Murdaugh Murders Podcast - Alex Murdaugh Charged With Murder And Denied Bond: What’s next? (S01E53)

Episode Date: July 21, 2022

In the last seven days, we’ve been very busy at the Murdaugh Murders Podcast.  Alex Murdaugh was officially charged in the double homicide of Maggie and Paul Murdaugh.   Bowen Turner’s probation was revoked.  Alex Murdaugh’s bond was denied.  And Russell Laffitte was federally indicted.  All of these things are a big deal.  In this special breaking episode of the Murdaugh Murders Podcast, Mandy and Liz dive into the details of the bond hearing. What does all of this mean for the future of the SC justice system? And, you’ll hear clips from a special ceremony honoring Stephen Smith. The Murdaugh Murders Podcast is created by Mandy Matney and Luna Shark Productions. Our Executive Editor is Liz Farrell. Advertising is curated by the talented team at AdLarge Media. Find us on social media: https://www.facebook.com/MurdaughPod/ https://www.instagram.com/murdaughmurderspod/ For current and accurate updates:  Twitter.com/mandymatney Support Our Podcast at: https://murdaughmurderspodcast.com/support-the-show Please consider sharing your support by leaving a review on Apple at the following link: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/murdaugh-murders-podcast/id1573560247 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

I think I know who killed Maggie and Paul Murdoch, but now that Alec Murdoch has been charged in the double homicide and his bond was denied. Our work on this podcast is just beginning. We need to know who else helped the former public official get away with so much for so long and we need to know who killed Steven Smith. My name is Mandy Matney. I have been investigating the Murdoch family for more than three years now. This is the Murdoch Murders podcast with David Moses and Liz Farrell.

It has been another chaotic week at the Murdoch Murders podcast and Fitz News. Before we get into the big news from the bond hearing today, we have to go over the biggest highlights from the last seven days and there have been many. Aside from Alec Murdoch being indicted on two counts of murder, Bowen Turner officially had his probation revoked. Live 5 News reported that he will serve between 10 and 14 months in jail and he will have to register as a sex offender. And that is a big deal.

Both the murder charges and Turner's sentence speak to the life-changing and historic work we are doing on this podcast. And it wouldn't be possible without the momentum behind us from you, our listeners. So thank you. But also, this week was a reminder of just how much work needs to be done to truly change the South Carolina justice system. And that was apparent in the bond hearing. Also late on Wednesday, the first federal charges were filed in the Murdoch case against

Russell Lafitte. Lafitte faces five federal counts for allegedly using his role as director and an employee of Palmetto State Bank and his role as personal representative and conservator to defraud clients of Alec, including Hakim Pinkney. We will talk about that indictment in a later episode. Let's start with the big stuff, Alec's indictments. On Thursday, July 14th, as we expected, Alec Murdoch was indicted by a Colleton County grand jury in the double homicide of his wife Maggie and his son Paul.

And I have to say it again, that is a big deal. Even though we knew this was coming, Thursday was a huge day for those of us desperately wanting systemic change in the low country. Thursday's indictment sent a message, this is no longer a state run by the good old boys. This should have been a big sign indicating a new day in South Carolina. This was supposed to be the first big signal from the Attorney General's office that no one, no matter how powerful, is safe from the long arm of the law. Any faith we had in there being meaningful change in South Carolina was basically lost

Wednesday. In short, the prosecution and defense both argued for a gag order in the case. They say it is necessary to protect Alec Murdoch's right to a fair trial, which is hilarious because that is not at all what Alec wants. He wants an unfair trial in which there is a big old fat thumb on his side of the scales of justice. It seems like this might be headed in that direction. And while we understand the arguments the prosecution made in favor of a gag order as

it relates to protecting the integrity of the 81 state grand jury charges Alec faces, and as it relates to protecting ongoing investigations, and we'll get into all of that shortly, we still think this was a very big mistake on the part of the AG's office. So to start, prior to the hearing, the media was pretty tickled by the fact that there was a painted portrait of the elder Buster Murdoch in the back of the courtroom. They kept taking pictures of it. I was not one of those photographers because to me that portrait was a sign that the courtroom was clearly haunted.

