Alex Murdaugh’s three-day evidentiary hearing takes place later this month.
The hearings will held in open court and court-controlled television cameras will be allowed. They cannot, however, focus on the faces of testifying jurors, who will be referred to by their juror numbers, not their names. The hearing will determine whether Murdaugh will be granted a new murder trial, after his attorneys, alleged jury tampering by Colleton County Clerk of Court Rebecca “Becky” Hill.
Former S.C. Chief Justice Jean Toal is now the judge hearing the case. She took control of her South Carolina courtroom -, making several rulings affecting Alex Murdaugh’s bid. His attorneys say jury tampering by Colleton County Clerk of Court Becky Hill impacted the original trial’s outcome, and that according to Toal, will be the defense’s burden to prove. The attorneys argued the law only required them to prove improper contact with jurors had occurred.
Toal says she will rule that, “Prejudice must be proved, not presumed.”
Toal says the stand she will take on the specific evidence of ”what was said, when it was said, and how it impacted the jury,” lies with the defense, not an assumption on Becky Hill’s credibility. Toal told the courtroom that she would not allow the upcoming evidentiary hearing to turn into a trial of Becky Hill.
Becky Hill is facing her own ongoing ethics and criminal investigations related to her conduct during and after the Murdaugh trial. The judge says she intends to limit the witness list to the twelve deliberating jurors and Becky Hill.
An alternate juror and Juror 785, now known as the “egg lady” due to her insistence that she retrieve a dozen eggs from the jury room before leaving the courthouse, will not be allowed to testify. Toal says she sees “no necessity” to hear from anyone other than the (deliberating) jurors.”
What’s more, Toal says she will be the one asking the questions.
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[Feature Photo: Alex Murdaugh reacts as he addresses the court during his sentencing for stealing from 18 clients, Tuesday, Nov. 28, 2023, at the Beaufort County Courthouse in Beaufort, S.C. (Andrew J. Whitaker/The Post And Courier via AP, Pool)]
