Murdaugh Murders Podcast - Land of No Consequences: ‘Judge Mullen Is Wanting To Make Stuff Up’ (S01E65)

Episode Date: October 26, 2022

Last week we revealed that 14th Circuit Judge Carmen Mullen — who has been a key figure in the Murdaugh world — tried to create a crime and orchestrate the arrest of a man with psychiatric vulnerabilities in her neighborhood five years ago. This week, we have the recordings showing what she did — and her behavior is far worse than it sounded on paper. Once again, Mandy and Liz take on the judicial system and call on the state Supreme Court to stop looking the other way on judicial misconduct.  I don’t know how many more disturbing stories the justices on the Supreme Court of South Carolina need to hear about Judge Carmen Mullen or how many more times her integrity needs to be publicly questioned before they pull their heads out of the sand and take action. Stay tuned for a bonus episode of Cup of Justice this week as we peer deeper into this mess and the circus of a hearing last Thursday. SUNscribe to our free email list to get alerts on bonus episodes, calls to action, new shows and updates. AND by sharing your email, we'll send details on exclusive content only available from our upcoming SUNScription platform - CLICK HERE to learn more: https://bit.ly/3KBMJcP And a special thank you to our sponsors: Microdose.com, VOURI, and others. Use promo code "MANDY" for a special offer! Find us on social media: https://www.facebook.com/MurdaughPod/ https://www.instagram.com/murdaughmurderspod/ Twitter.com/mandymatney YouTube 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

Okay, here's how Miro works. See, it's amazing. What's everyone doing at David's desk? Ever since marketing started using Miro's collaborative online whiteboard, he thinks all our other teams should sign up. Why? He says Miro's making his meetings disappear. And if every team gets on it, that means even less meetings. They're using Miro for brainstorms, mind maps, customer research.

So could we use Miro instead of having another 100 meetings for every round of feedback? Yep, you can comment, react to ideas, even leave a recording on the board. And what about presentations? There are Miro templates for that. How do you know so much about Miro? I've actually been using it all along. I just used a Miro board to plan the best vacation. Okay, I'm on board.

See how Miro users save up to 80 hours every year by meeting less and doing more. Board at Miro.com with three boards free forever. That's M-I-R-O.com. I don't know how many more disturbing stories the justices of the Supreme Court of South Carolina need to hear about Judge Carmen Mullen, or how many times her integrity needs to be publicly questioned before they pull their heads out of the sand and take action. For years, we have heard accusations from lawyers and other sources

about how she appears to use her position of authority to help her and her husband's friends. How she seems to go easier on those who are politically and financially connected. But after Liz's revelation last week on Cup of Justice about how Judge Mullen tried to pressure law enforcement into arresting a man who had not committed a crime, her behavior can no longer be ignored by the disciplinary commission without turning this judicial system into a permanent joke. My name is Mandy Matney. I have been investigating the Murdoch family for almost four years now.

This is the Murdoch Murders podcast produced by my husband David Moses and written by Liz Farrell. Music Wow, we are back in action after an especially crazy few weeks. We got married and we went on our honeymoon and I caught a cold, which I'm sure you can hear right now. Sorry about that. And in other big news, Liz and I did an interview with true crime podcast queens, George and Karen, of My Favorite Murder. The episode premiered on Amazon and Wondery Apps last week,

but you can catch it on Apple and wherever you get your podcast tomorrow, Thursday, October 27th. I really, really loved this interview. We talked about the case of course, but also so many things surrounding it, like the trolls, vocal fry, and we talked about women empowering other women. Liz and I walked away from that interview feeling inspired and ready to take on any good old boy in our way. We were so thankful for how kind and encouraging George and Karen were to us. So please y'all check out this interview tomorrow. We will post a link and some clips on our social media pages.

Music And of course, again, a lot has happened in the Murdoch case in the last few weeks. Last Wednesday on our Cup of Justice bonus episode, we told you all about a shocking 2017 incident on Hilton Head Island involving Judge Carmen Mullen. The very next day, we watched as Alec Murdoch's attorneys, Dick Harputlian and Jim Griffin wasted the courts and the public's time in a very long and pointless hearing that was designed for only one reason. Dick and Jim knew the media would read their motion and write the headlines, insinuating that Curtis Eddie Smith might be the real killer of Maggie and Paul Murdoch.