It was like a Scooby-Doo painting where the eyes followed you. Meanwhile, I'm sure the prevailing media take on it is going to be how that portrait was a stark reminder of how the noble have fallen. Truly, that hearing was a full and ghostly regression into the past. Alec Murdoch basically walked into that courtroom wearing a crown and a giant pin that said Grandpa's boy on it. Just like Paul Murdoch's boat trial, it was hard for us to tell whether there was even a prosecutor in the room.

Prior to the start of the hearing and throughout it, Dick Harputley incommendeered the room. He routinely crossed the line into Creighton Waters half of the courtroom and spoke from that position. When both men teamed up to tell the judge that it would be super cool to keep the public in the dark about this case, it literally seemed like Dick was having one of those proud, take your son to work day moments. Creighton has so far proven himself to be a true professional, very capable, serious, no nonsense, and like someone who wouldn't let Dick Harputley hang him from his locker.

So it was incredibly disappointing to see him play small. He isn't going to like hearing this, but I had to re-listen to the audio from the hearing just to make double sure that he was referring to Alec as the defendant and not malored. I say this because Mandy and I were both incredibly suspicious about why Alec was agreeing to a bond hearing in the first place. He's already being held on a $7 million bond that he can't pay. He appears to have waived his subsequent bond hearing, so why go through with this one? The murder one?

Why was he going to put himself in a situation in which the prosecution would likely reveal some of his more evil behaviors? Now you might be thinking, guys, this man has had no shame so far. Why would he care now? So yeah, he's been a total embarrassment to his family, right? But this is different. This isn't just him being a lying doof. That hearing could have very well revealed details about what went on behind closed doors

in the Murdoch House, and that is a very clear line the Murdochs don't cross. So why agree to the hearing? Well it's obvious now. That hearing was not actually about whether Alec should be granted a bond on his murder charges. It was an opportunity for Dick to gather all the journalists covering this case into one room so he could symbolically throw his arm around the prosecution's shoulders, make his big chest move, and then wink at us.

Or wink at me, anyway. Oh yeah guys, he winked at me on his way out of the courtroom. I think it's been a while since he's winked at anyone because he almost had to get Jim Griffin to help him get his eyelid back up. But enough about that. We've said it so many times, good old boys cannot operate in the light. The Murdoch family specifically cannot operate in the light. They have always needed the darkness.

They need for there to be no public scrutiny. And it looks like they could be getting their wish. We were told going into the hearing that there would be details revealed in this court proceeding that would fill the large information voids in this case that only work for the defense. So the big question everyone seemed to have between 9 and 10 am today was, is the family there? The answer is no. They were not.

It's even further proof that the prosecution got dick and jimmed because in a case like this, if the family is supporting the defendant, then now would be the time to be public about it. To show the judge that they believe in their guy. To show that they're a united front against these unjust accusations, etc. Elix family from what it seems is supporting him for now. John Marvin keeps saying he just wants the truth. According to Creighton, the victims were watching the hearing remotely, but who are

the victims? I'm asking that seriously. To me, it would be Buster and it would be Maggie's side of the family. But who knows at this point, right? We don't know who's supporting Elix and who isn't. We don't know who believes he's innocent and who has their doubts. I get why they wouldn't want to be in the courtroom, but not knowing who the victims are is very odd.

And that's why this was a surprisingly empty courtroom for such a high profile case. It was mostly media there and let us just say this, yes, we can be critical of the media. Specifically the ones who aid the devils and help perpetuate corruption. But this makes our point, no matter how we feel about particular stories or headlines, the media is a critical stand-in for the public. We are there to tell the public what's happening. We are there to help hold the system accountable to the people it purports to serve. Like I said, the media showed up today.

By blocking the media from court matters moving forward, Creighton and the Bulldogs are burning down an important bridge. But now the hearing. You see, the bond hearing took a turn from a court proceeding about whether or not Ellick Murdoch would be getting bond on the murder charges, which had zero chance of happening, to a hearing about whether both sides agreed on keeping public information away from the public. I also very quickly want to thank my SLID agents.

