Day 15: Judge denies Murdaugh defense ask for mistrial over Maggie ‘hearsay’

Alex Murdaugh, a once prominent Hampton-based attorney from a well-known politically-connected family, is on trial in the deaths of his wife, Maggie, and son, Paul.

Murdaugh has pleaded not guilty. He faces life in prison without parole if found guilty. The trial started Jan. 23 with jury selection, opening arguments and the initial round of witness testimony. For now, the trial is expected to stretch at least another week, through Feb. 17.

5 p.m. — Court adjourned

Judge Clifton Newman sent court into recess until 9:30 a.m. Monday.

Nathan Tuten, a longtime friend of Paul Murdaugh’s and a current Walterboro police officer, was the state’s final witness of the day.

Tuten said he worked as a “runner” for Alex Murdaugh’s former law firm during Murdaugh’s employment. Murdaugh would often ask him to cash checks at Palmetto State Bank, he said, up until about a week before Maggie and Paul were killed on June 7, 2021.

Tuten’s testimony mirrored others given by Paul’s friends, portraying Paul as a frequent cellphone and firearms user, and describing Maggie as “one of the sweetest ladies” Tuten knew.

Prosecutors had Tuten identify a pair of shotguns that belonged to the Murdaugh family. Tuten was also the sixth witness to identify Murdaugh’s voice in a video Paul took at the Moselle kennels before his death.

Lead prosecutor Creighton Waters said the state plans to rest its case around the middle of the next week.

Defense attorney Dick Harpootlian expects the defense will need about a week to present their own case, potentially pushing the trial near the end of February.

Newman said court likely won’t be held on Feb. 20 to observe Presidents’ Day.

4:17 p.m. — Walterboro police officer takes the stand

After roughly an hour-and-a-half, FBI agent Matthew Wilde left the stand.

Wilde’s testimony largely served to establish through phone location data that Maggie, Paul and Alex Murdaugh’s cellphones were at Moselle around the time of the murders on June 7, 2021. Cellphone location data also showed the Murdaughs’ former groundskeeper, C.B. Rowe, was not near Moselle at the time of the killings.

Much of the testimony was used to explain how the FBI recovered the data.

Now at the stand is Nathan Tuten, a Walterboro police officer and “lifelong friend” of Paul’s.

2:41 p.m. — Rock Hill FBI agent testifies

Matthew Wilde, a Rock Hill-based FBI agent, has taken the stand.

Wilde oversees the Cellular Analysis Survey Team, a group that reviews location data on phone records.

2:32 p.m. — Second nurse says Alex’s night visit was ‘unusual’

Belinda Rast, one of Libby Murdaugh’s caretakers, said Alex Murdaugh rarely visited his mother late at night.

During Rast’s five years caring for Libby Murdaugh, who has late-stage Alzheimer’s, Rast said Murdaugh only visited during her night shift “six or seven times.”

Murdaugh and Maggie Murdaugh did visit late in the evening on June 6, 2021, Rast mentioned. They had brought Randolph, Murdaugh’s father, donuts he’d asked for.

Libby’s other caretaker, Mushelle “Shelley” Smith, also testified it was unusual for Murdaugh to visit at night.

On the night of Maggie and Paul’s deaths, Murdaugh said he left Moselle to visit his mother around 9 p.m.

2:24 p.m. — Trial resumes

Court has returned to session. Prosecution called Belinda Rast, a nursing professional, to the stand.

Rast is a CNA and now works as a private home health provider, she said. Rast helps care for Alex Murdaugh’s mother, Libby.

1:05 p.m. — Court breaks for lunch

After spending much of the morning at the stand, Blanca Turrubiate-Simpson finished her testimony.

Judge Clifton Neman sent the court into lunch recess until 2:15 p.m.

12:45 p.m. — Alex kept clothes in several places, witness says

Alex Murdaugh’s former housekeeper, Blanca Turrubiate-Simpson, said it wasn’t unusual for Murdaugh to keep clothes in his office or car at times.

Defense attorney Dick Harpootlian raised the question in cross-examination in response to the prosecution’s suspicion that Murdaugh allegedly changed clothes several times on June 7, 2021, the day of the murders.

That morning, Turrubiate-Simpson said she recalled Murdaugh leaving Moselle in a Polo collared shirt. In a video Paul Murdaugh took at 7:40 p.m. the same day, Murdaugh is seen in a different sea-foam-colored shirt.