It's kind of sad how perfectly that strategy worked out. Alec's hearing was another big reminder of how legislator lawyers like Dick Harputlian think that they can control judges in our courtrooms, but it was further evidence of how times might be starting to change for the good old boys in South Carolina. But we'll get to that. It also uncovered some new evidence in the double homicide case, which is apparently set to go to trial in January. But we are going to cover all of that on a special Cup of Justice bonus episode this Friday,

so stay tuned for that. Like I said, we have a lot to unpack. Now let's start with Judge Carmen Mullen. On Sunday night, Liz and I were on a CNN special called Murdoch Murders, a twisted tale of power and money. The show featured interviews with both Liz and I, but also with the victims of Alec Murdoch and the lawyers at the center of the Murdoch story. There were a lot of interesting moments during the show,

but one in particular stuck out to us in light of this issue with Judge Mullen. CNN reporter Randy Kaye spoke about how in the hours after Stephen Smith's death in 2015, Randy Murdoch, Alec's older brother, who was also a partner at PMPED, had inserted himself in the Smith case, according to Sandy and her family, and had allegedly offered to represent them in litigating Stephen's alleged hit-and-run accident. Here is a clip from the special. And I know that soon after Randy Murdoch had called. Randy is Alec's Murdoch's brother.

When I was on the phone with Joel, he said, let me put you on hold because Randy Murdoch's calling. He said Randy wants to take Stephen's case pro bono, and I said, what case? Because they said it was a hit-and-run. Did you think that call from Randy Murdoch was strange? Yes, it made no sense to me. Really, there was no case there yet?

Yeah, you didn't know it was a case. And his law office has said that he didn't know Stephen had died until after the funeral? Excuse me, but Alec's Murdoch and Randy Murdoch were standing at the crime scene. Oh, wow. They were at the crime scene after Stephen's body was moved. Randy Murdoch called and asked, was that you that just passed by? I said, yeah. He said, I wish you would have stopped so I could have met you.

Wow. At the crime scene. Yeah. At the crime scene. His office says that he never offered to represent the family in any way. Well, if you can believe anything a Murdoch says. Other than wanting to share Sandy's amazing response to Randy's denial with you guys, the reason I want to talk about this part of the show is because that denial reminded me how powerful

and also how weak the Office of Disciplinary Counsel is. First, I want to note that this isn't a stretch. We've obviously seen this type of behavior before with the Murdochs. Like when Alec offered to have his best friend Corey Fleming represent the Satterfield family after Gloria died and when Alec set Connor Cook's family up with Corey after the boat crash. Putting an ally on the inside might come as naturally as breathing to this family. But Randy's strong denial is important because it might be a signal that he is actually being investigated by the ODC for what the Smiths say he did to them in the hours and days after Stephen's death.

If it turns out that the Murdochs had any connection to Stephen's death or its cover up, Randy's alleged offer of representing the family would be a conflict of interest and violation of the rules of professional conduct. And who knows, could also have some criminal repercussions in the way of obstruction charges. Meaning, if it was determined he did this, he could actually lose his license to practice law in this state and that would cut him off from the millions he and his law firm make every year. That is huge. That's where the ODC has power. Most lawyers in South Carolina are terrified of the ODC,

but we've never gotten a sense that the lawyers and the judges in the world of the good ol' boys have ever really worried all that much about actual consequences. We heard evidence of this in one of Alec's jailhouse calls when his brother informed him that Corey Fleming had been fired from his law firm. Alec's response was basically, for real fired or... This is why the ODC and the Commission on Judicial Conduct are largely seen as political entities that go harder on those without connections and easier on those with connections.

And this is why unscrupulous lawyers and judges have felt so free to do the things they're now being accused of doing. They knew that if things got bad, they always had the right tools to get them out of trouble. So let's talk about what happened in December 2017. For a full discussion on this incident, check out last week's episode of Cup of Justice. I think we almost gave Eric Bland a heart attack on the air because this incident is that unbelievable and egregious. But we've gone a lot deeper since that episode.

So in 2017, a security officer at an upscale Hilton Head neighborhood where Judge Mullen lived at the time, called the Buford County Sheriff's Office because a resident named Reagan Rano was having trouble with her tenant, a man known as Ernie the Attorney. According to law enforcement records, Ernie had a lease with Reagan at the time of this call, meaning he was technically home. Ernie, who has not been a practicing attorney for decades, is well known around Hilton Head. He has a history of psychiatric vulnerabilities,

and at the time of this incident was being watched over by his friends. So the short version of this story is that Reagan wanted Ernie off of her property. But Ernie wasn't committing any arrestable offenses, at least not at this moment. Now, this incident report, which was revealed on Cup of Justice last week, was shocking because basically it laid out how Judge Mullen, emphasis on the judge part, inserted herself in the situation by showing up at Reagan's house and trying to find a reason for deputies to arrest Ernie. And again, you should know Judge Mullen's name.

She was the judge in the Satterfield case and the Badger case. Essentially, Judge Mullen suggested that deputies should create a crime, so an already troubled human being could face additional legal problems. Judge Mullen knows Ernie because he used to work for her husband George Mullen as an associate attorney before his health issues in the 1990s. Ernie has also appeared in her courtroom. Last Tuesday morning, I emailed Judge Mullen with a copy of the incident report and asked for her response.