We have Special Agent Dave Owen present, he's been one of the lead case agents on this. And I want to commend them on the long and arduous investigation over 13 months in which every possibility was considered before the evidence, as we explored every possibility, all came back to one person and that is Ellick Murdoch. I'm happy to detail some of the facts for your honor, however, the defense has advised me that they are willing to consent to a no bond. So I will leave that to your honor's discretion. But off the bat, Dick Harputlian came out swinging and appeared to be in command of the courtroom.

Your Honor, we're consenting to no bond attack, as you know, already has a $7 million bond attack made. And the further discussion of the alleged facts in this case in an open courtroom, we think continues to run the risk of polluting the jury pool, which in a moment I think we can talk about a speedy trial in this matter, which will occur in this courtroom. So we don't believe there's any reason to go in the facts in the background, we agree with no bond. And then prosecutor Creighton Waters made a surprising move.

The Creighton Waters we have seen before in other proceedings was fierce and completely unfazed by Harputlian and his games. But Waters today appeared to be caught off guard, even his body language was visibly weak. In a rare move, the prosecution brought up a gag order in the case. And they said that they agreed to it. And your honor, very quickly, I'm going to just add that we have, of course, insulted with the victims in this matter, or victim advocate as president, and some of the victims

of my understanding are joining through the remote procedure, I just want to make sure that was on the record. Well, your honor, there's a few motions I know that Mr. Harputlian and I have discussed. One of the first motions that has been discussed is a gag order. The state has no objection to a gag order or Mr. Harputlian discussed it with me. And we do agree that that would be appropriate in this matter, given the amount of media attention. This case, as I've been saying all along at various bond hearings along the way, needs

to be tried in the courtroom. And so the state has no objection to that. Gag orders are drastic remedies, and you don't see them a whole lot. When they're put in place, it's in the name of protecting the integrity of a fair and impartial trial. But like we've said a hundred times, that right there is the issue itself. History has shown us that the Murdochs are a family who have been afforded great latitude when it comes to law.

So how can we, the public, be assured that everything is actually fair and impartial if we can't see what's happening? The state should want to show the public that everything is above board here. They should want to make a good faith effort to show that there are no special favors happening here. Well, yes, Your Honor. And another aspect while that would be appropriate is much of the information that's been gathered in the state-wide grand jury case, all of the 81 allegations of white collar fraud and

other crimes, drugs and the like, that's been gathered against Mr. Murdoch over the course of that long investigation. A lot of that provides the background and the motive for what happened on June 7th, 2021. So that evidence blends together, and it would be appropriate for there to be a global protective order protecting everything related to the case. It is significant that Creighton Waters is saying that the motive for the double homicide is directly linked to the other financial crimes. That is something that we have never officially heard before.

On the other hand, we understand that this is a criminal enterprise, and the releasing of information can be dangerous in cases like this. But the motive is important. If Elec is going to be told what the state thinks his motive is, then the public should be told of that as well. And it is also significant that Creighton Waters appeared to be completely on the same side as Harputlian, as if they've been planning this little duet for months. Secondly, we propose that all motions in this matter, either by state or by our people,

unseal and subject to a motion by either party to unseal it. But that rather, again, I mean, we're putting the position of filing a motion on discovery to discuss what we've been given and what we haven't been given. And again, this is going to force us to disclose matters to the general public that we don't really want to discuss in public because we're trying to get a fair trial for a client, not try it in the media, but try it in this courtroom. And I believe Mr. Waters agrees with that. Your Honor, as long as there's obviously the opportunity of my appropriate showing for

motions to be made public and for hearings to be public, then I think that that is appropriate. I think we're not talking about hearings, we're talking about motions. Correct. Judge Newman did not appear to be amused by this gag order charade. Let's address the matters thus far regarding a gag order. What's your understanding as to the parameters of a gag order? I want to stop and commend Judge Clifton Newman for a second. There's a reason why he was specifically picked for this job, and it's because he is one

of the most highly respected officials in the South Carolina justice system. I said this on Twitter last night, but Liz and I have talked to several attorneys, prosecutors, and law enforcement officers about Judge Newman. When we haven't heard anyone say anything bad about him, he is known for being fair and an advocate for transparency. It is not surprising that he hesitated about this gag order. And I really agree. We're talking about extrajudicial statements, and I'm not here, and I'm going to make it

clear, if no indication whatsoever that Mr. Waters has in any way made any extrajudicial statements part of that, but anyone that reads this constant churning out there, it would appear somebody is, it's not him, as far as I know, none of his agents. But we want, if that's violated, we'd like to be able to come before the court and have the court inquire how this material fact got out to see if sanctions are necessary. So it would be a gag order to any extrajudicial statement. Here, Dickarputlian is saying that he is concerned about the amount of media leaks in the case tainting a jury pool.

