Alex Murdaugh’s court appearance marks the start of retrial proceedings

LEXINGTON COUNTY, S.C. (WCSC) — A murder case that rocked the nation, involving a once-prominent Lowcountry lawyer, has taken its first steps back into court for a retrial.

Alex Murdaugh appeared in a Lexington County courtroom Monday for a motion hearing — his first court appearance since the state Supreme Court overturned his guilty conviction earlier this year.

The motion hearing has begun shaping how the retrial will proceed, including scheduling and what evidence will be allowed going forward. Judge Debra McCaslin has scheduled Murdaugh’s next hearing for Aug. 14 and is eyeing an April 5 trial date for next year.

“When I set a trial date, I don’t do continuances. I don’t do it; it better be a really good reason,” Judge McCaslin said. “Please do not think that this case is going to be tried a year later ‘cuz it’s not. We’re going forward.”

The retrial announcement follows former Court Clerk Becky Hill pleading guilty in December 2025 to charges related to interference with the 2023 murder trial.

Hill faced state charges of misconduct in office, obstruction of justice and perjury. She was sentenced to three years of probation and must serve 100 hours of community service.

The date for the trial remains largely tentative as it is heavily dependent on further pretrial hearings, motions, and updates to evidence.

This includes independent retesting requested by the defense of DNA found underneath Maggie Murdaugh’s fingernails, which SLED determined to be that of an unknown male. That retesting could take six months or more.

“In 2021, there’s no such thing as artificial intelligence, and by 2021, this genetic genealogy was just on the ground floor. In 2026, we are light years ahead,” one of Murdaugh’s attorneys, Jim Griffin, said. “So what we’re asking for didn’t really exist in 2021; it does exist today, and Othorum is the leading lab that performs this analysis.”

Find all Murdaugh case updates HERE

Murdaugh’s attorneys said they are planning on bringing eight new expert witnesses to the stand and are asking for him to be granted a laptop to review evidence from behind bars.

Judge McCaslin said she spoke to the prison warden prior to Monday’s hearing, who will not allow him access to a laptop privately, but will provide his team with a conference room to review evidence. An iPad may also be granted to Murdaugh, but it remains undecided. 

One of Murdaugh’s attorneys, Dick Harpootlian, said they are also asking for Murdaugh to not be shackled during the retrial and stated it may give jurors a preconceived notion. 

“This is our ability to get a jury. So I would ask that he be allowed to come into the courtroom, unshackled, and I will call them street clothes,” Harpootlian said. “[There is a] chain around the waist, chain with the hands, chain on the feet; this guy is not a serial killer, not Ted Bundy.”

A potential change of venue, while requested, has not yet been determined; McCaslin asked both sides to work together to suggest a location.

Murdaugh was tried and found guilty in 2023 of killing his son and wife in 2021, a high-profile case that caught the attention nationwide. The South Carolina Supreme Court later overturned that verdict in May 2026.

In recent interviews, Murdaugh’s attorneys said new evidence is expected to be brought to light.

Murdaugh’s financial crimes were presented during the 2023 murder trial, but following the Supreme Court ruling, they will not be limited. It has not yet been decided what aspects of those crimes will be allowed.