Murdaugh Murders Podcast - MMP Remastered #58 - ‘If You Come For The King, You Best Not Miss’ - Chaos In The Murder Case

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Starting point is 00:01:00 If you come for the king, you better not miss. Chaos in the murder case. This episode was originally released in August of 22 after Alec was charged, and listening back to this episode, knowing everything we know that's happened since, is absolutely wild. When we first released this episode, Mandy was in the thick of Dick Arputlian's media circus. Alec had just been charged with murdering Maggie and Paul, and Dick was doing what Dick does best, creating chaos, manipulating headlines, and putting on a show for the cameras. At the time, we were still months away from the actual trial, and Dick was already laying the groundwork for

Starting point is 00:01:43 his defense strategy, blame the prosecutors, attack the media, and control the narrative at all costs. Something he was used to doing quite easily when I guess the internet hadn't been invented or fully adopted yet. Fast forward to November 2025, and Alec Murdoch has been convicted on all counts. Two life sentences without the possibility of parole, though he's still appealing that. The jury saw through every bit of Dick's theatrics in just a few hours of deliberating two.

Starting point is 00:02:18 And looking back at this episode, you can see exactly how Dick's strategy was designed, not necessarily to win in court, but to win in the court of public opinion. to create enough chaos and confusion that maybe, just maybe, he could slip through or win over just one juror. This episode captures one of Dick's most ridiculous press conferences, where he compared himself to John Adams and Abraham Lincoln, blamed the media for everything and demanded

Starting point is 00:02:52 a trial in January. An absolute absurd timeline. He complained about not having discovery. while simultaneously demanding a speedy trial. He accused the AG's office of leaking information while he himself was holding a press conference. And rumors circulated of quite a bit more. The hypocrisy was stunning,

Starting point is 00:03:14 but the media largely aided up, enjoying this spoon-fed tripe. And this episode also has some pretty great readings by yours truly as I started getting the hang of dramatic interpretations. What really gets me, though, is how Dick weaponized every filing, every motion, every procedural step as an opportunity for a press conference. And this wasn't even the worst behavior.

Starting point is 00:03:42 Throughout the case, he would go on to make wildly inappropriate comments, attack anyone he thought would help his case, and continue to spin narratives that the media would dutifully report as fact. But here's what's most important about this episode. It marked a pretty great point for us at Luna Shark. This is when we announced our collaboration with True Crime YouTuber Eric Allen, a partnership that would eventually grow into something incredible. Eric has now worked with us for years covering this case,

Starting point is 00:04:17 and in 2025, we knew that he was the only person with the skill, talent, and genuine compassion for sharing our, vision of elevating victims voices to create the official podcast to Hulu's original series Murdoch Death and the Family. You can watch that podcast on Hulu and Hulu on Disney Plus. That series and the companion podcast brought this story and the voices of all these victims to millions of people worldwide, more than the millions we had already and continue to reach with our current shows. And much of that success is owed to collaboration, like the one we announced in this episode.

Starting point is 00:04:59 So as you listen to Dick's antics, remember that truth won. Justice prevailed for the moment, and sunlight really is the best disinfectant. I don't know why the state attorney general's office is making it so easy for Dick and Jim to control the narrative in Ellick Murdoch's murder case. But since they've left themselves,

Starting point is 00:05:26 wide open once again, we're going to have to set the story straight. My name is Mandy Matney. I have been investigating the Murdoch family for more than three and a half years. This is the Murdoch Martyrs podcast with Liz Barrel and David Moses. To start off this episode, I want to say thank you to every single person who reached out after last week's episode and showed your support. I debated for a long time about whether or not to share the Wall Street Journal story, but it came down to principle and our mission here at the Murdoch Murders podcast. I cannot expect victims to be brave and share their stories and hold others to account if I'm not brave enough to do that myself. A lot of you reach out about how the episode encouraged you to stand up for yourselves, and I'm so glad you heard my message.

Starting point is 00:06:31 The sunlight feels really good, and it means the world to me to hear your stories about how the podcast is inspiring you to be brave in all aspects of life. And I have to say, the reaction to last week's episode reminded me of how kind and empathetic our audience is at the Murdoch Murders podcast. It is empowering to me to know that there is such a special group of humans supporting us in this journey. So thank you. Also, an exciting announcement.