But there are a couple things that we need to talk about on this. First of all, there's been an information void in this case from the beginning, just like it was so hard to get information in the Boat Crash case. Sled was almost never forthcoming with official information on the double homicide. And it was our job as a local media to inform the public about what was going on. Remember, people like the Boat Crash victims were being targeted in the media and online as potential suspects in this case. That is dangerous.

And even more dangerous, for several months after the murders, Elik Murdoch was free to do whatever he wanted whenever he wanted. If the evidence was pointing toward him all along, wouldn't they have wanted to get him behind bars last summer? Think about this. He's accused of killing his wife and son. I don't care if that's a targeted murder. That is a sign of a very dangerous human being.

So it was our obligation as members of the press to release the information that we had about Elik Murdoch in this case. And we will never know where this case would be if it didn't get so much international attention or how long it would have taken them to arrest Elik if he didn't have a little shooting incident. Every piece of information that was leaked to us was approved by our sources who assured us it wouldn't compromise the case. Members in our Putlian kept saying they didn't want media leaks in the case to taint a jury

pool. But you know what stops information? Leaks releasing information to the public. Again, the justice system is on trial here. A former public official is on trial here. We do not know how deep this corruption goes in this case. This isn't a typical case in the Murdoch camp is not your typical defense team. Frightened waters should realize that.

And finally, I just have to say this, the idea of ever getting a completely impartial jury in the age of the internet and social media is nearly impossible. Those days are over and it's time that our criminal justice system starts recognizing that and figuring out other ways for a fair trial. And we'll be right back. And again, the state wants very much this case to be tried fairly and appropriately in a court of law. I will say this just because information does make it into the media does not mean

that it necessarily came from law enforcement or prosecutorial sources. While Creighton Waters put Judge Newman in a very tough position by agreeing with the defense, Newman still didn't seem to be going along to get along. I just want to clearly understand that it's a public matter with a public trial and certainly matters that need to be sealed, can be sealed to preserve the rights of all parties to a fair and impartial trial. The court understands that, but at the same time, I want to clear that we will not have any private motion hearings.

Public matters will be public. We really hope that Creighton re-thinks his position on this. We absolutely respect the need to be careful with this case and we certainly don't want the other investigations to be jeopardized, but the AG's office and SLID have said absolutely nothing about the case as it is. For 13 months, they've allowed theories to circulate that the boat crash victims or the families of Gloria Satterfield and Stephen Smith might have had something to do with this.

The AG's office did nothing to publicly clear their names and that is not okay. To that end, by withholding information, they are also creating a vacuum that can be filled by Ellic Murdoch's team, which by the way includes a public relations firm with the gag order applied to them and anyone hired by them to promote the Murdochs online or otherwise. The Murdoch team has already painted SLID and the AG's office as incompetent and their investigation as bumbling. By batting down the hatches, it feels like they're fine with that image.

Next Harputlian moved on to his next request, asking for a speedy trial. This will be interesting. No one seems to think Murdoch is going to get a particularly speedy trial. There's a six and a half year backlog in the 14th Circuit. There are other defendants ahead of Murdoch who would like speedy trials as well. And this just seems like trickery on Harputlian's part to force the AG's office into presenting a hastily put together case, even though we think the AG's office is probably ready to go given it's been over a year.

It also seems like a ploy to convince Judge Newman, a judge who is pro-transparency, to grant a gag order thinking it wouldn't be for the long term. And that is, we make a motion for speedy trial. We note that there are two terms here, one in October and one in November. And we'd like to go ahead and get this matter before College County Jury as quickly as possible. Mr. Murdoch does this for a number of reasons. One, because he's heard, he believes he's innocent. Avert he's innocent.