Judge Mullen took more than 12 hours to come up with one. At almost 11 o'clock that night, Judge Mullen emailed a very long statement to media across the state, explaining what happened. It was unprecedented. We have never seen this kind of explanation from a sitting judge, which shows you how big of a deal this is. Our episode deadline had long passed by that point,

so we were not able to include it until now. We'll get to that statement in a moment, but her basic explanation for interfering and suggesting they create a crime for Ernie was that she was there to help Ernie and protect him from harm. Keep that in mind, okay? Because we filed a Freedom of Information Act request for the emergency call, the dispatch transmissions, and the video and audio from the two responding deputies in car cameras.

The first deputies recording starts with Reagan Reno talking about the reasons she wants Ernie the attorney gone. The recording is difficult to hear, but at no point does she seem to suggest that Ernie the attorney had threatened her. The behavior she describes is annoying, but not illegal. About seven and a half minutes in, Judge Mullen arrives on the scene. Hey, y'all. Hey, how are you, Judge Mullen?

Good to see you all. Good to see you. You know Ernie too well. This is my husband, George. How are you doing? We actually happened to live, hey, over a year, just around the corner. George has known Ernie for 25 years, and I've been the last few sentencing of him.

I thought he was in a trespass notice here at this house. It was my understanding now. The deputy tells her that there's no trespass notice at this house. According to the dispatch report, there had never been a trespass note for him there. But he told the judge that he would be happy to check again. It's then that Judge Mullen gives the deputy a short rundown of Ernie's medical history. The deputy tells her, yes, we know Ernie very well. Judge Mullen then asks the deputy whether Reagan has pressed charges for breach of trust yet,

because she had told Reagan to do that. And then she was going to press charges. Did she ever press charges for breach of trust against him? Do you know? She didn't mention that. I told her to, because if she pressed charges against the breach of trust on his phone, we can do a no-contact. It keeps him out of the plant.

It keeps him out of the way from us. And it keeps me alert with some control on him. I mean, I can tell you, we've been fighting over trying to find him mostly. He doesn't want to go back to William F. Hall in Columbia, and he begs not to. His family has gone with him. I mean, I can tell you, I've talked to everybody. They are joined.

So I've got to find my halfway house. There's plenty of work for him, because he can't do this. And this is just what happens. 10th part, 5th part. Well, we don't want him to get hurt. Isn't it interesting that Judge Mullen's response to us last week sort of hinted at how she had to step in so the deputies wouldn't hurt Ernie? And here we have a deputy telling her that they don't want him to get hurt.

Now, here's a really important part. We don't want him to get hurt. He doesn't want to hurt anybody. And I will tell you this. Even though you hear him scream and say crazy old things, I promise you he would not hurt a fully. I stick my kids with him. And that's what I just told Jack.

I know you don't need to be worried about your kids. He can curse up a storm, and he can, you know, say you can blow me up all day long. He ain't got to hurt anybody. But he's not in his medication. And so, I mean, I don't know. I think you'll have to take him in. I mean, I don't think he had a choice.

I'm not sure what you can charge him with right now, but you've got to get rid of him. When Judge Mullen doesn't get her way, she'll later change this characterization of Ernie to better fit a narrative for an arrest. And by the way, if Ernie is so easy breezy around judges and children, and Judge Mullen and George are concerned

about finding him a place to stay, it seems, I don't know, like maybe they could have taken him in at their giant and lovely home. I mean, according to Judge Mullen's statement last week, this all happened because she's a super nice person. So, it's not wrong for us to suggest this, right? So, Judge Mullen explains to the deputy

that the only reason Reagan has a lease with Ernie is because she needed to have one to get a gate pass for him in their neighborhood. Meaning, Judge Mullen, in an effort to downplay the legal and contractual aspects of this, is telling the deputy that Reagan had for all practical purposes, misrepresented the nature of her arrangement with Ernie

so she could circumvent the neighborhood's rules, which are ostensibly in place to protect the neighborhood. It's like she can't even hear her own voice speaking. She tells the deputy that Ernie has no right to be there, and George, her husband, corrects her. So, and apparently... Who called you last night?

Who called you? We did. You did. I guess he snuck in. Yeah. He came in to see into a cab. I mean, he has no right to be here, so I don't see if there's any reason to go.

George, I know you're... I did this a week ago. I have searing court all the time. So, I mean, it's as much as we can do. Then, Judge Mullen tells the deputy that jail is an amazing place that is basically like a spa for people like Ernie. They're going to take him to the jail,

and then I'm going to tell the magistrate to not give him a bond, and I'm going to have to hold him there, and then I'm going to see him next week because I don't know if I should. Am I going to figure out something? Yeah, I mean, he's a sweetheart in the jail. The funniest thing is, they love him. I mean, all the jailers are, they laugh.

