COLUMBIA, S.C. — In the ever-twisting saga of Alex Murdaugh, convicted almost a year ago of the brutal slaying of his wife and son, a new character has been added to the cast. A Hollywood director could have done no better than retired chief justice of the state Supreme Court Jean Toal — a brilliant jurist and slayer of the pompous and the profane. There’s no one tougher on or off the bench. She’s also one of the finest people you’ll ever meet. You just wouldn’t want to be on the other side of a case with her.
Already, Toal has pricked the pride of Murdaugh’s lawyers, who appeared before her earlier this week in a prehearing to lay out the rules for the upcoming hearing to decide whether Murdaugh will be granted a new trial in the double murders. Toal alone will make the decision.
Toal was appointed to the Murdaugh case after the previous judge, Clifton Newman, recused himself before retiring late last year. Newman’s recusal at the behest of Murdaugh’s defense team was based on the judge’s unfiltered contempt for the defendant as he sentenced Murdaugh to two consecutive life terms.
In the months since Murdaugh’s six-week trial ended, several other proceedings have brought him into various courthouses. In November, he pleaded guilty to 22 of more than 100 financial crimes, including fraud and money laundering, by which he bilked clients, law partners and family members of millions of dollars. For these crimes, he was sentenced to 27 years. Under the plea agreement, he has to serve at least 85 percent of that time, or 22 years — a “practical life sentence” for the 55-year-old, said state prosecutor Creighton Waters.