The Alex Murdaugh murder case has officially returned to the lower court level after the South Carolina Supreme Court issued a remittitur dated May 29, according to Fox News. The filing formally sends the case back to the trial court, where prosecutors and defense attorneys will now begin navigating the new murder proceeding.
Murdaugh, a disgraced former South Carolina attorney whose family once held significant legal influence in the state's Lowcountry region, was originally convicted in the 2021 murders of his wife, Maggie, and younger son, Paul. The killings took place at the family's rural hunting estate in Colleton County.
The South Carolina Supreme Court unanimously reversed those convictions, ruling that Colleton County Clerk of Court Rebecca "Becky" Hill improperly influenced jurors during the six-week trial. The reversal upended one of the most closely watched criminal convictions in the state's recent history.
The formal return of the case to the lower court does not mean a retrial is imminent. The process will likely include scheduling hearings, revisiting pretrial motions, handling evidence disagreements, and setting a possible trial date. South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson has said he wants to move quickly.
"Look, I'm being aspirational when I say this, but we would like to try to get this case up before January 2027. That would be our goal," Wilson told Fox News Digital.
Murdaugh's lead defense attorney, Dick Harpootlian, has already signaled the defense's strategy for the retrial. He said the team plans to seek a venue change, attorney-led jury questioning, and potentially the sequestration of jurors.
"We now have the ability to get people's social media, their Instagrams, all of that," Harpootlian previously told Fox News Digital. "And we'll scour that before they ever get a chance to appear."
Despite the overturning of his murder convictions and the reversal of his life sentences, Murdaugh remains in prison. He is currently serving sentences related to his financial crimes, which were prosecuted separately and remain in place.