They're like, is there any problem? They say, no, no, no, no, no. No, it's because they medicated Mullen there. So, I mean, they first medicated. Mullen then speaks with Reagan, and Ernie walks on the scene, talking about his fort in the backyard, as well as touch DNA, Calvin Klein, and diamonds.

Again, this is a man with severe psychiatric vulnerabilities, and some of this may be hard to hear. I'm going to sleep. I'm going to the fort. I'm going to sleep. I'm going to ask Reagan. I got all her credit cards. Stay away from her for now, okay? Whoa, the Mercedes.

Moose stole my cheese and yanked my bond, and I beat his ass home from the kangaroo. It was happy taxi. I think we're building 785, 785-1. Grand Paul. Ari and Daniel are flying me to Kentucky to rescue Grand Paul and give him weed. Okay, I'm going to ask you

if you have a little bit of food on this side. Lay that down. You can't tie them down, though. You can't just cut them down. Can we talk about probable cause right here? Yeah, he's talking exactly weird. Oh, my God. No question exactly weird.

That's two or three days, though. That's bad, huh? Literally. So, as you can see, Ernie has the affect of a cheerful surfer playing scatagories in his head. At least in this moment, later he will be found not guilty

by reason of insanity for threatening to kill President Trump. And we'll be right back. So back to 2017, Judge Mullen talks to the deputy in a security guard about Ernie's medications and how his father was a part of the Mondale administration. The deputy then informs her

that he has double checked and there is, in fact, no trespass notice for Ernie at this property. Judge Mullen then takes charge. She tells the deputy what to do, then orders Reagan to come to her. Okay, she might come in with me to the door and let's knock him.

Let me talk to her. Let me figure out. I'm sure I'd like to sign some cards if we can talk. You can take him in. That's not the right thing, and you never heard that come from my mouth, right? Now this is where the second deputy's recording picks up.

We have two recordings that overlap. Judge Mullen said something in this last clip that might have been difficult to understand, but here it is on the deputy's mic. First, she says, let's see if we can figure out some charges we can press and you can take him in.

The deputy grumbles at that. It sounds like she says, seriously, I really honestly think that's the only option. I know that's not the right thing, and you never heard that come from my mouth. Again, there are no consequences in the 14th Circuit, so why worry about whether the deputies are recording this?

Why worry that the two men making a fraction of what she makes a year and who will rely on her good grace in the courtroom might have a problem with the things she's saying? Why worry that she's putting law enforcement officers and the sheriff's office as a whole in a very difficult position?

There is no reason to worry because the Commission on Judicial Conduct has never given her or any other judge in this state a reason to worry. Okay, now, Detective Mullen questions Reagan Rineau to determine where an arrestable offense might exist. Sorry, did I say detective? Silly me, I meant judge.

One thing to note here is that Reagan had reported Ernie to the sheriff's office just over a week earlier for allegedly using her credit cards. The investigation was still open and no charges had been filed. That the investigation is incomplete and probable cause doesn't yet exist

does not seem to matter to Judge Mullen. Okay, yes you know, right. So, okay, so he has your credit cards, he has all your numbers, and he's used them. And he has used them. So, there's no reason we can't file a breach of trust. I don't mind. I don't mind it, and I sent it to Chen.

A purple Chen. And so, everyone's kind of just seeing which way would go faster kind of thing and then it's through the no address thing kind of thing. I know that. I get that. So, my question is, why can't we just draw

something up right now outside of Warren and let's take them for breach of trust? Imagine what that looked like. A deputy is trying to assess the situation. He's literally right there next to Judge Mullen. But Judge Mullen is doing the questioning. Now, this next part is wild and actually not funny at all.

But apparently, Judge Mullen thinks it's funny. Throughout the recordings, Judge Mullen mentions her apparent friend, a man named Moose. Robert Moose Rene is a well known relitter on Hilton Head Island and a professional poker player. He's also a former nightclub owner

and back in the day, had a history of run-ins with law enforcement. In June 2000, he was charged with intimidating court officials or jurors. That charge was dropped. In July 2000, he was charged with assault. He was found guilty of that charge.

In a year before all of this, in 1999, he was charged with first degree criminal sexual conduct. Criminal sexual conduct with a minor and kidnapping. That case went to trial and he was found not guilty.

I say all of this because this appears to be a person who was close with a judge on Hilton Head, Judge Mullen. So in 2017, Moose is one of the people on Hilton Head who cared about Ernie and was taking care of him. Moose was also Reagan's boss.