When police arrived, he was seen on body camera footage in a white T-shirt.

Harpootlian suggested it was possible Murdaugh simply changed clothes throughout the day, and not, as prosecutors suggested, to remove blood-stained or dirty clothes worn at the crime scene.

12:35 p.m. — Judge sustains hearsay objection

Court has returned to session and Judge Clifton Newman immediately sustained prosecutor John Meadors’ previous hearsay objection.

Meadors objected just before defense attorney Dick Harpootlian asked Blanca Turrubiate-Simpson, Murdaugh’s former housekeeper, about a conversation she had with Murdaugh in August 2021.

12:13 p.m. — Court takes break as legal teams debate testimony

Judge Clifton Newman has sent the court into recess as defense and prosecution butt heads over aspects of Blanca Turrubiate-Simpson’s testimony.

During cross-examination, defense attorney Dick Harpootlian asked Turrubiate-Simpson, Murdaugh’s former housekeeper, about a conversation she and Murdaugh had in August 2021.

In that conversation, Turrubiate-Simpson previously testified Murdaugh had asked her if she recalled what shirt he was wearing the day of Maggie and Paul Murdaugh’s murders. He seemed to recall wearing a Vineyard Vines shirt, Turrubiate-Simpson said, but she remembered a polo because she’d fixed the shirt’s collar that day.

Murdaugh seemed worried during the conversation, she said, and repeated the phrase “I’ve got a bad feeling.”

Harpootlian attempted to ask the witness if Murdaugh told her he was interviewed by SLED agents the day of that conversation. The defense seemed to suggest Murdaugh may have been concerned he incorrectly remembered the detail during his statements to SLED.

The prosecution previously hinted Murdaugh was trying to convince Turrubiate-Simpson he was wearing a different shirt than she remembered to cover a potentially suspicious change of clothes after the murders.

Meadors’ objection was on hearsay, he said, insisting the defense cannot glean testimony about what Murdaugh may have said without putting him on the witness stand.

Newman said both parties should use the break to “debate the issue.” He did not say how long the break would be.

11:41 a.m. — Housekeeper testifies on conversation with Maggie

Blanca Turrubiate-Simpson, the Murdaugh family’s former housekeeper, delivered a possible win to prosecutors’ claim Alex Murdaugh’s financial spiral could have motivated him to allegedly kill his wife and son.

In a private conversation with Maggie Murdaugh, Turrubiate-Simpson said Maggie was deeply concerned about a lawsuit filed against the family after Paul Murdaugh’s 2019 boat crash that killed Mallory Beach.

“She was worried because the lawsuit was presented, saying they wanted $30 million,” Turrubiate-Simpson said. “Maggie was crying, saying, ‘We don’t have that kind of money, B. ... If I could give them everything we’ve got and make this go away I would do it in a heartbeat. I’ll start over. We’ll start over. I just want it gone.’”

Turrubiate-Simpson said Maggie told her Murdaugh wasn’t giving her all the details about a lawsuit sparked after the crash, filed by the Beach family.

“She felt that Alex was not being truthful to her in regard to what was going on with that lawsuit,” Turrubiate-Simpson testified. “She said, ‘He doesn’t tell me everything.’”

11:35 a.m. — Judge denies defense ask for mistrial

Judge Clifton Newman has denied a defense motion for a mistrial in the Alex Murdaugh double-murder trial.

Just before the Murdaughs’ former housekeeper, Blanca Turrubiate-Simpson, testified on a private conversation between her and Maggie Murdaugh, defense attorney Dick Harpootlian loudly objected.

Harpootlian objected on hearsay grounds, asking for a mistrial, after prosecutor John Meadors asked the witness if Maggie had been concerned about money issues. The witness, Harpootlian said, could not speak to Maggie’s concerns.

“I don’t think even if you give this jury instruction (not to consider the testimony), can’t unring the bell. You can’t correct that, and now I’ve had to draw attention to it even more so by objecting to it.”

11:20 a.m. — Housekeeper ‘never saw’ clothes Alex wore night of murders again

The night of Maggie and Paul Murdaugh’s deaths, Alex Murdaugh was wearing what housekeeper Blanca Turrubiate-Simpson recognized as a sea foam-colored shirt, a pair of loafers and khaki paints she’d washed frequently before.

Turrubiate-Simpson recognized the clothes Murdaugh was recorded in, she testified. Prosecutor John Meadors asked if she ever saw those clothes again after June 7, 2021.