Starting point is 00:07:02 We are excited to partner with True Crime YouTuber Eric Allen as we add more audio and video to our reporting, like the audio from Harputlian's press conference, which Eric Allen captured. I highly recommend checking out his YouTube channel where you can learn more about the Murdoch Murder Saga, the Calvert Mystery, and more. He just surpassed 100,000 YouTube subscribers, so big congratulations are in order for Eric Allen. Check for his YouTube link in the description. I have also talked about how much work it is for journalists

Starting point is 00:07:36 to not only be newsgatherers, but also storytellers, investigators, and analyzers. It is so comforting to know that all of us at MMP are working together to expose the truth wherever it leads and give voice to victims. As we move forward, the Luna Shark team is going to be celebrating so many new fun projects, including enhancements to our website and YouTube channel,

Starting point is 00:08:02 so don't forget to subscribe. I'm so excited. We have a couple new shows in the works, and we have huge news to share soon on how you can share in our mission. So stay tuned because we are just getting started. And the last week was yet another roller coaster of insanity in the Murdoch murder saga. Among the highlights, Murdoch's defense team has amped up their strategy to fool the public

Starting point is 00:08:30 and create chaos in the double homicide case. As usual, mainstream media is happily helping them do that. Russell Lafitte was hit with another federal charge, bringing his total to 27. And Elyke Murdoch was hit with yet another individual. indictment for his alleged financial crimes, bringing his total charges to 90. Finally, there are two new defendants linked to this case who were indicted by the state grand jury on Friday. So yes, there's a lot to unpack in this episode. Let's get into it. Defense attorneys love chaos. It's clear from Dick's antics in the last week that his strategy going forward is

Starting point is 00:09:12 just that. Create chaos to distract the public from the facts of the case. Dick's primary complaint is this. He wants to try the case in January. An absolutely absurd timeline for a murder trial. Let alone a double homicide trial making headlines around the world that could very well be a death penalty case with the entire justice system hanging on the line. And Dick says the AG's office, is purposely making it difficult for him to work on Eleg's defense. Dick is using his absurd timeline as an excuse to create drama, and you guessed it, chaos, to distract the media from what's actually happening here. And once again, the state is not only letting him do this,

Starting point is 00:10:04 they're creating opportunities for it to happen. There's an old saying, if one aims for the king, one must not miss, which absolutely applies here. We do not want to see Ehrlich Murdoch getting special treatment in this case, but we also want to see our justice system working as it should. We want to see Ehrlich Murdoch and every defendant in the state of South Carolina get a fair trial. We want everyone to drink from the same cup of justice.

Starting point is 00:10:38 We were told for a year that the attorney, The Attorney General's office took so long to charge Elyke Murdoch with murder because they were dotting all their eyes and crossing all of their teas. Public trust in the justice system is on the line here. The AG's office is coming for the most monstrous of kings, the good old boys who have run this state like their own personal kingdom. So there is no room for air here. We have taken a closer look at multiple filings that have been made.

Starting point is 00:11:11 made over the past week and we dove in deep on Dick Harputlian's press conference. We have learned a lot, even in the last week, about the state of our justice system, how murder trials work, and how the media plays a significant role in all of this. One of our main missions of this podcast is to get the story straight, which is what we are focusing on today. We're about to descend down a really steep staircase into Dick's dazzling den of disruption. So we're going to give you a railing to hold on to and a map in case you get lost. As Mandy said, over the past week or so, there have been several filings in Ellick Murdoch's murder case. The first is a motion from Dick and Jim.

Starting point is 00:11:54 The second and third are a response and a motion from Prosecutor Creighton Waters. And the fourth is a response from Dick and Jim to Creighton's motion. Each of these filings is related to the discovery phase in the case, meaning this is about the evidence and the sharing of other documents and tangible objects related to the case. Dick, Jim, and Creighton had all agreed on a gag order last month, but Judge Clifton Newman ruled against it. Now let's all take a moment here and appreciate that decision because had Judge Newman agreed to the gag order, these filings might have been sealed and we would not be able to discuss a dog named Bubba, which we will explain later. Don't worry. Overall, these

Starting point is 00:12:41 filings are filled with outrage from both sides. They are accompanied by receipts in the form of email exchanges. But mainly, they have given us more insight into Dick and Jim's apparent strategy, the state's apparent fears, the investigation itself, and the high level of antics happening. So let's talk about the first motion. Immediately after the murder charges were filed in July, Dick and Jim made their Rule 5 discovery demand of the state. We've talked about this before, but Dick Harputlian is really good at filing discovery motions. He's super thorough, not only in what he's asking for, but the way he wants it presented to him. If there is a text message, a post-it note, or a child's drawing related to Elic Murdoch's murder case,