Now here is Judge Mullen. You'll hear Reagan chime in and say he did it twice. And you'll hear the deputy remark that Moose was his realtor because the world is that tiny here. Can I say what Moose did last week to get rid of him?

And you're gonna just die laughing. And I know you all know Moose, right? Everybody knows Moose. Literally, he took him to the kangaroo and beaver. There's a trust house notice on him. And then called the deputies to come pick him up. So they take him overnight. That's what he did. And the third time he took him and said

to pull it, you know, some of the officers said officer, he's got drugs on him. The officer came and said, I'm sorry, it's not my jurisdiction. And wait, you can't... I'm about to cry. I know, I know. I have no idea.

The smell, I can't turn it all over. I have four of the doors. So my question is, can we not deserve this? He opened all the doors, everything light up and turns up. He puts it down, he puts it up. He uses it for something that we think he's trying to...

So it's very understandable that this is a stressful situation for Reagan. She is at the end of her rope with Ernie. She says he is affecting her life, her family's life, and her work life. But even so, there is a process

for legally evicting someone. And earlier that day, she visited Magistrate to find out how to do it. There is also a process for getting a restraining order and a no trespass notice. As Judge Mullen's own husband told her,

Ernie lives there and has legal rights to be there. So even though the urge to help Reagan is strong, it does not justify Judge Mullen's actions. And can we just reflect for a second on the part where a sitting judge

thinks people will die laughing when they hear that a friend of hers drives Ernie to this gas station to get arrested. For me, it's the way Judge Mullen's voice gets huskier and sort of confidential there, you know? Like she's a high school girl trying to impress her guy friends

by saying, low-key, I can drive a stick shift. I mean, can you guys believe this? I sign warrants all the time? Uh, yeah, okay, you're a judge. That doesn't mean you should be doing this here, though. So Reagan calls Moose. Miss.

Yes. I'm here on speaker. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. I'm standing here as well. And the deputy walks away to talk to a colleague.

Also, if it's not clear by now to you, NCAR microphones are wirelessly tethered to the deputy's vehicles. Depending on how far away they are from the vehicle, the sound can go in and out, fade out altogether, or get stronger.

Listen closely to the universal sounds of occupational frustration from the deputy. This is good to the point where we've supervised you and we got here. Yeah, I got this offer. Because the ones

who just want to link stuff up to get them arrested and... She wants to do the breach of trust and I said, well, we've got to go to Judge Calfee. We'll have to find out more.

She goes, I saw him want to pull up on him. Right up to one. The deputy calls his shift supervisor. Hey, this is starting to get to a supervisor status because the judge is trying to find

ways to arrest him. And I'm telling her, well, I guess there was a past experience with her credit cards and I guess Chin has all this information and she goes, okay, great.

Let's do a breach of trust arrest him for breach of trust. I'm like, I can't do that right now. Judge Calfee would have to find out a warrant. And she goes, well, I signed warrant all the time. Right up a warrant right now. Let's do breach of trust.

All right, cool. All right, see ya. First I give him a case number that we were out here. Right, like a paragraph. What happened? And leave. The deputy then gives an account

of what he encountered when he got to the scene. 1096 means mental subject. Note how he characterizes Judge Mullen's part in this. When I rolled up, he just being loud. He's being 1096

talking to himself, talking to other people on their property in their driveway. All right, see ya. Judge Mullen's not the victim, no. The lady that lives here that once

Ernie the attorney gone. No profanity, no threat. Judge Mullen is not the victim here. Though I have to say, I'm honestly surprised she didn't consider Ernie coming at her so that deputies could charge him with threatening a public official.

Oh yes, even deputies call him Ernie the attorney. Correct, she's yeah, she's friend with Judge Mullen. I don't I always pull it up in film and something

Chen's working on. He's Aaron X says the last thing was Chen needs to interview Ernie. When was that report taken? November 28th. Yeah, the judge is fine.

She just she said she wants to we need to find a way to arrest and get him out of here. And now she's walking over to him. And now she's walking over here.

If ever there was a narration of Carmen Tevis Mullen's life that line right there is it. Because listen as she abruptly disrupts the deputies call by suggesting they charge Ernie the attorney for her quarterly conduct.

Yeah What if our team is quarterly conduct he told me some of the time he's being LSD I don't know if he interfered but he answered very probably is I think he's talking disorderly. It's hard to make this out

but earlier you might have noticed that Ernie mentioned LSD and his ramblings. It sounds like Judge Mullen is running with that and suggesting that she doesn't know if Ernie is or isn't on LSD but he quote probably is. So you know let's just arrest him.