“No,” Turrubiate-Simpson said.

Meadors and several prosecution attorneys have brought attention to Murdaugh’s clothes throughout the trial. The state has suggested Murdaugh may have changed clothes after allegedly murdering his wife and son to appear clean.

A Snapchat video Paul Murdaugh took around 7:40 p.m. on June 7, 2021, and body camera footage from first responders show Murdaugh in different clothing.

Soon after the murders, Turrubiate-Simpson said Murdaugh had a frantic conversation with her.

“He was pacing around the room saying, ‘I’ve got a bad feeling. I’ve got a bad feeling,’” Turrubiate-Simpson testified.

Murdaugh asked if she remembered what shirt he was wearing when he left Moselle on June 7, 2021. She recalled him wearing a Vineyard Vines collared shirt, but Murdaugh seemed to recall wearing a different Polo shirt, she said.

“I didn’t say anything, but I was kinda thrown back because I don’t remember him wearing that shirt that day,” Turrubiate-Simpson said. “I know what shirt he was wearing because I fixed the collar.”

“I didn’t really know whether he was trying to get me to say (he wore) that shirt, if I were to be asked if that was the shirt he was wearing,” Turrubiate-Simpson continued.

On June 8, 2021, Turrubiate-Simpson also noticed that the pots and pans were not left out on the stove. That was unusual, she testified, as the family very rarely removed pans from the stove after dinner.

Maggie Murdaugh’s pajamas were also lying in the doorway of the laundry room, she testified, which was atypical as well.

10:25 a.m. — Witness: Maggie sounded like she didn’t want to go to Moselle

Blanca Turrubiate-Simpson, a housekeeper for the Murdaugh family, said she spoke to Maggie Murdaugh on June 7, 2021, the day she was murdered.

Turrubiate-Simpson was scheduled to work at Moselle that day, she said. Maggie asked her to pick up some Capri Suns for Alex Murdaugh on the way.

“First she had said pineapple, then in another text, ‘No, he likes orange,’” Turrubiate-Simpson recalled.

“And were you successful in your search for orange Capri Suns?” prosecutor John Meadors asked.

“No, sir,” Turrubiate-Simpson said.

Turrubiate-Simpson then testified that during a phone call, Maggie said Murdaugh had asked her to come to Moselle that day. Maggie had been staying at a house in Edisto Beach.

“She kind of sounded like she didn’t want to come home, because she really liked being at Edisto and they had a lot of work going on,” Turrubiate-Simpson said. “She was trying to make sure everything was ready for the Fourth of July gathering that she was planning.”

Before leaving Moselle that day, Turrubiate-Simpson made dinner for the family after Maggie asked. She did not see Maggie and Paul Murdaugh alive again.

Turrubiate-Simpson testified she learned of the murders the day after, when Murdaugh called her.

10:05 a.m. — Defense does not ask Tinsley about GoFundMe donation

Alex Murdaugh’s defense decided not to cross-examine attorney Mark Tinsley regarding a $1,000 donation he made to a GoFundMe set up for a previous state witness, Mushelle “Shelley” Smith.

Smith was Murdaugh’s mother’s caregiver for several years.

She testified that the night of the murders, June 10, 2021, Murdaugh visited his mother’s house for about 15 or 20 minutes. It was unusual for him to visit so late, Smith testified.

After Murdaugh’s father died a few days after the murders, Smith said Murdaugh approached her after the funeral. Unprompted, Smith said, Murdaugh mentioned he’d been at the house for about 30 or 40 minutes that night.

On Thursday, defense attorney Phillip Barber asked to have Tinsley’s testimony struck from the case, concerned that Tinsley donated to a witness in a case he has a “direct financial interest” in due to his lawsuit against Murdaugh.

Judge Clifton Newman denied that motion, adding that it would be “good fodder for (Barber’s) cross-examination.”

Tinsley left the stand. Blanca Turrubiate-Simpson was called as the next witness.

10 a.m. — Murders delayed hearing on Alex’s finances

After the deaths of Maggie and Paul Murdagh, Mark Tinsley said a June 10, 2021, hearing that would’ve covered a motion forcing Murdaugh to turn over financial records was postponed.

Mark Tinsley, the lawyer representing Mallory Beach’s family, testified he filed a motion to compel in the family’s lawsuit against Murdaugh. Beach died in a 2019 boat crash, and Murdaugh’s late son, Paul, was reportedly driving the boat.