Starting point is 00:13:32 Dick has asked for it. He also gets meta about it. He not only wants the documents related to the case, but documents related to the document. in the case. I'm not kidding. At Elex Bond hearing in July, Dick reminded the state that they had 30 days to produce Rule 5 discovery in the case. This reminder was basically Dick's way of warning everyone. In exactly 30 days, I will be reminding the court about how I publicly reminded you of your deadline, which you will no doubt miss. Naturally, this is what he did, because naturally, the state has not fully complied with the request. And therein lies the entire problem. How do they

Starting point is 00:14:10 not see this coming? How did the AG's office not know that Dick would be waiting by the cuckoo clock? A quick note about this. When Dick and Jim originally requested a speedy trial for Ehrlich, we were able to understand that maybe the state strategy all along had accounted for this move, meaning that Crayton Waters knew that this would be a possibility, and that's why it took more than a year to present evidence to the grand jury. That was a very forgiving assessment on our part, because if that were the case, then I would think that the state would be lickety split with handing over Rule 5 discovery, knowing that the Bulldogs would be waiting for them at the gate. Now, in accordance with the Brady Doctrine, defendants have a constitutional

Starting point is 00:14:53 right to receive every shred of evidence that points to other suspects, basically anything that might exonerate them. Rule 5 discovery is a bit different, though. The state rules says that defendants in criminal cases have the right to inspect or copy evidence. and other records related to their case. The prosecution is not required to hand over internal documents or witness statements, and the rule says that if either party, the state, or the defense, wants to prevent the other side from seeing certain information that is subject to disclosure before the trial, they can file a motion and ask the court for a ruling to keep it sealed.

Starting point is 00:15:30 Prosecutors must respond to a request for Rule 5 discovery within 30 days of the request. The rule does not specify what Respond means, nor does it say what 30 days is, is that 30 business days or 30 calendar days. That definition of what a day is is something we come up against a lot in filing Freedom of Information Act requests. According to Dick & Gem, it's defined as 30 calendar days, and the deadline for production was August 15th. Nothing in the filings indicates that the state is disputing that timeline. Here's the thing. Prosecutors in South Carolina are notoriously slack on complying with Rule 5. Over the years, we have heard many complaints about prosecutors ignoring requests for information from public defenders right up until the last moment, literally the week

Starting point is 00:16:22 of trial. As we speak, there are defendants in the 14th Circuit, the circuit where Ehrlich Murdoch's murder case is being tried, who have been waiting years for their discovery. This is horrible and incredibly unfair given the number of defendants who use public defenders. How can their lawyer prepare an effective defense without all of the relevant information? At any rate, this in part is why Dick standing over the Attorney General's office tapping his Rolex is a true display of audacity. This is pretty much how the system works for everyone else. He's absolutely right. to be outraged, but also wrong to be outraged.

Starting point is 00:17:05 Now, this current battle started Friday, August 12th. Turns out the state was putting together a very restrictive protective order for Judge Newman to sign that would have required Elyke Murdoch to be supervised whenever he looked at the discovery in his case. It would have prevented Eleg from keeping any of the evidence at the jail. It also would have required Dick and Jim to get the court's permission every time they wanted to share the discovery with another party, such as an expert witness or another attorney, We'll talk more about the potential reasons for this because it seems like overkill and it is highly unusual.

Starting point is 00:17:37 Creighton says this protective order is necessary because of the intense pretrial media coverage in the case, but also because he wants to be consistent. There are two pots of evidence in this case. One comes from the state grand jury's investigation and the other comes from law enforcement, which includes the prosecution. These restrictions, Creighton seeks, are basically the same as the automatic restrictions placed on the release of some of the state grand jury evidence. Dick and Jim say this is absurd and unprecedented. According to them,

Starting point is 00:18:11 no other murder case in South Carolina has ever had such restrictions on defendants' access to evidence. They are also blaming the South Carolina Attorney General's office for media leaks about the evidence and about the grand jury meeting the week ELEC was indicted for the double homicide charges. They are not just blaming the Attorney General. They are stating as a fact that the leaks have been coming from the AG's office,

Starting point is 00:18:41 and they're using that alleged hypocrisy to drive their argument. But here's the thing. Before 5.15 p.m. Friday, August 12th, it seems like all parties were in agreement that a protective order was necessary. After 5.15 p.m., Dick and Jim had changed their minds entire. This is when things got crazy. And we'll be right back. When holiday prep means cleaning every corner, reach for Pine Soul original Pine.