Is that his house? Or his property? But he's a he's threatening her he's threatening her. How? He's screaming at her from the back of the house. He's threatening

clearly. I mean he could right now get him for harassment. I think he's got statues but I would think I mean he's just screaming or he's screaming going on and on he's screaming at her through the window

standing on the back window saying he's going to commit a he's going to kill her. Okay hold on a minute Judge Mullen has now altered the narrative to include a death threat which is a very serious thing she went from Ernie

can threaten to blow me up and it doesn't mean anything I trust him with my kids he's a gentle man. To this it is profoundly disturbing to hear a judge think nothing of using her authority to trample on someone's rights. But it seems like

security also wasn't told about these quote death threats because I think they would have mentioned them right? Now it's time for the part of the recording that is just an ugly and vile look for Judge Carmen Mullen To repeat a sitting judge

in South Carolina is telling a sworn law enforcement officer that if he doesn't find a reason to arrest Ernie her friend named Moose is going to take him to the No Trust Pass gas station well they will just call deputies

and Ernie will get arrested and this deputy very calmly and discreetly tells this sitting judge the action she is describing to him is entrapment it is illegal and this sitting judge responds by saying yeah I'm not worried about

that. The deputy gets on the phone with his supervisor again tells them that there isn't enough probable cause to file a breach of trust charge these deputies are clearly ready for an exit plan Alright

Judge isn't going to be happy but I'll tell her Alright so Tina is going to follow up on the breach of trust tomorrow and we're just clearing up Alright Right now she's going around the neighbors houses

and trying to get the neighbors to tell them tell us that Ernie was trespassing on their property and we're going to arrest them for that Yep and then she said that okay well I know he's got a

trespassing view for I'll find someone to pick him up and take him over there and arrest him there I'm like it's entrapment and she said I don't care Yep Yeah we're recording The deputy then goes

and tells her the plan Alright For my supervisor he said investigators are going to look into the breach of trust tomorrow and see what he can do with that tomorrow to see if they can take action

as of right now nothing's going to happen and where we are going to be Okay Oh boy Good just to take care of Yeah let's keep this So that's the game plan right now Got it

Alright thank you ma'am And we'll be right back Okay now it's time to hear Judge Mullen's account of what we just heard Here is our friend Maggie Washoe the editor of CH2 magazine here on Hilton Head

Mullen's statement for us You might remember Maggie from episode 62 as the voice of Susie Lafitte Here's Maggie Dear all I am responding to your requests because this is not a case before me nor one on appeal to a higher court

By way of background Ernie Letito is a former Hilton Head attorney who worked for my husband for less than a year in 1991 Ernie was placed on disability and active status by the South Carolina Court in 1995 due to mental illness

My husband, Attorney George Mullen has known Ernie for over 30 years and he often receives calls from Ernie when he is both mentally intact and delusional I had heard about Ernie over the years from George and other local attorneys but did not meet him until he appeared

in my courtroom sometime in 2016 on charges of making a threat on a public official and threatening to use a destructive device in public defender's office and I informed the assistant solicitor I knew of Ernie Letito but had never met him

In reference to the above my daughter and I were driving home on 12717 and we saw BCSO police cars and Port Royal security at a home that we knew Ernie Letito had been staying and Ernie was standing in the driveway surrounded by officers

I dropped my daughter at home and my husband and I drove back to the house and the surrounding officers knew Ernie was mentally ill so they would not hurt him when out of the car it was clear Ernie was having a psychotic episode as he was acting delusional talking incoherently and becoming

increasingly agitated Port Royal security relayed calls were made that Ernie was pounding on neighbors doors scaring people and while we were standing there we heard him screaming obscenities at the woman who allowed him to stay at her house for rent as requested by her boss Robert Rene

who often helped Ernie Ernie refused to leave and kept asking us to come see the fort he built behind the house it was clear Ernie needed to be taken to the hospital for psychiatric treatment as he was delusional and distraught Ernie was talking about people he knew

including George Mullin and his wife Carmen and my husband addressed him saying it is George Mullin and Ernie continued his rant not recognizing him and continued to talk about his fort behind the house he paced frantically we were asking the deputies to take him to a hospital

because he clearly needed psychiatric treatment when the deputies indicated they could do nothing my husband talked with Robert Rene who came to Port Royal and took Ernie to stay at a local hotel two days later Ernie was taken to a mental health facility and Myrtle Beach

a few months later Ernie was incarcerated by the federal government for threatening the life of President Trump in that case he was found not guilty for a reason of insanity and was committed to a psychiatric facility later my husband testified on Ernie's behalf before

federal judge Margaret Seymour at his petition for release hearing from psychiatric commitment telling her Ernie was not a danger to anyone other than himself Ernie called my husband a few months ago saying he was living in Charleston at a halfway house had a job and was doing well

the allegation that I was somehow abusing my power as a judge I have Ernie arrested for no reason is ridiculous our fear was that he would be wandering around in a delusional state in danger of harming himself we were simply trying to help him the sheriff's report

