SC - Paul Murdaugh & mom Margaret Found Shot To Death - Alex Murdaugh Accused - Islandton #32

[Seattle1]

I tend to think that PM favored his mom in his nurturing side as many people describe him to be someone who would do anything for you. Unfortunately, it sounds like his ability to cope and handle drugs/alcohol are more of his father. AM mentioned that he had ADHD and it is not surprising. There seemed to be a whole lot of self-medication going on for AM and possibly PM. Too bad, PM never had the chance to own his behavior and grow beyond it. Sounds like he might have been trying.

I wanted to believe this to be true but there's evidence to the contrary.

First, knowing that PM was only age 19 when he crashed AM's boat with BAC greater than 3x limit for legal adults, PM's bond conditions did not provide that he had to remain alcohol-free on bond release and no random drink/drug tests ordered. PM's only requirement was to surrender his passport.

It further seems that within weeks of arraignment/release, the requirement for PM to remain in the county of his school and home was lifted and he was free to travel anywhere within the state of SC!

In my experience, none of this is typical of bond conditions for defendants with felony charges the equivalent of manslaughter.

We also know that after the boating fatality and while on bond release, PM was not deterred from taking another boat on the water where he received a boating safety citation as well as a speeding violation while pulling a boat and trailer with his truck. This with allegations PM was still frequenting bars and consuming alcohol while on bond release where you'd think he would be modeling his best behavior.

Most recently, we heard AM testify about PM complaining of edema in his feet/ankles. At age 22, I think the first question by a medical provider would be about PM's use of alcohol.

Alcohol: Abuse, Addiction, & Treatment Options

Alcohol contributes to 88,000 DEATHS per year in the United States. Unfortunately, many do not receive the proper treatment or simply do not reach out for help.

www.arkbh.com

 

[tmar]

If I were on the jury I would have handed AM the tissue box....just so I wouldn't have to watch all of his snot dangling from his lying face.

I think the comments out there regarding the cross are concerning. Some think CWs cross was great and strategic. Some think he let AM control it all.

I don't mind letting AM ramble to dig his own grave, but I wish some things had been driven home a little harder on cross. Maybe that will be done at closing.

Waters has shown how much smarter he is than AM.
He allowed AM to ramble, making it clear, this is his way, of manipulating situations: often ''off topic', explaining relatable events.
Therefore, I hope Waters will use AM's ramblings, with further witnesses, and in closing.
AM's tactics have aided in his 'down fall'.

 

[minor4th]

I think the prosecutor did a fine job. He got admissions on all the financial crimes; he got Alex to lay out his implausible theory; he established that Alex is perfectly willing to harm those he loved and cares for; he exposed Alex’s arrogance and need for control; he got Alex to admit that no one else was around at the time of the murders; he narrowed the window even further; he made Alex accuse numerous other witnesses of lying (Blanca, Shelley, Tinsley and Marian). He did what he needed to do - the time for drawing conclusions and making the necessary inferences is at closing.

 

[Katrinepa]

She stuck something in the book?

Any contact is Contraband, for good reason. Since tehn, others have tried to pass things to him when walking out of Court, which is why he is removed First Alone, and then others can leave. Sickening.

It's about a corrupt judge, that's for sure. Jails don't usually allow books with major criminals as protagonists or antagonists. No police procedurals, no crime stories that detail how to commit crimes, etc.

I've read the first 50 pages and see no mention of the Judge's ethnicity (nor can I find a review that mentions it - there's a black character in the book, but so far, it's not the Judge - who is uber-wealthy and into gadgets, but no mention of his skin color that I can see).

I'm not disbelieving you, just wondering where you learned that, as I have searched reviews for the character's name (Judge Ross Bannick) and cannot find any mention of his ethnicity. If it is true that the sister brought a book about a corrupt, law-breaking black judge, that's truly offensive. So I want to make sure before I start disliking all the Murdaughs even more.

IMO.

Just repeating what someone else posted. Thanks for the correction. I don't want to start anything negative.