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Starting point is 00:19:41 So you're lying on the floor? Save up the 50% November 13th to 20th. Conditions apply, details online. On Monday, August 15th, the day the evidence was allegedly due to be turned over, Crichton emailed Judge Newman a copy of the proposed protective order and basically tattled on Dick and Jam for changing their minds. He was like, we're ready? to hit send on the evidence, but we need you to figure out some things for us first. We need to get the search warrants unsealed, and also we think there should be a protective order on the evidence, etc. Then Dick emailed Judge Newman to be like, hmm, Creighton emailed you, huh? Seems like a big old violation of your no-gag-order order. Also, note a Creighton's special idea about restrictions on the evidence,

Starting point is 00:20:25 and P.S., this is all a ploy from the state. This dispute obviously meant that Creighton hadn't made the deadline, Dick and Jim say this was intentional on Creighton's part, that he raised this issue in the 11th hour to delay matters. Creighton disputes this and says that the state was showing its full intention to hand over the discovery after they buttoned things up on the who, where, and how of it all. Anyway, the next day, on Tuesday, August 16th, Dick and Jim filed a motion to compel the state to give up the goods. But they apparently didn't email the motion to Creighton and company. Instead, they stuck it in the mail, like with a stamp on it. Creighton repeatedly refers to this in the motion as, quote, snail mail, and it's hard not to cringe at that. After filing their motion Tuesday afternoon, Dick and Jim called for a press conference for Wednesday.

Starting point is 00:21:11 This press conference was pretty epic and not unlike something you'd see on the show South Park. To start with, Dick began insulting Jim Griffin's very controversial stance on fatherhood, which is, I like to be there for my kids. Jim apparently couldn't attend the press conference because he was moving one of his kids into their college dorms. Back in Dick's day, this was done differently. It didn't occur when I went to college. My parents put me on the bus and told me to go to school. But apparently parents now actually transport their children and move them into a room and tuck them in.

Starting point is 00:21:44 And so last century, it's really hard for me to understand that. Never fear. Dick did just fine on his own without Jim standing in the background. Performing for the media is one of Dick's specialties. He's really good at understanding the media. media and manipulating them. He knows that every catchphrase he uses will end up in the story, and he knows that many reporters will take everything he says as fact, despite his recent track record.

Starting point is 00:22:15 And he knows that no matter how many times he's misled reporters, they'll always come back with their hands out for more, and he knows how to write their headlines for them. Yesterday, Jim Griffin and I filed a motion for Judge Clifton Newman to hold a hearing to order the state prosecutor in Alex's murder case to comply with the law requiring them to give us the evidence in this case. Both the constitutions of the United of the state of South Carolina and the United States prohibit trial by ambush. The law requires the state to make this evidence available to us within 30 days of our request. A trial by ambush. Okay, This is where Dick's outrage borders on satirical.

Starting point is 00:22:59 So this is the guy who demanded a speedy trial, a speedy murder trial, to be held in less than six months, pushing all the other murder defendants out of the way to get on the docket. So you're ambushing yourself with that one, Dick. But even more curious is this. The day before Dick filed the first motion, he contacted the Supreme Court to get Ellick's murder trial on the docket for January. What I'm saying is this.

Starting point is 00:23:23 When Dick needed to make the point with the court, that the AG's office is making it impossible for them to adequately defend their client. He couldn't really do that when the trial date was sort of open-ended, right? He had to show that there was a definitive time crunch here, but he apparently hadn't asked to get on the dock gate yet, so it wasn't until last Monday, two days before his blustery press conference, that Dick made the effort to commit to the January date. Doing that gave him the fuel he needed for his public outrage.

Starting point is 00:23:51 A date still hasn't been said, but he's now able to say that they've requested it. The 30 days is not a minimum. It's the maximum. You would assume most, if not all, this material was available 32 days ago when we requested it. You would assume the state knew when they presented indictments for murder, we would immediately request the evidence. And you would assume they would have made it available a month ago so we could evaluate the quality and quantity of it and begin to hire experts, interview witnesses, and examine any physical items they will try to introduce it to evidence. So you know how on TV shows, like how to get away with murder and law and order, the crime happens at the beginning of the episode and then within a few minutes they're duking it out in court? That is pure fantasy, obviously. Murder cases can take years to prepare for and not just because defense attorneys generally like to delay proceedings.