does not accurately relay the conversations that occurred that night over an approximately 30 minute exchange in which my husband and I were deeply concerned about Ernie's behavior and his well-being if you have further questions please feel free to email me Carmen Mullen 14th judicial circuit

concerned about Ernie getting hurt and Mullen barely mentioned it again the point is that it is illegal to arrest someone without probable cause a judge of all people should know that that is the point that we can't get distracted

from something tells us that when judge Mullen was done writing that she was like well that takes care of that Carmen the world will now understand that you didn't do a single thing wrong here you pulled it off again and then she probably played a queen song

and kissed her gavel because again there is no fear of consequence in this neck of the woods and no thought that anyone out there will dig deeper and reveal the truth anyway as you guys know judge Mullen is the same judge who recused herself from

the 2019 boat crash case because of her friendship with elik murdoch and her relationship with PMP ed but then weeks later didn't recuse herself when she signed off on a secret and highly suspicious multi-million dollar settlement for the satterfield

family that elik ended up stealing in its entirety even though there is no hard evidence that judge Mullen knew what elik was up to she doesn't seem to have asked any standard questions about this highly unusual settlement and those questions

might have prevented the theft or at least made it more difficult for elik oh and get this at the very same time she was signing off on that secret settlement and allegedly allowing elik to skirt the normal process so he could hide assets from

the beach family almost every story about the boat crash case featured a line about how Mullen had recused herself from the beach case meaning the public was thinking she was this noble jurist who was doing the right thing at the very same time

that she appears to have been doing the wrong thing imagine that obviously there are differing opinions out there about whether she should have recused herself from the satterfield matter but our opinion is come on girl really we should also mention

that judge Mullen played a role in approving the multi-million dollar settlement for arthur badger which elik allegedly stole again had she asked some questions she might have prevented that theft

or at least made it harder elik was only able to do the things that he did because he could safely rely on calling the shots even with the judges and by the way judge mullen

isn't the only judge in all of this that we're concerned about now none of what happened in december 2017 should have been a surprise to anyone in south carolina because here are some quick bullet

points on judge mullen's history in 2004 she married george mullen who is a very wealthy attorney for construction companies and developers who was practicing on hilton head but built strong political ties to greenville it is these

connections that many say were responsible for mullen's election as a judge and again remember in south carolina the voters do not decide on judges the lawmakers do so the next year carmen mullen who is

37 at the time was on the short list to become a judge oh and did we mention that mullen was a classmate of elik marnock and kory flimming and chris wilson at the university of south carolina school of law class of

was a doozy something else happened around this same time ranoff murdoch announced his retirement putting an end to the 86 years of murdoch's at the official helm of low country justice the timing

of all of this makes us ask a lot of questions what was going on in the 14th circuit mullen's rise to becoming a judge was very very controversial the local selection committee didn't recommend her because they had doubts

about whether she lived in and practiced law in the 14th circuit why? because of all appearances she lived and practiced law in charleston now the buffer county bar association also did not support her nomination out of 90

votes she only received 15 and our legislative delegation also was like no we have questions about her she lost the first legislative vote and then in the second vote because remember our legislators pick our judges

carmen mullen won the election her election resulted in chaos legislators were like we need to talk about judicial reform the process is nothing short of cronyism it's all political friends are helping friends and this shows

that we need to change it if we want to maintain the public's trust in the judge and also because this is the exact kind of thing that holds back black attorneys from ascending to judgeships shortly after she was elected a hilton head lawyer and a public advocacy group filed

a lawsuit against the selection committee saying that they didn't do a deep enough investigation into her residency they took her at her word when she handed them records that allegedly proved she lived on hilton head but get this according to news reports and the lawsuit

several legal directories and even the phone book placed carmen mullen firmly in charleston she didn't hold the business license on hilton head where she had told legislators her office was by her office it turns out she met her new husband's office when questioned about this she told legislators

that she maintained a charleston office because she had a quote good bookkeeper there according to the lawsuit her name wasn't on the shingle nor was it anywhere associated with george's law practice her case load was largely reflective of her practice being in charleston

the day before the deadline to file for judicial consideration carmen changed her voter registration to be for county just one month before filing for judicial consideration she renewed the registration for her car listing her address as being in charleston charleston by the way

is two hours north of hilton head that's not really commuter length at the time an editor and reporter at the island packet drove up there to catch carmen living in charleston when she found out the paper was going to expose her according to sources also

i worked there at the time and remember hearing about this happening carmen drove to the packet's office and invited herself into an editor's office where she berated him here's a line from the packet around that time that you'll find interesting in a meeting wednesday with an island packet

