Disgraced attorney Alex Murdaugh is suing Rebecca \u201cBecky\u201d Hill, the former court clerk who allegedly interfered with the jury that convicted him in the murders of his wife and son in 2023.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The civil rights lawsuit filed Sunday in the U.S. District Court for the District of South Carolina comes four days after the state\u2019s highest court overturned Murdaugh\u2019s double murder convictions and life sentence, saying he was denied his right to a fair trial because of Hill\u2019s \u201cimproper external influences on the jury.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cMr. Murdaugh brings this action to hold Ms. Hill accountable for her wrongful conduct under color of state law and to recover compensatory and punitive damages as provided by law,\u201d the lawsuit reads.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In the lawsuit, Murdaugh\u2019s legal team claims he suffered $600,000 in monetary damages as a result of Hill\u2019s actions. The team also said Murdaugh is entitled to recovery of attorney\u2019s fees and costs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Jim Griffin, one of Murdaugh\u2019s attorneys, said Monday that none of the money would go to his client personally.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Hill\u2019s attorney, Will Lewis, was not immediately available to comment on the lawsuit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Murdaugh\u2019s defense team \u2014 which includes Griffin, Dick Harpootlian and Phillip Barber \u2014 said at a news conference outside their offices in South Carolina on Monday that the main purpose of the civil rights lawsuit is to investigate the scope of Hill\u2019s actions as Murdaugh faces the prospect of a new trial.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWith the South Carolina Supreme Court\u2019s ruling, it has been adjudged as a matter of state law that she deprived Alex of his constitutional rights, deprived him of a right to a fair trial,\u201d Griffin said. \u201cAs a result, we\u2019ve got to do it all over again, which nobody wants to do.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Murdaugh, a former personal injury lawyer, was convicted two years ago in the June 2021 slayings of his wife, Margaret \u201cMaggie\u201d Murdaugh, and their 22-year-old son, Paul Murdaugh. The trial drew so much national attention that it became a true crime phenomenon, becoming the subject of countless documentaries and podcasts throughout the years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In the case, prosecutors accused Murdaugh of carrying out the killings to earn pity and distract from financial crimes that threatened to derail his public reputation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The jury convicted Murdaugh on two counts of murder and two counts of possession of a weapon during a violent crime. He had pleaded not guilty.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The scion of a prominent South Carolina legal dynasty, Murdaugh has denied killing his wife and younger son since their bodies were discovered on their estate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In the lawsuit filed Sunday, Murdaugh\u2019s legal team claims: \u201cHe maintained his innocence then. He maintains his innocence now.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Griffin said he spoke to Murdaugh from jail after the South Carolina Supreme Court overturned his convictions. According to Griffin, his client was having \u201ca hard time believing it.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Murdaugh said he deserves jail time for his financial crimes but not for the murders of his wife and son, Griffin said. It has been \u201calmost unbearable\u201d for him to be convicted of something he didn\u2019t do, Griffin added.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Hill pleaded guilty last year to criminal charges for showing sealed court exhibits to a photographer and lying about it in court. She was sentenced to a year of probation. But she denied improperly influencing the jury.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThere is no excuse for the mistakes I made. I\u2019m ashamed of them,\u201d Hill said in a short statement to the court.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
During Murdaugh\u2019s murder trial, Hill was tasked with overseeing the jury. People in that administrative role are typically responsible for bringing jurors to the courtroom and for ferrying notes between the panel and the court during deliberations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Barber, one of Murdaugh\u2019s lawyers, said the integrity of the jury process \u201cwas violated by somebody sworn to uphold it.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThat\u2019s why we\u2019re here today, and that cannot go unanswered,\u201d Barber said. \u201cThat\u2019s what we\u2019re going to do with this lawsuit.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson has said his office, which prosecuted Murdaugh, was unaware of Hill\u2019s alleged conduct during the trial and described the alleged behavior as inappropriate but ultimately harmless.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Wilson disagreed with the decision of the South Carolina Supreme Court overturning Murdaugh\u2019s convictions and vowed to retry the case by the end of the year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIn light of the Supreme Court\u2019s decision, we\u2019re back to square one on this case, and that means all our legal options are on the table, including the death penalty,\u201d Wilson told NBC News.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Harpootlian, another lawyer for Murdaugh, blasted Wilson at the news conference, saying: \u201cThe law is clear that he cannot seek the death penalty if it is due to vindictive prosecution.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWhy is he saying he\u2019s going to seek the death penalty? Is there some new piece of evidence?\u201d Harpootlian said. \u201cWe\u2019ve seen this process since the beginning of this case, where Alan Wilson plays politics as opposed to playing prosecutor.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Wilson, who is running for governor of South Carolina, told Fox News following the news conference from Murdaugh\u2019s legal team: \u201cOur reconsideration of the death penalty was made in consultation with our legal team. I haven\u2019t talked to anyone with my campaign team about this.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Still, Murdaugh remains behind bars on concurrent sentences of 27 years and 40 years for state and federal financial crimes to which he pleaded guilty.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Neil R. Gordon, who co-wrote \u201cBehind the Doors of Justice: The Murdaugh Murders\u201d with Hill about the case, confirmed to NBC News that the book generated about $100,000 in profits. Gordon said that Hill and her husband received 65% of the book\u2019s profits, while he and his wife received 35%.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Gordon did not provide comment about Murdaugh\u2019s lawsuit against Hill.<\/p>\n\n\n\n