 

[Katrinepa]

It was a book by John Grisham that mentioned a Black Judge from what I read, and passed illegally by his sister. Since then, some have tried to slip him contraband, none of which is allowed. No Contact is the Rule/Law, and they are lucky they weren't arrested.

As I posted this seeing it from another Post, I apologize, as wrong about the Black Judge. Just a Judge in the book. MAJOR Correction by me. So sorry..

 

[worm]

I wanted to believe this to be true but there's evidence to the contrary.

First, knowing that PM was only age 19 when he crashed AM's boat with BAC greater than 3x limit for legal adults, PM's bond conditions did not provide that he had to remain alcohol-free on bond release and no random drink/drug tests ordered. PM's only requirement was to surrender his passport.

It further seems that within weeks of release, the requirement for PM to remain in the county of his school and home was lifted and he was free to travel anywhere within the state of SC!

In my experience, none of this is typical of bond conditions for defendants with felony charges the equivalent of manslaughter.

We also know that after the boating fatality and while on bond release, PM was not deterred from taking another boat on the water where he received a boating safety citation as well as a speeding violation while pulling a boat and trailer with his truck. This with allegations PM was still frequenting bars and consuming alcohol while on bond release where you'd think he would be modeling his best behavior.

Most recently, we heard AM testify about PM complaining of edema in his feet/ankles. At age 22, I think the first question by a medical provider would be about PM's use of alcohol.

Alcohol: Abuse, Addiction, & Treatment Options

Alcohol contributes to 88,000 DEATHS per year in the United States. Unfortunately, many do not receive the proper treatment or simply do not reach out for help.

www.arkbh.com

I’m not victim blaming but I personally think that AM and PMs lawyers were putting off and waiting for a lenient judge to visit and they try for a plea? Again, with respect, I also think that he had a real chance of getting some time from that crash given the attention. The state is usually pretty harsh in these types of cases but this was unique for its own reasons.

 

[Luna20]

Is there another thread that is devoted to the financial crimes and upcoming trial for that?

There will be once it gets closer. It will be another busy thread.

 

[justtrish]

I just finished watching the day 2 cross.

I'll reiterate my previous thought - which I feel despondent about.

The prosecutor was a word salad and terrible - for a murder trial, he very infrequently directly confronted AM about the murder, and AM played him.

If you're as astute as WS members, you see the holes in AM's testimony.
But, the signal-to-noise was so low in that cross, that I think that many average jurors will miss those holes.
I may be wrong. I hope so.

But, then mix in all of those saccharine-sweet, faux Southern mannerisms - I wonder if those were orchestrated to appeal to fellow Southerners.
I freely admit I don't know about rural SC, except for the fact that it was among the last bastions of the Confederacy (which makes me suspicious, I will admit).

But, why not repeatedly say, loud and clear - "Mr. Murdaugh, you are a murderer. The evidence is the technological record which you cannot refute..." Over and over.... Over and over... Over and over....
If I'm a non-attentive juror, I'd commend the prosecutor for proving that AM was a liar.
But, that wasn't the goal.

My prediction - hung jury. Sadly. Maybe my faith will be restored.

I think we can't compare how a prosecutor does questioning an average person and questioning a lying manipulative, lawyer. I think CW knew what he was doing and knew he wasn't going to get a huge gotcha moment. He had to allow Alex to get somewhat comfortable and feel he had the upper hand. He wasn't going to rattle Alex by "brining the heat" It's like trying to win at the game someone is an expert in. He was very effective to get Alex to deny using that badge.. then bam there is the photo. He knew Alex was going to use LE as a reason for his paranoia.. then how can that be if you basically act like you are LE and always get your way. He got him to go through the reasons he lied about being at the kennel.. then he basically proved that none of those reasons were even at play the first time he lied to LE. I think he let Alex talk and talk so he could catch him in a few lies. He was never going to get him to say I murdered them. It would have backfired on CW if he came out harsh claiming you murdered them over and over.. because now you have a crying Alex claiming he loved them so much and was just a poor ole drug addict so he lied about the kennel, but he didn't kill them. CW would have looked very bad in front of the jury and Alex would have looked like the victim (I suspect this is what Alex suspected would happen so he was just waiting for CW to go after him harshly so he could watch it unfold).

