Attorneys for Alex Murdaugh are pushing back against former Colleton County Clerk of Court Rebecca “Becky” Hill, contending she must face consequences for allegedly undermining the ex-lawyer’s constitutional right to a fair trial.
The argument came in a recent court filing responding to Hill’s request to have a civil lawsuit, filed against her in May, dismissed.
“Ms. Hill’s motion to dismiss does not, and cannot, deny what the Supreme Court of South Carolina has already held unanimously: that Ms. Hill, then the elected Clerk of Court sworn to protect the jury, instead secretly tampered with it and thereby stole from Mr. Murdaugh his constitutional right to a fair trial by an impartial jury,” Murdaugh’s lawyers wrote in the response. They added, “Ms. Hill now asks this Court to hold that she may do so without consequence. She cannot.”
Hill has rejected allegations that she interfered with the jury or violated Murdaugh’s rights, according to her own filings in the civil case, WCJL reported.
Supreme Court Ruled Becky Hill Impeded Murdaugh’s Right to Fair Trial
In May, the South Carolina Supreme Court threw out Murdaugh’s double-murder conviction after finding that Hill, who was responsible for overseeing and protecting the jury, “placed her fingers on the scales of justice” through improper influence on jurors.
“Our justice system provides—indeed demands—that every person is entitled to a fair trial, which includes an impartial jury untainted by external forces bent on influencing the jury toward a biased verdict,” the justices wrote in their May 13 opinion. “Although we are aware of the time, money, and effort expended for this lengthy trial, we have no choice but to reverse the denial of Murdaugh’s motion for a new trial due to Hill’s improper external influences on the jury and remand for a new trial.”
Within days of that ruling, Murdaugh’s legal team — including Jim Griffin, Dick Harpootlian and Phillip Barber — sued Hill in civil court, seeking $600,000 in damages to cover legal costs from his six-week murder trial in 2023.
“Mr. Murdaugh does not allege that Ms. Hill caused his prosecution,” his attorneys wrote in the latest filing, according to FITS News. Instead, they said, “his pleaded injury is that the $600,000 he withdrew from his sole remaining asset to defend a constitutionally fair trial was rendered worthless because Ms. Hill corrupted the first attempt at a trial, forcing its vacatur.”
Hill argued in her own filings that Murdaugh’s financial losses could not be traced back to her alleged actions and therefore could not be linked to any harm, WCJL reported.
What is Becky Hill Accused of Doing in Alex Murdaugh’s Murder Trial?
During the trial, one female juror alleged in an affidavit referenced in the supreme court’s opinion that Hill told jurors “not to be fooled” by evidence presented by Murdaugh’s attorneys, urging them to watch Murdaugh “closely” and look at his actions before he took the stand in his own defense.
The juror added that she took the comments to mean that Murdaugh was guilty and felt influenced by Hill’s comments to return a guilty verdict.
“I had questions about Mr. Murdaugh’s guilt,” she admitted in the affidavit, “but voted guilty because I felt pressured by the other jurors.”
Murdaugh’s attorneys have asked the civil court to use the South Carolina Supreme Court’s contention that Hill had engaged in “shocking jury interference” and “violated Mr. Murdaugh’s right to a fair trial by an impartial jury” rather than re-argue the issue in civil court proceedings.
They also argued that Hill’s request to dismiss the lawsuit centered on damages and immunity defenses rather than addressing whether or not she had violated Murdaugh’s rights.
“Ms. Hill’s motion is a makeweight damages motion,” they argued, “masquerading as a motion to dismiss.”
U.S. district judge Richard Gergel will now be tasked with deciding whether to dismiss the lawsuit or allow it to proceed.
Hill pled guilty in December to charges of obstruction of justice and perjury for showing a reporter photographs that had been part of a sealed court record as well as two counts of misconduct in office, according to CNN. The misconduct charges were based on allegations that Hill took bonuses and promoted a book she wrote on the trial using her public position.
When Will Alex Murdaugh Be Retried For Murder?
Murdaugh was convicted in March 2023 of killing his wife Margaret “Maggie” Murdaugh and youngest son Paul Murdaugh at the family’s sprawling Colleton County hunting compound in 2021. Both family members were discovered shot to death by dog kennels on the family’s property.
Murdaugh continues to maintain his innocence. After the supreme court’s decision to overturn the verdict, he is expected to go on trial again in April 2027, according to The Associated Press. He has pleaded not guilty.
Murdaugh is already serving a 40-year prison sentence for federal charges of fraud, money laundering, and other financial-related crimes. He is also serving time for state-level financial crime convictions.
