- Alex Murdaugh attended a pretrial hearing Monday after the South Carolina Supreme Court overturned his murder convictions and life sentence last month.
- The hearing's primary goals were to establish deadlines for exchanging evidence between the defense and prosecution, and to set dates for future hearings and the retrial, which is scheduled for April 5.
- Murdaugh, who is currently incarcerated for financial crimes, appeared in an orange prison jumpsuit and shackles as his defense attorneys argued that this attire could prejudice jurors and request he be allowed to wear civilian clothing.
- Defense lawyers also requested that Murdaugh be granted access to a laptop without internet connectivity to review over 20,000 pages of evidence and sought independent testing of DNA found under his wife's fingernails, which investigators had previously attributed to an unknown man. The defense said they’re happy to pay for the independent DNA testing, and the judge replied, “I’m gonna let you pay for it,” drawing a chuckle from the courtroom.
- The defense is additionally advocating for a change of venue for the upcoming trial, proposing it be moved out of Colleton County, where the killings occurred and the initial trial took place, citing concerns about potential jury prejudice following issues from the previous trial.
IN FULL
Media frenzy as Alex Murdaugh returns to court for hearing on his new murder trial