Instead, we have CW letting him talk and tell his stories and blah blah blah and then subtle things he said were brought back to bite him and he didn't even realize it.

I think the state also already knew they were going to have rebuttal witnesses so the more Alex talked and lied, the more they had to work with on rebuttal. No need to confront Alex about them all because he would never admit to the murders.. but the state can bring in witnesses to refute what the defense has presented.

 

[Seattle1]

Didn't one of Miss Libby's caregivers say that Alex and Maggie came to see RM3 Sunday night 6-6. Maggie brought him his favorite donuts....AM could have had a stash of pills at Almeda or he could have just helped himself to some of his dad's pain medication to get him through until he could safely access another one of his stash locations at Moselle.

Good call @Walela.

In AM's confession after the hired drive-by shooting, AM alleged obtaining pills from the 42+ year Murdaugh caregiver Ms. Mixson.

During testimony, AM said he talked if not saw Ms. Mixson daily.

 

[Katrinepa]

It's about a corrupt judge, that's for sure. Jails don't usually allow books with major criminals as protagonists or antagonists. No police procedurals, no crime stories that detail how to commit crimes, etc.

I've read the first 50 pages and see no mention of the Judge's ethnicity (nor can I find a review that mentions it - there's a black character in the book, but so far, it's not the Judge - who is uber-wealthy and into gadgets, but no mention of his skin color that I can see).

I'm not disbelieving you, just wondering where you learned that, as I have searched reviews for the character's name (Judge Ross Bannick) and cannot find any mention of his ethnicity. If it is true that the sister brought a book about a corrupt, law-breaking black judge, that's truly offensive. So I want to make sure before I start disliking all the Murdaughs even more.

IMO.

I was wrong, and reposted from another comment, SO SORRY! AM Is definitely Racist though, as he made up some sick story about some friend of one of his sons working for some LE going after Black Panthers-soo much BS, and just one of his stories to Deflect. Grr.

 

[Cindizzi]

Not going to take this to the bank just yet until further confirmation or we see who’s NOT in Court Monday.

No disrespect to the reporter.

JMO

https://twitter.com/x/status/1629597888194945025

 

[detectivewannab]

We were debating on if his attorneys could see him this weekend. What's the answer???

 

[Katrinepa]

I wanted to believe this to be true but there's evidence to the contrary.

First, knowing that PM was only age 19 when he crashed AM's boat with BAC greater than 3x limit for legal adults, PM's bond conditions did not provide that he had to remain alcohol-free on bond release and no random drink/drug tests ordered. PM's only requirement was to surrender his passport.

It further seems that within weeks of arraignment/release, the requirement for PM to remain in the county of his school and home was lifted and he was free to travel anywhere within the state of SC!

In my experience, none of this is typical of bond conditions for defendants with felony charges the equivalent of manslaughter.

We also know that after the boating fatality and while on bond release, PM was not deterred from taking another boat on the water where he received a boating safety citation as well as a speeding violation while pulling a boat and trailer with his truck. This with allegations PM was still frequenting bars and consuming alcohol while on bond release where you'd think he would be modeling his best behavior.

Most recently, we heard AM testify about PM complaining of edema in his feet/ankles. At age 22, I think the first question by a medical provider would be about PM's use of alcohol.

Alcohol: Abuse, Addiction, & Treatment Options

Alcohol contributes to 88,000 DEATHS per year in the United States. Unfortunately, many do not receive the proper treatment or simply do not reach out for help.

www.arkbh.com

Absolutely, and my first thought. He's have to be drinking pretty heavily for that to happen. Sad overall, especially for the poor girl who died from the boat accident-no personal responsibility at all in that whole family.

 

[Walela]

I’m not surprised they found something in his system because he got fired that day and quickly tried to plot another scenario. Some people may have taken something temporarily to get through the first few days of horrible news. That doesn’t imply that he was on drugs for 3 decades.

“A public relations firm working with Murdaugh and his attorneys released four pages of what it ‘claims’ to be Murdaugh’s “medical records” on Friday without explanatory comment. The records were purportedly maintained by Memorial Health in Savannah, Georgia. The four pages of records are facially incomplete, the pages are numbered seven, eight, and 48; a fourth page contains no page number.

