaugh.

And after an exhaustive
investigation,

There is only one person

Who had the motive,

Who had the means,

Who had the opportunity
to commit these crimes

And also whose guilty conduct
after these crimes betrays him.

The defendant is the person on
which a storm was descending

And the defendant is a person

Where his own storm would
actually mean consequences

For maggie and paul.

He'd avoided accountability
his whole life.

He had relied on
his family name,

But now, finally,

He was facing complete ruin.

The entire illusion of his
life was about to be altered.

He couldn't live for that.

He has fooled everyone,

Everyone who thought
they were close to him.

And he fooled
maggie and paul too,

And they paid for it

With their lives.

Don't let him fool you too.

the next day, the
defense makes the case that,

Although he admits
to being a liar,

Alex murdaugh isn't lying

About the one thing
that matters most:

Murdering his wife
maggie and his son paul.

- Good morning.

Closing arguments would
be very important.

It's an opportunity to tie
all the loose ends together

And summarize and
crystallize to the jury

That alex did not
kill maggie and paul.

Alex lied about being
down at the kennels.

And why did he lie?

And that is certainly
a fair question

And, frankly,

Probably wouldn't be
sitting over there right now

If he had not lied.

But he did lie.

And he told you he lied.

He lied 'cause that's
what addicts do.

Addicts lie.

You've heard testimony
from a lotta witnesses who

Actually knew

Alex and maggie and
paul and buster,

Testified under oath how
much alex adored maggie.

That she was his all.

Some people described paul
as alex's best friend.

His relationship
with him was awesome.

I mean, that was unanimous.

When you get this case,

You'll be making one of the
most consequential decisions

That you will have
ever made in your life.

If there's any
reasonable cause for you

To hesitate to write guilty,

Then the law requires
you to write not guilty.

On behalf of alex,

On behalf of buster,

On behalf of maggie,

On behalf of my friend paul,

I respectfully request
that you do not compound

A family tragedy with another.

Thank you.

- Fox news alert.

A verdict has been
reached in the trial

Of south carolina attorney,
alex murdaugh.

- It's a good sign when
they come back that quickly,

But I wasn't ready
to believe yet.

I understand
that there's a verdict.

You may bring the jury.

- To me, the biggest
surprise of the trial

Was how quickly the jury
came to its decision.

And the whole time I
was watching the trial,

I was thinking like this is a
lot of complicated evidence.

It's gonna take a while to kind
of sort through all of this.

And three hours didn't
seem to be enough time

In the jury's deliberations
to do all of that.

- Thank you.

Madam forelady, if
you'll stand for me.

Have you reached a verdict?

- When you have a
favorable verdict,

The jurors sometimes will
smile at you, nod at you.

So we had an early
verdict come back

And we had no one looking at us.

- The defendant will rise.

Madam clerk, you may
publish the verdict.

- I'm the one that read the
verdict of alex murdaugh

And I was a little,

My breath was knocked
out for a moment.

But then I have to tell
myself to treat this

Just like any other trial,

Any other verdict
that I have to read.

And I have to
place my mind there

And take out any other
personal relationships.

The state versus richard
alexander murdaugh, defendant,

Indictment for murder.

Guilty verdict.

- You could hear a pin drop.

Um, I don't think there
were a lot of people,

Especially in the community,

I don't think they thought
that the jury was going

To come back that fast
with a guilty verdict.

- Alex murdaugh had
no reaction at all

During the reading
of the verdicts.

There were so many reactions
from so many others.

did you cry?

- You know, I don't
like to do that thing

In the front of a camera.

I don't think anybody would.

But yeah, I mean you

Are going through a
tremendous emotional time.

It's an absolutely
excruciatingly

Difficult experience.

- Wow, what a great day for
the people of south carolina.

- Once the jury heard about

The despicable things he had
done, stealing the money,

They were ready to convict him
of anything and everything.

- When you look back
at this trial,

They didn't find
a murder weapon,

They didn't find
any bloody clothing,

There were no witnesses.

A lot of digital evidence.

- Yeah. Crappy motive.

- You think it was
a crappy motive?

And yet 12 jurors all agreed

That your dad killed
your mom and paul.

- That's right.

- What do you think about that?

- I do not believe it was fair.

- Why?

And I think it was a tilted
table from the beginning.

And I think, unfortunately,

A lot of the jurors felt

That way prior to when
they had to deliberate.

It was predetermined
in their minds prior

To when they ever heard
any shred of evidence

That was given in that room.

- Why would the jurors be
inclined to go against your dad?

- Because of everything
they had the ability

To read prior to the trial.

I think that people
get overwhelmed

And I think that they believe
everything that they read.

And I think it took
advantage of a jury pool

In a very small town,
in a very small county.

- In this particular case,
the alex murdaugh case,

We could go to ohio
and pick a jury

And probably have almost as
many people know about it.

We can't change the reality
of the modern media landscape.

So all you can do is go

And have your jury
selection process

And rely on people to do what
they swear they're gonna do

When they take their
oath as jurors.

And it was a tough case,
but they honored that oath.

