BEAUFORT COUNTY, S.C. (TND) — Disgraced former lawyer Alex Murdaugh spoke at length to his victims on Tuesday before he was sentenced to 27 years in prison for financial crimes committed in South Carolina.
The sentencing also gave the victims of the financial crimes and their attorneys a chance to speak on their behalf.
During his almost hour-long speech, he formally pleaded guilty to 22 of the 101 “White Collar” criminal charges brought against him.
Before lawyers decided how much credit for time served Murdaugh would get in his sentence he was unshackled so he could read from his notes.
“Each of you that spoke, I listened to you,” Murdaugh said. “I heard you. Your pain and your hurt is palpable. I promise it resonates with me. I get it. I hope time will come you can look back and know that I care about each and every one of you.”
He went on to address his actions and stated he did “terrible things” that “continue to bother him and disturb him.”
One of the first people he directly spoke to was his friend Jordan Jinks, also known as JJ.
“My wife loved you, and you are absolutely right about everything you said,” Murdaugh said. “But you are dead wrong about one thing. I would never hurt Maggie and I would never hurt Paul. It is important to me that you know that. She did love you and I hope you know that.”
He added that they grew up together hunting and fishing together all over the Lowcountry.
Several more victims were addressed before he directly spoke to his son Buster and broke down crying about his other son Paul.
Murdaugh was convicted in March of the 2021 murders of his wife Maggie and son Paul. He was sentenced to life in prison.
“I am so sorry that I let you down. I am so sorry that I have not been able to be with you during such hard times. I am so sorry that I did so many things that are so contradictory to every single thing (your mother) and I ever taught you and Paul,” Murdaugh continued. “I am sorry. I am so very sorry that the things that I did and that I am pleading guilty to here today that have caused people on social media and some people in the media believe that it is OK to make false, baseless, unsubstantiated claims against you” that are not based on facts or reality.”
Murdaugh also apologized to the family for ruining their reputation and said he was sorry his actions “emboldened” people on social media and in the media to “attack” his father and grandfather.
“It is so important to me that you know how bothered I am by the things that I did,” he told all of his victims. “I do care about each of you.”
At the end of his lengthy speech, he apologized to every single person who cares about Maggie and Paul.
“I know that the things that I did that I’m pleading guilty here today allowed SLED and the AG to focus on me and not to pursue the person or the people who hurt and killed Maggie and Paw Paw,” he said.
One of his victims – who arrived to the trial during his remarks – stood up when court resumed after lunch to tell Murdaugh she forgave him and hoped he found God’s forgiveness.
Murdaugh agreed to a plea deal tied to all his financial crimes on Nov. 17 at a hearing that was supposed to be regarding the first of the financial crimes. He has also agreed to waive all rights to appeal.
He told Judge Clifton Newman that he was “happy” to plead guilty.
The recommended sentence in the plea deal was 27 years with 85 percent time served, adding nearly 30 more years onto Murdaugh’s already subtantial prison time of two consecutive life sentences.
