Alex Murdaugh Sues Court Clerk Whose Conduct Led To His Murder Conviction Being Overturned

Disgraced South Carolina attorney Alex Murdaugh has filed a federal lawsuit against the court clerk whose conduct during his murder trial led the state Supreme Court to throw out his conviction.

Murdaugh is suing former clerk Becky Hill, accusing her of violating his constitutional right to a fair trial. The state Supreme Court ruled that Hill's behavior tainted the proceedings against Murdaugh, who had been convicted of killing his wife and son, and overturned both the conviction and his sentence.

According to the lawsuit, Hill told jurors not to be "thrown off," "misled," or "fooled" by Murdaugh's defense. Murdaugh also claims Hill had multiple private conversations with the jury foreperson and other jurors, then told those jurors they could not be asked about what was discussed. The suit further alleges that Hill used a fabricated Facebook page to influence another juror through that juror's ex-husband.

Murdaugh is seeking $600,000 in compensatory damages to cover the costs of the first trial, along with punitive damages and attorney fees, though his attorney said none of that money would go directly to Murdaugh himself.

Hill was arrested last year for her actions and pleaded guilty to perjury, obstruction of justice, and misconduct in office. State prosecutors say they do plan to retry Murdaugh on the murder charges now that his conviction has been overturned. He remains behind bars, still serving a 27-year state sentence and a separate 40-year federal sentence after pleading guilty to multiple financial crimes.