I would say it was unanimous from the start. Wow.
Except for the one who was discharged? I am surprised, but I agree the jury just wanted to go home.
Anyone think there may be grounds for appeal? The dismissed juror possibly could be grounds. Plus the fact he was not allowed to take the fifth on selected questions. Maybe also too much emphasis on his alleged financial crimes which had not been tried yet.
I don't think we have heard the last of him anyway.
The jury deliberated for less than three hours before finding Murdaugh guilty of two counts of murder Thursday.
www.fox5atlanta.com
"Alex Murdaugh, 54, had told police repeatedly after the killings that he was not at the kennels and was instead napping before he went to visit his ailing mother that night. Murdaugh called 911 and said he discovered the bodies when he returned home.
But in his testimony, Murdaugh admitted joining Maggie and Paul at the kennels, where he said he took a chicken away from a rowdy yellow Labrador named Bubba — whose name Murdaugh can be heard saying on the video — before heading back to the house shortly ahead of the fatal shootings.
Murdaugh lied about being at the kennels for 20 months before taking the stand on the 23rd day of his trial. He blamed his decadeslong addiction to opioids for making him paranoid, creating a distrust of police. He said that once he went down that path, he felt trapped in the lie.
"Oh, what a tangled web we weave. Once I told a lie — I told my family — I had to keep lying," he testified."
"Murdaugh’s lawyers will almost certainly appeal the conviction based on the judge allowing evidence of the financial crimes, which they contend were unrelated to the killings and were used by prosecutors to smear Murdaugh’s reputation."
