Presiding Judge Debra McCaslin wrote in an order late Tuesday, "The court finds that Sumter County provides an appropriate forum in which the Defendant can receive a fair trial, while also offering security measures, courtroom facilities, and technological capabilities necessary for the safe, orderly, and efficient conduct of these proceedings."
The State Supreme Court overturned the conviction that the State earned in the first trial at the Colleton County Courthouse. McCaslin issued a finding that Murdaugh could not, in her opinion, receive a fair trial in Walterboro - or anywhere in the corresponding judicial circuit. The Supreme Court ruled the first trial was invalid because of alleged jury interference by Colleton Clerk of Court Becky Hill and because the presiding judge allowed the State to present too much testimony about Murdaugh's shady finances.
McCaslin will preside over another pre-trial hearing on Nov. 13 in her home county of Lexington.
A former Walterboro/Hampton-area lawyer, Murdaugh was convicted in 2023 in the deaths of his wife, Maggie, and his son, Paul; but he has steadfastly declared his innocence of those charges, even while serving federal and state time for financial crimes (27 years state and 40 years federal). Maggie Murdaugh and Paul Murdaugh were found shot to death at the family compound's dog kennels on June 7, 2021, in Islandton.
The first Alec Murdaugh trial was a media sensation with several books and documentaries made about the attorney-fallen-from-grace and his powerful family. He goes on trial again in April, 2027, if the schedule already outlined by the judge holds.
The Defense favored Charleston or Richland counties. The State suggested Florence, Lancaster, Newberry, Spartanburg or York counties, as potential change of venue sites.
