Alex Murdaugh, a South Carolina Sheriff’s Attorney, and the Double Killing of his Wives, Paul, and his Son in 2020

Alex Murdaugh heard the words from a courthouse employee as he entered the witness stand on Thursday and went ahead and testified for himself in the double murder trial.

The murders of Murdaugh’s wife and son in the year 2020 was the focus of the first question from defense attorney Jim Griffin.

The court was told by Murdaugh that on his way back from his mother’s house he tried to call his wife, but she did not answer. He said he also left her a text. He said that her non-response was not unusual, because she was with Paul and there was sometimes-spotty cell service.

But several witnesses have identified Alex Murdaugh’s voice in a video taken by Paul at the kennel, minutes before investigators say the execution-style shooting began.

“I had paranoia as my addiction evolved,” Murdaugh said. He said he was nervous as a deputy sheriff swabbed his hands, and investigators asked him about his relationship with his wife and son, “coupled with my distrust of SLED” — the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division.

“On June 7, I wasn’t thinking clearly,” Murdaugh said. I lied about being down there and I don’t think I was capable of reason. I am sorry that I did.

Telemetry data from Murdaugh’s car showed he stopped in his mother’s driveway for a period of time — sparking theories that he might have used that time to stash evidence nearby. His phone fell between the seat and the console.

His driving speed has also attracted notice — the vehicle reach speeds up to 80 mph on the rural roads, far above the posted speed limits. When asked if he was driving, Murdaugh replied “I was.” The way I drive is normal.

He then drove the Suburban to the kennels. He cried when he asked what he saw, “Y’all saw pictures of a bloody crime scene where my wife and son were killed by shotgun blasts.” He described it to be “so bad”.

The call was played in court. The horrible injuries to Paul’s head were described by Murdaugh. Murdaugh tried to check Paul’s pulse and turn him over.

A statement in that call — “I should’ve known” — has drawn much speculation. Asked about that in court, Murdaugh said Paul had gotten “the most vile threats” on social media and elsewhere. The threats were so “over the top,” he added, that the family disregarded it.

“Um, maybe an hour and a half, probably two hours ago”, said Murdaugh when asked if he last spoke to his wife. In court, he acknowledged that the last time he saw them was when he took a chicken away from a dog, in a video that was timestamped at 8:44 p.m. It wasn’t immediately clear which part of the 911 conversations — which went past 10 p.m. — included that statement.

Shelley Smith, the caregiver for Murdaugh’s mother who saw him the night of the killings, has testified that she saw him carrying what might have been a blue tarp into his mother’s house in the days afterward.

On the stand, Murdaugh said he couldn’t recall bringing a tarp there — and he then sought to dismiss Smith’s version of events, stating, “Shelley’s got something in her mind about that.”

Murdaugh also said he had nothing to do with a blue rain jacket that was found in a closet at his mother’s house, and which tested positive for gunpowder residue, leading to speculation that it had been wrapped around a recently fired weapon.

Griffin later questioned Murdaugh closely about his movements after the killings, with Murdaugh saying that he stayed at several places, so he had clothes spread out among them.

The defense has painted Murdaugh as a loving father and husband being wrongfully accused after what it says has been a poorly handled investigation. Here are some key moments from the day.

Murdaugh said he and Paul had been driving around the property, checking on plantings for fields they used to hunt doves. He was sweaty, he said, from work — adding that he was heavier at the time, and saying that taking opioids also made him sweat more.

Murdaugh said he took a shower after getting back to the house, and that was why, he said, he changed into clean clothes and was reluctant to go down to the dog kennels with Paul and Maggie. He said he laid on the couch, but then followed them with a golf cart.

Murdaugh said that there were dogs running around. He said one of his dogs had chased a chicken and caught it after going into detail about how his dogs behaved. Murdaugh said he took the chicken out of the dog’s mouth and placed it on top of a dog crate at the kennel — “and then I left.”

The Murdaugh Trial: On Cross-Examination, Crimes, Addiction, and the Victim’s Killing, Revisited

The Murdaugh case has drawn attention because of it’s status as a wealthy and prominent family and because of two other violent actions: Paul’s fatal boat wreck and Alex’s attempt to kill himself.

The trial had initially been expected to conclude around Feb. 10, but it has sprawled far beyond that mark, as attorneys presented jurors with an array of evidence, including testimony about the millions of dollars Murdaugh is accused of stealing from his former law firm and its clients, his opioid addiction, and the roadside shooting that Murdaugh initially portrayed as an attempt on his life.

As they considered letting their client testify, Murdaugh’s defense team has asked Newman about possible limits on what questions the prosecution could pose to him — hoping to restrict the topic to the financial allegations. The judge did not set any limits on cross-examination.

After weeks of testimony, a South Carolina court finally heard Thursday from Alex Murdaugh, who is facing two counts of murder in the deaths of his wife and son.

The disgraced attorney pleaded not guilty to the charges that he killed his wife and son at the family home in Islandton.

Murdaugh insisted that he didn’t kill his wife or son, even though he claimed to have.

The resignation of Murdaugh from the firm that he co-founded, then known as PMPED, was caused by him admitting to stealing from the firm and his clients.

In response to the prosecution’s inquiry, Murdaugh admitted to taking money that wasn’t his and he shouldn’t have done it.

“I don’t know why I tried to turn him over,” an emotional Murdaugh said. “I mean, my boy’s laying face down. He’s done the way he’s done. His head was what he wanted it to be. I can see his brain on the sidewalk. I did not know what to do.

In his testimony Murdaugh denied searching for a restaurant in Edisto Beach and reading a group text message on his cell phone after finding the bodies.

Murdaugh testified he believes his addiction stemmed from surgery he got for an old college football injury. The man said he needed a number of surgeries, and he started getting addicted to narcotics around 2004.

When asked if that drug transaction actually happened, Murdaugh said he didn’t know because after withdrawal symptoms started, Murdaugh said he changed his plan.