And two, he believes that the killer or killers are still at large and this is going to allow us to have this behind us and go look for the real killer. Notice how Dick Harputlian is not saying his client is innocent. He is saying that his client believes that he is innocent. Seems like Dick is biting off more than he can chew here. From what we understand, it's unusual for a defense attorney to say the word innocent. When the threshold they're usually aiming for is not that. Their job is not to prove innocence, but to point out where they think the state has not

made its case beyond a reasonable doubt. It'll be interesting to see how Dick's bluster comes back to haunt him, now that he's proclaimed in open court that not only can the state not prove Elec did this, Elec didn't do it. It's a bold thing for a man who hasn't seen all the evidence to say. Then, Water said what many of us were thinking. That this is premature considering the fact that the defense hasn't even seen the discovery in the case. Preparing for a murder trial in a few months is something that no defense attorney wants.

Also, Harputlian has another murder trial in January, which is right around the time that they are suggesting to have Elec Murdoch's trial. I'm hesitant to set a specific term already because there is a very sensitive discovery and probably a number of matters that will be needed to address. That could work out. I just think it's a little premature to say definitely that's the term that's scheduled. However, the state is absolutely in favor. The evidence in this case is substantial and it all points back to Elec Murdoch.

There's forensic evidence as well as other evidence of his guilt of these murders and so the state is ready and willing to move this matter forward as expeditiously as could be reasonably done. Then Harputlian fired back at Waters and insulted both the attorney general's office and Sled, even though he hasn't seen the discovery in the case. Our response to that is wrong and that's why a jury will sit in that jury box. Is it that jury box? That's your jury box.

That's the grand jury box. All the time in courthouse, I forget which side we go, but that jury box right there. Hopefully within 90 to 120 days, decide whether that is substantial evidence. Dick's joke was not particularly funny, but his adoring fans in the media box seemed to think it was. Harputlian started to list off potential judges for this hypothetical trial. We're not sure if he was doing this to show Judge Newman that he would try this case sooner if it weren't for the booked docket this fall, or if he was sending a message to everyone

that Newman might not be the judge in the case moving forward, which we'll tackle on another day. But here's the odd thing. He mentioned Judge Mullen, which why bring up the name of someone who might be tied to Murdoch's case? He said the trial couldn't happen in October because that's her month to preside over general sessions and she had recused herself. As she recused herself, there are so many questions about what role her close relationship

with Ellick might have played in all of this, and it's possible she's under investigation for that alleged role. It's not a good look for Dick to remind us just how deep the public corruption goes in this case. Right now, there's October term with Judge Mullen, and she's recused herself, and November term with Brooks Goldsmith and Lankett, who kind of goes already set. I don't know if we need to get into that today, but we are going to be pressing for a trial as quickly as possible.

In that vein, last week we served a discovery motion on the state. They have 30 days under the rules and we're stalling, but this matter's been under investigation for a year and a half. It may be extensive, but it ought to be easily accessible, and we ought to be able to get that in two and a half weeks and begin the process of coming through it ourselves. However, Newman was selected by the South Carolina Supreme Court to see all matters related to the Murdoch case. And here, Dick Harputlian is basically planting his flag and saying, look, we don't need

you, Judge Newman, and we do need this gag order. And don't worry, it won't go on for years because the trial is going to happen in a few months. And before concluding the hearing, Newman basically said, let's not get ahead of ourselves here. The defendant has a constitutional right to a speedy trial. That being said, however, I am totally unaware of the status of the docket here in Colleton County.

I do not know if the solicitor's office for this circuit already has day certain trials scheduled or what other matters that currently exist that might be scheduled already or anticipated by or whether a special term of court might become necessary to try this case. The hearing wrapped up in about 20 minutes. And following that hearing, Harputlian and Griffin walked past a pool of microphones where two dozen news reporters were waiting for a press conference. When a reporter asked Harputlian for comment, he said, I'm gagged. But the thing is, he wasn't gagged.

Dick gagged himself. Newman has not ruled on a gag order. This was Harputlian creating an illusion to the media who have proved to be vastly misinformed in this case. Finding a message that he got his way and the gag order was in effect. Harputlian was clear in the hearing. He desperately wants that gag order. The question is why?