Murdaugh was named a defendant in a wrongful death lawsuit. After Maggie and Paul Murdaugh’s deaths, Tinsle said, a motion hearing that may have required Alex Murdaugh to turn over his financial records for the lawsuit was delayed.

It was originally scheduled for June 10, 2021.

Tinsley was seeking records Alex Murdaugh did not have sufficient insurance to cover several injuries caused by the crash and Beach’s death. Murdaugh claimed to be “broke,” Tinsley said, but because of Murdaugh’s success a lawyer, he didn’t believe it.

Prosecutors have laid out evidence to allegedly show Murdaugh murdered his wife and son to take scrutiny away from his alleged financial crimes. At the same time as the lawsuit, the CFO of Murdaugh’s former law firm said the group launched their own investigation.

9:30 a.m. — Court resumes with Beach family lawyer on stand

Mark Tinsley, the lawyer for the family of Mallory Beach, is back on the stand in the Colleton County courtroom, still under questioning by state prosecutors.

On cross-examination, defense attorney Phil Barber is expected to pepper Tinsley with questions about a $1,000 GoFundMe donation he made to Mushelle “Shelley” Smith, the caregiver for Alex Murdaugh’s mother, who gave emotional testimony that included a timestamp of how long Murdaugh visited his mother the night Maggie and Paul were murdered.

Judge Clifton Newman on Thursday refused to throw out his testimony, saying it was “good fodder for cross-examination.”

On Thursday, Tinsley said after Beach was killed in the 2019 boat crash, he discovered Murdaugh didn’t have enough insurance policies to cover the resulting injuries. Murdaugh’s late son, Paul, was reportedly driving the boat intoxicated.

Tinsley was hired after the crash to represent the Beach family, who are seeking a settlement in her death.

Murdaugh was named a defendant.

Tinsley said the only insurance Murdaugh had in the case was a $500,000 policy on the boat itself.

“You’ve got a death. You’ve got two people with substantial medical bills. There’s just no way there was enough coverage at $500,000,” Tinsley said. “Alex was always going to have to pay out of his own pocket to settle the cases.”

Tinsley said Murdaugh confronted him at an August 2019 attorneys conference on Hilton Head Island.

“(He sees me and then), he beelines across the room, and he gets about this close,” Tinsley said, moving his face roughly an inch away from the microphone at the witness stand. “He says, ‘Hey Bo, what’s this I’ve been hearing about what you’ve been saying? I thought we were friends?’”

What Murdaugh had heard, Tinsley said, was that Tinsley expected him to pay out-of-pocket to settle the case.

“I told him, ‘We are friends,’ and that if he didn’t think I was going to do everything I needed to do to help my clients that he was wrong, and that he needed to settle the case,” Tinsley said. “He didn’t like the fact that he was going to have to come out of his pocket and pay.”

Murdaugh later told Tinsley he was “broke,” said Tinsley, who said he didn’t “believe him at all,” because Murdaugh still had a lucrative law practice and other assets, including his family’s vast Colleton County estate, known as Moselle.

“He’s settling cases. He’s got big cases. He’s got lots of cases. He’s got generational wealth,” Tinsley said. “He’s not broke by anybody’s standards.”

If Murdaugh was “broke,” Tinsley believed at the time, it was because he was “hiding” income or assets, he said.

Jeanne Seckinger, the CFO of Murdaugh’s former law firm, previously testified she suspected Murdaugh was hiding income by putting money into his wife’s name, preventing it from being discovered in the boat crash lawsuit.

Meanwhile, at the end of court Thursday, lead prosecutor Creighton Waters said he expects the state to wrap up its case by “midweek next week,” while defense attorney Dick Harpootlian said they’ll need at least a week to get through their case.

“I worry that the jury will forget what they’ve heard three weeks ago,” Harpootlian said.

The trial was originally scheduled to run through Feb. 10.

This story was originally published February 10, 2023 at 9:17 AM with the headline "Day 15: Judge denies Murdaugh defense ask for mistrial over Maggie ‘hearsay’."

Blake Douglas

The Island Packet

Blake is the Hilton Head Island reporter for the Island Packet. A Tulsa, Oklahoma native, Blake has written for his hometown Tulsa World, as well as the Charlotte Observer. He graduated in May 2022 from the University of Oklahoma with a journalism degree.