The records suggest a “rapid drug screen” on Murdaugh’s urine contained the two aforementioned drugs but did not contain cocaine, amphetamines, benzodiazepine (the type of tranquilizer drugs contained in Valium or Xanax), or cannabinoids (THC) from marijuana.

“No attempt is made to identify specific drugs that may be present or any other drugs that may cause false positives,” the documents noted.

Citing 'Medical Records' from Roadside Shooting, Alex Murdaugh Claims He Tested Positive for Barbiturates, Opiates When Examined by Doctors

The purported medical records of embattled legal scion Alex Murdaugh show that the now-suspended South Carolina lawyer tested positive for two types of drugs — barbiturates and opiates — when doctors examined him after a roadside shooting that eventually left him facing a scad of criminal charges.

lawandcrime.com

So we have his lawyers publishing the fact that he was driving under the influence when the roadside show took place. Where's the ticket for DUI?

 

[Katrinepa]

So we have his lawyers publishing the fact that he was driving under the influence when the roadside show took place. Where's the ticket for DUI?

Special treatment by local LE, on hte take IMPOV>

 

[kaen]

I wanted to believe this to be true but there's evidence to the contrary.

First, knowing that PM was only age 19 when he crashed AM's boat with BAC greater than 3x limit for legal adults, PM's bond conditions did not provide that he had to remain alcohol-free on bond release and no random drink/drug tests ordered. PM's only requirement was to surrender his passport.

It further seems that within weeks of arraignment/release, the requirement for PM to remain in the county of his school and home was lifted and he was free to travel anywhere within the state of SC!

In my experience, none of this is typical of bond conditions for defendants with felony charges the equivalent of manslaughter.

We also know that after the boating fatality and while on bond release, PM was not deterred from taking another boat on the water where he received a boating safety citation as well as a speeding violation while pulling a boat and trailer with his truck. This with allegations PM was still frequenting bars and consuming alcohol while on bond release where you'd think he would be modeling his best behavior.

Most recently, we heard AM testify about PM complaining of edema in his feet/ankles. At age 22, I think the first question by a medical provider would be about PM's use of alcohol.

Alcohol: Abuse, Addiction, & Treatment Options

Alcohol contributes to 88,000 DEATHS per year in the United States. Unfortunately, many do not receive the proper treatment or simply do not reach out for help.

www.arkbh.com

Totally understand. I hope for change with all young people, especially those with addiction. I get that he is a product of his decisions AND his family dynamics.

 

[kaen]

So we have his lawyers publishing the fact that he was driving under the influence when the roadside show took place. Where's the ticket for DUI?

Power, privilege and pandering.
Don't forget he is afraid of SLED for just that reason that they might give him a DUI. LOL.

 

[Eagle2123]

So has anyone come up with any theories on how these murders were pulled off? AM has admitted he was there and in the golf cart. So now it makes sense that he drove both victims to the crime scene. It was a 6 seater golf cart? Anyone think this golf cart came into play? Explains the trajectory of the bullets? Was he sitting in the golf cart with both guns? Shoots PM while he’s standing in the feed room? MM runs and he circles her while shooting? Which also explains the different trajectories and entry wounds? Thoughts?

 

[less0305]

Possibly delivery of drugs, a jail house trick. Some drugs can be infused onto paper, as in books, and it is a way to deliver without suspicion until it is discovered.
The book itself sounds too innocent. MO - a drug delivery.

I'm pretty sure a drug smuggled into a jail facility would be more than just a misdemeanor - and the smuggler would be arrested too.

 

[BUF]

Earlier today I heard another reporter on CNN who has been in the courtroom discussing the cross by Waters. She was kind of surprised by some of the stuff posted online and had a much different take. She said during the financial stuff some jurors didn’t seem as interested after a while…but when Waters went into the day of/night of/after the murders all the jurors were intently following the cross. She said some of the jurors wouldn’t even look at Alex then.

We can all remember how Alex had his chair skewed to the jury.