What's the move here? This was bothering me. And suddenly today, after the hearing, it dawned on me. This all comes back to the money. Okay, so we have heard from several sources that Elix family members have said that they are choosing to support Elix until evidence in the double homicide case shows them otherwise. And the family support matters because someone is paying the bills for Dick and Jim's expensive representation, which we would anticipate costing well over a million dollars at this

point. This is serious money we are talking about. And remember, in the jailhouse phone calls, the ones that exposed several lies from the Murdoch team indicated that John Marvin was handling the family's finances and Dick and Jim were definitely getting paid. Remember this? I hope that Jim's first to come by me with him. I'm trying to get the finances straight with him and I got to talk to John and see whether

we're going to do a loan and then I'm going to pay it back out of an account later or we're going to have a letter from an opinion from a lawyer who does retirement accounts that's rolling it over. If you pay interest on something for six years, you could end up being more than the penalty. But we got to make sure the penalty doesn't open it up to creditors. You need that money. We also know from the jailhouse phone calls that the only people besides Dick and Jim who are speaking to Ellick right now are his family members.

At least we think. Since it seems like he's trying to use three-way calls, it's hard to know who he's actually talking to and we'll get into that in another episode. We also know there is a significant amount of money likely in the millions in Randolph and Big Buster's trust funds. And we know that Ellick Murdoch's money is locked up in the receivership to protect it for victims who have ongoing lawsuits against the Murdochs. So it isn't a far-fetched conclusion to say that most likely Dick and Jim are somehow

getting paid by the Murdoch family. It also isn't far-fetched to believe that if the family saw evidence convincing them that Ellick killed their family members, Maggie and Paul, that they could take a big step backward and stop all support, including financial. If Creighton Waters decided to present convincing evidence in court today, such as GPS data, high-velocity impacts batter, and text messages, the gravy train providing Ellick's expensive defense team might get cut off and the Bulldogs do not want to risk that. But instead, Waters folded, really for the first time in this case.

The state had an opportunity on Wednesday to make this a new day in South Carolina, showing everyone that our system would be transparent and just. They had the opportunity to explain what evidence they had against Ellick Murdoch in the double homicide and through their statement, which we will talk about in another episode. But instead of revealing details in the investigation that took 13 months and God knows how many taxpayer dollars, they chose to say almost nothing. Several people on Twitter are arguing that the prosecution did not fold, that they are just protecting their case.

Normally, I am very understanding when it comes to prosecutors protecting information for the sake of their case. But after investigating this case and this family and watching how they thrive in the darkness and have lurked in the shadows for years, and so many people have been hurt, it is time for the Attorney General's office to take a stand, to fight for transparency, to ensure the public that they have arrested the right guy in this horrific crime. Ellick Murdoch is likely going to jail for the rest of his life. The financial crimes alone with a clear paper trailer of evidence are enough to do that.

In this case, in this case only, the prosecution should be most concerned about the South Carolina taxpayers who have lost faith in the entire system. They should be fighting for them. They should be fighting for transparency, and if they don't, we will. And we'll be right back. Now I want to share some positive news from this week. On Sunday, July 17th, 2022, friends, family, and supporters rallied around the Smith family to celebrate a new day in Hampton, South Carolina, marked by a beautiful new headstone honoring

Stephen Smith's legacy. What I love about the headstone is that it is so huge and so unique and so hard to miss, and very much visible from Sandy Run Road, the same road where Stephen Smith was found murdered in 2015. We know people in Hampton County know who killed Stephen Smith. Now there is a beautiful and unmistakable headstone on the edge of the Gooding Cemetery that will serve as a reminder for those who have information and who have been too scared all these years to go to police.

I hope this headstone serves as a monument showing everyone that this is a new day in Hampton County, that now is Stephen's time for justice, and that there are so many of us who will continue to fight for him until we get answers. I was honored to speak at the ceremony and I will share a clip from my speech. I didn't know Stephen personally, but over the last three years, I have made a bond with his mother, Sandy, and learned so much about who he was and what he wanted to be. As Sandy and I have laughed and cried over the last three years, I have been so fortunate to learn about our son.

Stephen was kind, he was funny, he was generous, he wanted to help people. Stephen was proud of who he was and those around him were proud of him too. Stephen inspired others to be themselves and continues to do that with his memory. After all these years, Sandy has taught me to always hold on to hope and love, even when that's all you have. But also, Sandy has taught me to never give up on what's right. We will be making noise and demanding justice until we have answers about why Stephen is no longer with us.

