Suit That Toppled Murdaugh's House of Cards Is Settled

It was brought by family of teen killed in a boat crash involving Murdaugh's youngest son
By Newser Editors and Wire Services
Posted Oct 16, 2024 7:59 AM CDT
Lawsuit That Triggered Murdaugh's Downfall Is Settled
Alex Murdaugh is led to the Colleton County Courthouse by sheriff's deputies for sentencing, March 3, 2023, in Walterboro, S.C., after being convicted of two counts of murder.   (AP Photo/Chris Carlson, File)

Alex Murdaugh has settled a lawsuit brought by the family of a teen killed in a boat crash involving Murdaugh's youngest son that prosecutors said provoked the disgraced South Carolina attorney to later kill his wife and their son who wrecked the boat. The agreement by an insurer to pay the $500,000 policy Alex Murdaugh had on the boat ends the wrongful death suit that ultimately pried open Murdaugh's finances and laid bare his schemes to steal millions from his clients and his law firm, reports the AP. More:

  • Mallory Beach's death: The family of 19-year-old Beach sued the Murdaugh family and others after authorities said the boat Paul Murdaugh was driving crashed into a Beaufort County bridge in February 2019. Beach was killed and several others were injured. Paul Murdaugh, who was 19 at the time, was charged with felony boating under the influence. Investigators said he had a blood alcohol level over 0.28%—more than three times the legal limit.
  • Previous settlements: Beach's family already received more than $15 million from a settlement with the Parker's Kitchen chain of convenience stores and others, as well as lawsuits with a family that held an oyster roast the group on the boat attended, a bar that served Paul Murdaugh liquor just before the crash, and Paul Murdaugh's older brother, Buster, whose ID he used to buy the beer.
  • The final settlement: A snag with the insurer of the boat, Progressive, prevented the entire case from being settled last summer. Progressive wouldn't pay until Alex Murdaugh was dropped as a defendant in the Beach family's lawsuit, according to court records. Once special receivers assured all Murdaugh's assets were paid out, Beach's family agreed to end the case and the insurer paid the $500,000, Judge Daniel Hall wrote in an order filed Monday.
  • Where the killings come in: Alex Murdaugh, 56, is serving life without parole for the June 2021 shooting deaths of his wife, Maggie, and son Paul at their Colleton County home. He has denied killing them and is appealing his murder convictions. Prosecutors said one of the last things Murdaugh did before heading home the night of the killings was work on a financial statement he would likely have had to present at a court hearing for the Beach lawsuit scheduled three days later.
  • Prosecutors' view: Murdaugh feared an investigation into his statement would show he stole millions from clients and his law firm, prosecutors said, and the killings were a sinister, methodical plan to buy time to straighten out his finances and derail the wrongful death suit over the boat crash.
(Immediately after the murders, Murdaugh kept mentioning the boat crash.)

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