- Joining us now are jurors,

Good morning to all of you.

- Morning.
- Good morning.

four days
after the verdict,

Three of the jurors
appeared on the "today" show

To explain why they
convicted alex murdaugh.

- Well, first of all,

I couldn't believe that
he was taking the stand.

And when he got
on the stand,

I was like, okay,
so it was him.

You know, I don't know him

So I never, you know,
knew his voice

But I realized it was him

In the kennel video that
just kinda sealed the deal.

- If you really think about
what the jury was dealing with,

This story went international.

Everybody was
watching the story.

And when the jury
came back that fast,

I think they didn't wanna be
part of what people thought

This area was like.

I think they thought
we need to clean house.

The guy's guilty, come back,
done and dusted, goodbye.

the day
after the verdict,

Now in his prison uniform,

Alex murdaugh arrives at the
courthouse to be sentenced.

- Good morning.

good
morning, your honor.

anything further?

I don't
think further comment

Is necessary, your honor.

- We didn't want to
pursue the death penalty.

The death penalty adds a
whole layer of logistics,

A whole layer of cost.

It would double the
cost of the trial

And possibly double the
length of the trial.

- I know you have to see

Paul and maggie
during the nighttime

When you're attempting
to go to sleep.

I'm sure they come
and visit you.

- All day and every night.

- I'm sure.

And they will continue to do so.

- Judge, I tell you again,

I respect this court

But I'm innocent.

- Well, and it might
not have been you.

It might have been

The monster you become

When you take opioid pills.

Maybe you become another person.

We'll leave that at that.

All right, mr. Murdaugh,

I sentence you

To the state department
of corrections

On each of the
murder indictments.

In the murder of your wife
maggie murdaugh,

I sentence you for the term

Of the rest of
your natural life.

For the murder of paul murdaugh,

Whom you probably love so much,

I sentence you to prison

For murdering him

For the rest of
your natural life.

- For the sentencing,

Judge newman spoke
and he said, said,

"I'm sure maggie and paul
visit you every night

When you're trying
to go to sleep."

And your dad said,
"every day and every night."

Did you think the judge
was going too far?

- Yeah, I think that's
just another one

Of his clever little
lines to suggest

That he agrees with
the guilty verdict.

I think he was very
straightforward about that,

And I think it was just
a kind of a cruel analogy

To be throwing out amongst
just an overly public trial.

with the
guilty verdict

And sentencing handed down,

Alex murdaugh's lawyers
continue to fight on his behalf.

- You know, I'm sorry
for our client,

But we're not gonna give up.

We're gonna go
forward with an appeal

And if we get an a new trial,

I'll be right there doing it.

- Absolutely they're
gonna appeal it.

I mean, the defense has
to appeal everything.

But we believe it is sound

- Obviously the admission
of the financial evidence

Is gonna be a key issue.

We knew that.

But I think judge newman,
you know,

Very carefully
considered all of this

And had some very sound legal
reasoning for letting it in.

And so we're confident
on an appeal.

That's just the process

And we'll follow it
until its conclusion.

while the
appeal makes its way

Through south carolina's
judicial system,

The question remains for buster

And those who still believe
in alex murdaugh's innocence,

If not alex, then who
did pull the trigger?

- I do not know who
killed maggie and paul.

I wish I did.

I believe the answer
lies in the drug world

That alex was financing,

But I don't know the answer.

- Well, the killer is walking
around out there somewhere

And I know it ain't alex.

There's a possibility that
he might know who done it,

Because we had a lotta
rumors going around

It had to do with
the boating accident

And then the other rumor
was to do with the drugs.

But I can't prove none of it.

- I think it was somebody
that wanted to hurt my brother

And it was carried out.

And it still is.

in the aftermath of
alex's trial and conviction.

there is no respite
for his only living son.

- I'm concerned about buster.

I have been concerned
about buster

Since all of this started.

He's been presented in a way
that's remarkably unfair.

- Buster's had his own
demons to live with

And his own accusations
and rumors to live with.

the most damaging,

A rumor of his involvement

In the death of a high
school acquaintance,

19-year-old stephen smith.

- A classmate of alex murdaugh's
older son, buster,

Was found dead in the middle
of a south carolina road

On July 8th, 2015.

smith's body
is discovered

Approximately 15 miles
from moselle

And his death is ruled a
hit-and-run accident.

- The case was reopened
in June of 2021

Based on information
brought to life

During the investigation

Into maggie and paul
murdaugh's murders.

The death of stephen smith
is now considered a homicide.

- Stephen smith is a young
man who was killed in 2015.

His body was found in
the middle of the road.

as that
investigation was launched,

Rumors of a connection
between smith's death

And alex's son, buster,
have popped up.

- A lot of people in
town have come right out

And said, oh, you know,

Buster was in a gay
relationship with stephen.

Buster was secretly gay.

All sorts of things.

And they really have
no proof at all.

- His sister said
someone approached her

And said that you and stephen
were romantically involved.

His brother says that
someone approached him

And says that you were
with a group of young men

Who beat him with
a baseball bat.

What do you say to that,

To both of those?