We know that someone has information, and now that the tides of justice in Hampton are changing, that someone will come forward with evidence. But I am here today to celebrate Stephen's life, and we celebrate that hope and love that has kept Sandy in her relentless pursuit of justice. We are here to stand with Sandy, and we are here to stand with Stephen. Thank you. After the speech, I hugged Sandy Smith tight, and I couldn't help but weep for her. It's Stephen's time, Sandy said softly in my ear.

And it is Stephen's time. His family has waited seven years for justice, and as Smith family attorney Mike Himlips said Sunday, we are all done being sad. Now is the time to get angry, because people like the Smiths shouldn't have to wait seven years to get justice. I didn't know Stephen Smith, but I knew Stephen Smith. There are 168,000 LGBT people in South Carolina, roughly 10% of the millennials identified as LGBT.

There are roughly 28,000 teenagers in South Carolina who identify as LGBT. Right, young, talented, ambitious, charismatic, and love. So I didn't know Stephen Smith, but I know Stephen Smith. So many like him. Those young gay South Carolinians, 28,000 of them, the statistics about them are horrific, huge rates of suicide, homelessness, domestic violence, sexual assault. In 2018, the HRC did the largest study about LGBT teens that has ever been done, and discovered that 95% of them, on a regular basis, cannot sleep because of fear and anxiety.

95%, and 20%, one out of five, in the past year, prior to the study, was forced into a sex act by an adult. The statistics about LGBT teens are horrific, but that wasn't Stephen's story. That wasn't his story. Mike's speech in the pouring rain in the middle of a low country cemetery was so powerful and necessary. Stephen, to me, is a hero. He's a role model.

He had the ability to be a mentor for other people. His passion for healthcare, his desire to be a nurse, and then one day a doctor. Imagine what kind of doctor he would have been to gay kids, but he's not because someone decided to bash his head in. Mike Himlip then said what many people have said to me whenever I mention the fact that Stephen was gay, that we don't know for sure that it had to do with his death. I know what you're thinking. You're going, Mike, come on.

You don't know what happened to Stephen. You don't know why he died. But here's what I'm here to tell you today. There are 28,000 gay teenagers in South Carolina who know exactly why he died. And I'm going to tell you I know exactly why he died. Maybe I'm wrong. The men and women of Sled are working tirelessly to get us answers, and we cannot thank them more.

But I'll tell you this, don't bet against me. I think I'm right. I wouldn't bet against him either. I think he is right. Mike is angry, and I am angry too. More people need to be angry about what happened to Stephen. And yet the stakeholders of Hampton County were absolutely satisfied with the fact that Stephen Smith was thrown into the road like garbage, and all they did was pick him up

and throw him away. And that is all they did. Today, when you talk to this family and when you talk to Sandy, they are deserving of your empathy. They're deserving of your sympathy. They're deserving of you showing you love them. They're deserving of them seeing your sadness. But when you leave and get in your car, I don't want you sad anymore.

It's time to get angry. It's time to get answers. It's time to get solutions. I didn't know Stephen Smith, but I've known lots of Stephen Smith. I was a Stephen Smith. You know Stephen Smith. He was a hero. He was a fallen warrior against forces that watched him and other LGBT teens of South

Carolina and America to be extinct. I don't honor Stephen by being sad. The advances of the gay community, which started at Stonewall, there was nobody at Stonewall who was sad. They took action. Sadness doesn't need to action. So I want to honor Stephen, and I want you to honor Stephen, and the way we do that is we get mad.

We are begging you, if you have any tips, big or small, that could help sled solve Stephen Smith's case, please call Crime Stoppers of the Low Country. You can do this anonymously at 843-554-1111 or their website at 843-554-1111.com. I will be posting about Stephen Smith on my personal social media accounts every single day until justice is served. So be sure to follow me and share those posts as we continue to fight to get the word out and get Stephen's case solved. Stay tuned.

The Murdoch Learners Podcast is created by me, Mandy Matney, and my fiance, David Moses. Our executive editor is Liz Farrell, produced by Luna Shark Productions.