Alex Murdaugh sobs about murders at fraud sentencing: Live
Sentencing marks only the latest chapter in the Murdaugh saga, as he continues to fight his conviction over the June 2021 murders of his wife Maggie and son Paul
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Your support makes all the difference.Convicted killer Alex Murdaugh was confronted by his victims in a courtroom in South Carolina today before being sentenced to 27 years in prison on a slew of state financial crime charges.
“You seem empty, I don’t see anything,” Judge Clifton Newman told Murdaugh as he handed down the sentence. “Hopefully something will emerge in your spirit, in your soul.”
For more than a decade, Murdaugh stole over $12.5m from clients at his law firm in a vast multi-million-dollar fraud scheme.
Among the victims who spoke was the family of Gloria Satterfield, the Murdaugh’s housekeeper who died in a 2018 “trip and fall” at Moselle. In that case, Murdaugh stole more than $4m in wrongful death settlements meant for her sons.
Murdaugh spent nearly an hour apologizing to them. He admitted he did “terrible things” that “continue to bother and disturb him.”
The disgraced legal scion reached a plea deal with prosecutors on 17 November, agreeing to plead guilty to 22 charges including money laundering, fraud and criminal conspiracy.
The sentencing marks only the latest chapter in the Murdaugh saga, as he continues to fight his conviction over the June 2021 murders of his wife Maggie and son Paul.
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Mother of Hakeem Pinckney gives powerful statement
Pamela Pinckney, the mother of Hakeem Pinckney, gave a powerful statement as she spoke to Alex Murdaugh in court. Many of the people in the gallery were left in tears.
“To you Alex Murdaugh I never thought you would betray our family in our most vulnerable state…but I forgive you."
Hakeem Pinckney was a deaf man who became a quadriplegic after being involved in a horror car crash in 2009. He died two years later.
“What kind of animal are you?” Victim asks Alex Murdaugh
Jordan Jinks, who injured his knee and spine in a car crash, breaks down while speaking to Murdaugh.
“I’ve been waiting on this day,” he said. “To look in your eyes. I trusted you with everything.”
“I ain’t here to judge you, I’m here to ask you, what kind of animal are you?”
Jinks talked about taking care of Paul and Buster during hunting events.
“What did you do with 20 million you stole, because it wasn’t on drugs. People were dying, kids, you stole from, what kind of animal are you? May God have mercy.”
He then asked Murdaugh: “what you did to these victims here, once again, what kind of animal are you? I gave you my all, and you betrayed me, you didn’t have to steal from me.
“I want you to put me on your visitation list, because we’ve got some intimate things we need to talk about.”
Alex Murdaugh will now address the court
Alex Murdaugh tears up as he tells victims that he cares about them
The former legal scion addressed his victims at his finanical crimes hearing on Tuesday.
“I want each of you to know that i listened to you and heard you,” he said. “I promise that it resonates with me.”
“I hope that time come when we can look back and realize that I cared about each of you.
“I did terrible things to each of you and I’m not proud of that.”
“Terrible terrible things. Things that I’m thinking about right now.”
“It is so important to me to know how bothered I am by the things that I did.”
He then addresses each of his victims.
Murdaugh uses apology financial victims to deny murders of Maggie and Paul
The convicted killer once again denied the murders of his wife Maggie and son Paul during his statement to the court at his financial crimes hearing.
Murdaugh was speaking to his childhood friend Jordan Jinks, which became emotional, when his tone suddenly changed.
“You are absolutely right about everything you said, but you are dead wrong about one thing: I did not hurt Maggie and I did not hurt Paul.”
Murdaugh apologies to surviving son Buster
“Buster, I am so sorry that I let you down.”
He talks about how proud he is of Buster and the way he’s carried himself through this.
“Your whole family is proud of you. Mom is proud of you. Paw Paw is proud of you.”
“Remember that rational, reasonable people never make as much noise as haters do.”
He tells him to tune them out to stay the course.
Family of Alex Murdaugh not in courtroom for sentencing
Murdaugh spent a good portion of his statement apologizing to his family, including his surviving son Buster, but none of them were in the courtroom on Tuesday.
Murdaugh tells Satterfield family ‘there is no person more important to our family than Gloria’
Alex Murdaugh told Gloria Satterfield’s son Tony Satterfield “as hypocritical as this sounds, I love you.”
He then adds: “Gloria didn’t raise our sons, we raised our sons, but there’s no person more important to our family than Gloria was.”
Court is in recess for 45 minutes
Alex Murdaugh spoke for over an hour, apologizing countless times to his financial crimes victims and to his family members - who were not in the courtroom.
He again denied the murders of his wife Maggie and son Paul and apologized for the focus being on him instead of SLED focusing on their case.
“’I now ask every single person who cares about Maggie and about Paul as I know that the things that I did and that I’m pleading guilty to today allowed SLED and the AG’s office to focus on me and not to pursue the person or the people who hurt and killed Maggie and paw paw.”
He wrapped his lengthy speech stating that he is trying to be a better person.
“I’m going to do as much good as possible. And help as many people as I can while incarcerated.”
“I remain committed to finding a way to make those who love me proud of me again in some small way.”
Judge Newman has called a 45-minute recess before making his sentencing decision.