Justice Served: Convicted Murderer Alex Murdaugh Receives Additional 27-Year Sentence for Financial Crimes

For years, South Carolina lawyer Alex Murdaugh would look into the eyes of his distressed clients and pledge to help them with their suffering, medical expenses, or just to make ends meet. Then, for many of them, he stole most or all of what he had won.

On Tuesday, those clients had the opportunity to address Murdaugh face-to-face and express how he had betrayed their confidence, as the disgraced attorney received a 27-year prison sentence for embezzling nearly $12 million.

Jordan Jinks, a friend of Murdaugh’s since childhood, said, “I’m crying for what he did to everybody. I’m not crying for what he stole from me.”

A powerful and well-respected lawyer whose family name dominated the legal scene in a small Hampton County for generations—and whose alleged crimes have been a regular topic of discussion on true crime podcasts and online chat groups—fell further apart with the courtroom drama.

Murdaugh, wearing an orange prison jumpsuit, sat in court and heard the victims tell their stories of being conned by a man with a strong presence and a seductive Southern charm.

Jinks came to Murdaugh after racking up hundreds of thousands of dollars in medical expenses due to a neck injury he sustained in a car accident. Satisfied that he would get a settlement to reimburse him, Jinks paid the bills ahead of time. After receiving the money, Murdaugh kept it for himself, ruining his friend’s finances.

“The money you stole from me, I would have given it to you,” Jinks replied. “Why, bro? Why?”

Murdaugh, who is currently serving a life sentence without the possibility of release after a jury found him guilty of killing his wife Maggie with a rifle and his younger son Paul with a shotgun in June 2021, was given a 27-year prison sentence after negotiations between state prosecutors and defense attorneys.

Murdaugh vehemently disputes that he killed his family. His attorneys are requesting a new trial on the grounds that the jury was tampered with by the court clerk. Whether to give Murdaugh a hearing where the clerk, jurors, and possibly even Newman will be questioned under oath is up to another judge.

In the event that Murdaugh’s murder conviction is overturned, the sentence he received for his financial crimes serves as a sort of insurance policy. Even if Murdaugh is an exemplary prisoner, he will still be required to serve nearly 23 years of his sentence under South Carolina law. Before he could be set free, he would turn 76. As part of the agreement, Murdaugh had to forfeit his right to appeal.

A man who was sentenced to death for killing an off-duty police officer and burning his body is the only person with a more empty soul than Murdaugh, according to Newman, who said on Tuesday that he had seen this in his 23 years on the bench.

Referring to extra remarks Jinks made during his testimony, Newman remarked, “The question was asked: What kind of animal are you?” “You are an enigmatic person. I don’t think you understand yourself.”

While he did not cry as much as he did when testifying in his own defense during his murder trial, Murdaugh spent nearly 45 minutes apologizing to his family for bringing them shame and dishonor. He also addressed all of his victims.

“I want each of you who spoke to know I listened to you. I heard you. Your pain and hurt are palpable. I promise you it resonates with me,” said Murdaugh.

The state Attorney General’s Office prosecutor, Creighton Waters, began Tuesday’s hearing by providing a thorough summary of all of Murdaugh’s thefts and how he moved the more than $12 million he took in order to evade discovery for almost ten years.

After more than an hour, he concluded with the exact amount, $12,425,254.32.

Waters stated that Murdaugh continued to steal to pay off loans and credit card bills because his clients trusted him and that he did so by using “the trust of his family name and the law license on that wall” and never making up for poor investments and excessive spending.

At first, Murdaugh was accused by the prosecution of 101 financial offenses, including tax evasion, money laundering, and breach of trust, with 18 victims.

The number was lowered to 22 crimes against each of his clients as part of the plea agreement.

Gloria Satterfield, the devoted family maid who passed away in a fall at the Murdaugh residence, was one of his victims. At Satterfield’s funeral, Murdaugh put his arm around her son and assured her that he would look after her family. He received roughly $4 million from his insurers before he acknowledged that he had stolen every last cent.

Tony, Satterfield’s son, said he forgives and prays for Murdaugh but that he will never forget the way he was treated.

“I really don’t have the words. You lied, you cheated, you stole. You betrayed me and my family,” he stated.

Sandra Taylor left behind three children when she was killed in an accident involving an inebriated driver. Murdaugh informed her estate he would only receive a settlement of $30,000. Prosecutors claimed that he took $150,000 for himself.

Ginger Hadwin, Satterfield’s sister, questioned, “They lost a mother. And you stole every dime from them. Do you not have a soul?”

The hearing on Tuesday did not resolve Murdaugh’s legal issues. In September 2021, he asked a friend to kill him so that his surviving son could receive $10 million in life insurance. Although he is still facing insurance fraud and other local charges, he is also awaiting sentencing on federal financial crime charges.

During his speech on Tuesday, Murdaugh once again attributed all of the thefts to his painkiller addiction. He apologized in-depth to his family, his in-laws, his surviving son, and his legal partners. He welcomed any of his victims to come see him in prison.

“I hope that in time each of you will be willing to talk to me,” said Murdaugh. “I would like, as time moves on, to continue to reiterate just how sorry I am and how important it is to me that you know that.”

Following the speech, Waters informed the judge, as he had done prior to the murder trial’s sentencing, that Murdaugh was unlike anyone he had ever seen in terms of his ability to fabricate false sincerity and lie.

“He’s good. He can look people in the eye. But we’ve seen it all before,” Waters stated. “The main thing he was concerned about was how he thought others perceived him.”