reporter and editor mullen was asked to comment for this story she indicated she might talk off the record but the packet wanted an on the record interview during which mullen would be shown the documents and asked to comment on them she insisted that she should be allowed

to look at the documents first then decide whether to comment on them mullen left the meeting without seeing the documents on march 6 2006 the island packet ran a front page story with a headline let the record show documents

testimony don't mesh in mullen controversy the story goes on to point out several inconsistencies between what carmen mullen told legislators and the facts so for years packet reporters paid for this in her courtroom

generally speaking judges here aren't great about understanding that courts are open to the public we've heard of instances where she bullied reporters accusing one of secretly recording proceedings because she found his quotes to be

too accurate in a public courtroom she also seemed to have a penchant for secrecy allowing certain lawyers broadly way in getting gag orders or having documents sealed according to her sources a few years ago when Liz and I were at the packet

a source called us to say that judge mullen had secretly moved a fatal DUI case from buford county to the packet covered court proceedings to hampton county where the packet did not cover court proceedings the defendant who had a

history of reckless driving was a teen from a wealthy and connected family on the island safely ensconced in hampton county judge mullen sentenced that guy to college so back to the controversial election judge mullen

a lawsuit was filed and quickly dismissed the judge who dismissed it however noted that it was a matter for the supreme court so that's where it went to die quietly the court ruling was basically that this was all a moot point now she was elected and according to current records anyway

most certainly lived on hilton head so justices moved on generally judge mullen is well recorded in the courtroom i sat in her jury poll once and found her to be organized and compassionate but it's not enough to overcome the other parts of what we now know

here's a quote from the joint letter that first circuit solicitor david pascoe an attorney eric bland sent to the supreme court earlier this year asking the court to take action on judge mullen and to even revisit her sentencing controversy of 2018 with probe gate

which we'll tell you about at another time because my god the corruption in this state this quote sums it all very nicely we think judge mullen's pattern of alleged conduct threatens to erode public trust in our judiciary impropriety and dishonesty

by members of our state's judiciary cause real harm to all South Carolinians when wealthy and politically connected individuals are treated as a privilege class by members of the judiciary it erodes public trust in government

and the fair administration of law it is not clear why judge mullen has been able to escape accountability and all of this it is also not clear if there is someone or something that benefits

from having her on the bench what is clear is that we have ourselves a big problem here what we need first of all is transparency from our supreme court from the commission on judicial conduct

and office of disciplinary counsel and we get it we know that the process in South Carolina is secretive to the point where the public doesn't know that they are investigating an attorney until they suspend or disbar them but come on

how much more debauchery and misconduct do we need to uncover amongst judges and lawyers in South Carolina to prove that the secretive system does not work elic murdoch did not become elic murdoch

in a vacuum he grew into who he is because he knew in his father and his grandfather knew there wasn't a system to hold him accountable in the land of no consequences which is South Carolina the system

we have of lawyers and judges policing themselves must change and our leaders must start recognizing this if we can expose a judge in South Carolina who was caught trying to convince

law enforcement to arrest a man for a crime that he did not commit then the odc in the South Carolina supreme court are solidifying their stance on corruption and they are telling the world that they do not care

what those in power do to the vulnerable here in South Carolina what we need to do is to make noise until something is done we need attorneys public officials legislators anyone with power in the

court system to speak out and speak up there is power in numbers and we will not be stopping we need people in power to put pressure on the odc the CJC and the supreme court to one

suspend judge mullen until these allegations are fully investigated to change the system for policing judges and lawyers in South Carolina to allow for more public transparency and three take a stance in any

way shape or form to show that the buck stops here South Carolina's justice system should no longer tolerate these patterns of such egregious misconduct and you can hear it in my voice I am mad

you should be mad too in those who don't have power have a voice we need to remember that too if you pay taxes in South Carolina then judge mullen works for you make noise contact

your elected officials to demand change in our justice system we also need the press covering the Murdoch case to turn up the heat imagine if just as many reporters covered the mullen incident as they did Dick and Jim's courtroom

shenanigans it would be impossible for the South Carolina supreme court to ignore it and it would probably force them to change due to public embarrassment if we've learned anything in all of this many people in power don't do the right thing until

they know that someone is looking that said we will be more than happy to provide these tapes to any reporter who wants to cover this case because it's that important just reach out to us at info at murdochmurderspodcast.com the time

for change is now we have been uncovering judge mullen's alleged misconduct for more than a year now and she is still ruling from the bench and deciding who gets to keep their freedom and who gets their freedom taken away

this cannot and will not be swept under the rug and we will continue to push until we get answers stay tuned for a special cup of justice bonus episode this friday the

murdoch murders podcast is created and hosted by me mandy matney produced by my husband david moses and liz ferrell is our executive editor produced by luna shark productions