A juror in the murder trial of disbarred South Carolina attorney Alex Murdaugh was removed and replaced with an alternate on Thursday for “improper conversations” with parties not involved in the case.
“Though it does not appear that the conversations were that extensive, it did involve the juror offering her opinion regarding evidence received up to that point in the trial,” Judge Clifton Newman told the court.
Newman said he initially was told the juror spoke to two people outside the case, who were then interviewed by state agents. The judge brought those people into his chambers, but they could not confirm what exactly they were told about the trial.
Newman concluded he had no choice but to dismiss the juror, and then thanked her for her service.
“You have been a — by all accounts — a great juror and smiled consistently and seemingly been attentive to the case and performed well,” he said.
“I certainly want to thank you for your service and not suggesting you intentionally did anything wrong, but in order to preserve the integrity of the process and in fairness to all the parties involved, we’re going to replace you with one of the other jurors,” Newman added.
The judge then asked whether she needed the bailiff to retrieve her things from the jury room. She said she had her purse and a dozen eggs that a fellow juror brought from his farm for everyone on the panel.
“We get a lot of interesting things, but now a dozen eggs,” Newman said, sparking a laugh.
Five jurors have been booted from the panel since Murdaugh’s trial kicked off six weeks ago. The latest dismissal came as the defense geared up to deliver their closing remarks to the court on Thursday, their last chance to convince the jury of their client’s innocence.
Murdaugh faces 30 years to life in prison for the murders of his 52-year-old wife Maggie and his youngest son, Paul, 22. Investigators said Murdaugh shot both victims with a rifle outside dog kennels on their Colleton County property on June 7, 2021.