- Absolutely

Baseless rumors.

I unequivocally deny anything
that you just read off

Of that piece of paper.

I did not have any personal
intimate relations with stephen

And that obviously cannot be
proven because it is baseless.

I never had anything
to do with his murder

And I never had
anything to do with him

On a physical level
of any regard.

- Where were you the night
that stephen smith was killed?

- The night stephen was killed,

I was at our edisto beach house.

- With your family?

- With my mom and my brother.

- Given everything
you're going through,

What did you feel like

When you heard that this
thing was surfacing again?

- Well, it's a lot like
this and, you know,

I don't wanna be rude here,

But have you ever been
accused of murdering somebody?

- No.

- Well, lemme tell you this,

It is very, very,
very, very, very,

It's a terrible thing
to place on somebody

With absolutely no fact.

I mean, it has
harmed my reputation.

I mean, people perceive
me as a murderer.

- There's no evidence
to any involvement

Of buster murdaugh

Or any murdaugh

In the death of stephen smith.

- In one documentary,

They are recreating the night
of stephen smith's murder

And they have a bunch
of frat boys in trucks

With baseball bats.

They don't have
any proof of this.

This story, like so many today,

Has become more about
what might have happened

Or what people think happened
or what people say happened,

As opposed to the truth.

- Those who know, know,

And those who don't know,

They just make stuff up.

- It's slanderous.

It's defamatory.

There's no evidence there.

There's no there there.

I hope the smith family
finds answers if they can,

But the answer is
not buster murdaugh.

Can promise you that.

- But that is still a case

That a lotta people are
still very interested in,

And obviously we can't
comment beyond that.

But I will say that our
office will continue

To pursue the truth
at every corner.

- I think that the murdaugh
family that is left

Will try to do
everything they can do

To bring back a
fondness for the name.

But is it tarnished forever?

I do believe so.

- Alex tainted his own legacy.

He didn't damage
the family name.

You can only destroy
what belongs to you

And the murdaugh name,

It belongs to the whole family.

- It feels like anybody

That maintains the last name
of murdaugh now has some,

You know, horrible
stain on their integrity

Because there's obviously
a perception, you know,

People think like,

Oh, the apple doesn't fall
very far from the tree.

- Do you ever worry,
you know, am I like dad?

- No, I do not worry
because I am not a thief,

I am not a liar,

I'm not a manipulator.

In those regards,
I am nothing like him.

But in other regards,

I believe that I do hold some
of his more admirable traits,

Which I am quite proud of.

- And your mom,

What do you think she would
say to you about moving on?

- Well, my hope is
that she would be proud

Of the way that I am
handling these situations

And the way that I am
carrying out my life.

Obviously, I have
to live my life now

With 100% of my immediate
family no longer around me.

bus, how you gonna get
a blue marlin one day?

did you get hurt?

- A little bit.

But what I do have are
the fantastic memories.

Same story, different day.

And things that I was
able to do with them

While they were here

That I try to run in
a little bit of a reel

In my head constantly.

And holding onto that is

What gets me through
the tough days.

the
tragedy of the murders

Of maggie and paul go
beyond the murdaugh family,

Beyond the grounds of moselle.

It spills over to
the lowcountry,

The beach and
satterfield families,

And so many others.

The murder trial may have
lasted just six weeks,

But the ripple effect
it created endures.

- What this incredibly
dramatic fall

Of the house of murdaugh

Has also meant is the
lowcountry has become famous,

And it will be for
quite some time.

- I would have to say a
point of personal pride

Would be the number of people

Who came up to me after
the trial who said,

You and your team
restored my faith,

You renewed my faith in the
criminal justice system.

I had completely lost faith

That someone like alex murdaugh
could be held accountable.

- There was a lot of relief
that we had managed to

Get such an uphill battle,

But to get justice
for maggie and paul.

That was really the feeling
that struck me the most.

alex murdaugh,
guilty of murder.

- Apparently, millions
of people watched

This thing, cover to cover.

- Of course, the
remaining question is,

If he didn't do it, who did?

- A number of people
that stopped me say,

I think he didn't do it.

A woman from canada
yesterday stopped me,

Talked to me about it,
said, "he didn't do it.

You all did a great job.

You'll win it on appeal."

- I thought a lot about
what reasonable doubt means

In this trial because
there's no direct evidence.

It's complicated.

And to me, I feel like
if I were on the jury,

I would find that
there's reasonable doubt.

I honestly don't know if he
murdered maggie and paul,

But I think he
could have done it.

But like if forced to
answer, I would say,

No, I don't think he did it.

- Do we know really what
happened that night?

No.

No, we don't.

And I doubt we ever will.

But if I were a betting person,

I'd say there may be
at least one more twist

Or one more turn

In the murdaugh saga.

- All right, so let's
talk about buster 2024,

2025 and beyond.

What are your plans
for the future?

- My plans for the future are

To live a very, very happy life

With happy people around me,

And hopefully get to a
place where I can go out

And enjoy myself without
having to be perceived

As a character in
this murdaugh story.

thank you,
you may step down.

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