Richard Alexander Murdaugh

[2015-07-08] 19-year-old nursing student Stephen Smith was found dead in Hampton County; initially closed as a hit-and-run, the case was reopened under suspicion of homicide following new leads obtained by SLED during the 2021 Murdaugh investigation.

[2018-02-26] Gloria Satterfield, the Murdaugh family's long-time housekeeper, died following a fall at the family's home; Alex Murdaugh embezzled over $4 million in insurance settlement funds intended for her children.

[2019-02-24] Paul Murdaugh crashed a boat while driving intoxicated in Hampton County, killing 19-year-old Mallory Beach. The resulting wrongful death lawsuit triggered the unraveling of Alex Murdaugh's hidden financial improprieties.

[2021-06-07] Alex Murdaugh called 911 to report finding his wife Maggie (52) and younger son Paul (22) shot to death near the dog kennels at their Moselle estate.

[2021-06-22] The South Carolina Law Enforcement Division (SLED) officially launched an investigation into the suspicious death of Stephen Smith based on information gathered during the double murder probe.

[2021-09-04] With his financial crimes on the verge of exposure, Alex Murdaugh hired an acquaintance to shoot him in an effort to secure a $10 million life insurance payout for his elder son, Buster; however, the attempt failed.

[2021-10-14] Murdaugh was arrested at a rehabilitation center in Florida for stealing over $4 million from Gloria Satterfield's insurance settlement funds.

[2022-07-14] A Colleton County Grand Jury officially indicted Alex Murdaugh on two counts of murder for killing his wife with a rifle and his son with a shotgun.

[2023-01-25] The historic six-week murder trial of Alex Murdaugh for the deaths of Maggie and Paul officially commenced at the Colleton County Courthouse.

[2023-03-02] After less than three hours of deliberation, the jury found Alex Murdaugh guilty on two counts of murder and two counts of possession of a weapon during a violent crime; he was sentenced on March 3 to two consecutive life terms in prison.

[2023-11-29] Alex Murdaugh pleaded guilty in state court to 22 counts of financial theft and grand larceny, receiving a 27-year state prison sentence.

[2024-04-01] Murdaugh was sentenced by a federal court to serve 40 years in federal prison (concurrent) and ordered to pay $8.7 million in restitution to his victims.

[2026-05-13] The South Carolina Supreme Court unanimously overturned Murdaugh's murder conviction and ordered a retrial, ruling that court clerk Rebecca Hill compromised his right to a fair trial by making biased statements to the jurors.