Starting point is 00:24:45 Dick and Jim are going to need serious expert testimony to defend ELEC. And those experts are A, very much in demand, and B, very booked up. So again, this claim of wanting to go to trial in six months is a gambit, and like TV, highly unrealistic, given the challenges afoot. This is the process that occurs every day in every county of South Carolina, wherever a criminal case is pending. The state has agreed to try this case in January. Every day that passes makes it more difficult for Alec Murdo and his attorneys to get prepared for trial. This motion, we filed yesterday, outlines our position, fully. We're asking Judge Newman to order these materials turned over to us immediately without

Starting point is 00:25:29 delay. I will comment on procedural aspects of this matter, but not on any substantive evidentiary issue. Again, the whole issue here is about the timeline they wanted. The process of a defense attorney wanting a double homicide trial within six months after charges are filed is not normal at all in South Carolina. We have seen several murder trials in South Carolina that have happened more than five years after charges were filed. Typically, defense attorneys want to delay, delay, delay, which is what Dick Harpoonian's strategy was in the boat crash case. But he appears to be going for the ultimate Hail Mary here. Back at the press conference, after Dick asked for questions, one reporter immediately addressed a big elephant in the room, which is refreshing

Starting point is 00:26:23 to see when it comes to the media in their treatment of Dick in this case. The reporter asked, well, just a couple weeks ago, you wanted a gag order in this case, so why are you suddenly wanting the press's involvement by holding this press conference? We didn't get a gag order. I mean, the judge said, not going to gag you. We're not going to seal anything. Everything's out in the open. Well, if it's out in the open, Those are the rules. We're going to play by the rules. And I might further point this out. As you see in the motion, there's been a exchange of emails rather than motions made. And let me get a little technical. Rule five of the South Carolina Rules of Criminal Procedure, once we make that motion, our guy's indicted, we make a motion. They have 30 days maximum to give us the stuff. On last Friday, almost at 5 o'clock, we get an email from the prosecutor telling us he wants some sort of order that would seal everything, basically, which we believe is inconsistent with Judge Newman's denial of the gag order. We tried to tweak it a little bit and finally just said,

Starting point is 00:27:28 no. Statewide grand jury law requires certain sealing and certain procedural requirements to make that public. This is not, this is, information was gathered by the statewide grand jury, but this is a case pending in state court in Colleton County. Those rules don't apply. There was no reason, as I point out, they couldn't have turned almost all of this over to us 32 days ago. There's still two days late. First of all, notice how quickly he changed this subject when he was called out on flip-flopping his stance with the media in this case. And second, I have to say this again, we spoke to several South Carolina defense attorneys who said it is very rare to obtain the totality of discovery from the prosecution 30 days after a defendant is charged. And again, we have to say this, because it was misreported in the media.

Starting point is 00:28:21 Rule 5 just says that the prosecution needs to respond, and their definition of response is very vague. This was something that the media covering the press conference did not catch on to, but instead just repeated what Dick said as fact. Harpulian continued on his quest to make the prosecution look sketch. Give us the stuff. You went to a grand jury and said, you've got enough evidence to convict Alex Murdahl, convince a jury beyond a reasonable doubt.

Starting point is 00:28:51 Where is it? I don't have a shred of paper. I don't have an email. I don't have an exhibit. I don't have any evidence. We want to try this case in January. They've agreed to try this case in January. We're ready to work.

Starting point is 00:29:07 Ready to hire investigators. Ready to hire experts. Check this one out. In their correspondence with Judge Newman and Crayton Waters, Both Dick and Jim properly refer to our report about physical evidence that places Ellick at the scene when at least one of the murders was committed as, quote, high-velocity impact spatter. They do not mention blood at all. We have never ever said it was blood. This is important and really weird.

Starting point is 00:29:31 It's almost like Dick wants the media to report that it's blood, so that later, after he gets the evidence, perhaps, he can then run to his friends in the media and point to the absence of blood spatter as quote-unquote proof. that the AG's office was leaking information to make his client look bad and as quote-unquote proof that the media was falsely maligning his client. Maybe this is one of the reasons the state is seeking a protective order for the evidence. I mean, if all we know, I mean, somebody wants to know blood spatter. All I know about blood splatter is what I read in some blog. I never seen any blood spatter evidence. I've never seen any phone downloads. I've never seen any witness statements. 32 days after we make the request, we still don't have anything. So they want to obscure this by saying, well, you know, we need to get this sealed or this needs to be protected. We don't

Starting point is 00:30:26 want crime scene photos left out on tables. That is hooey. That is, again, this happens every day in every county, in every murder case. So speaking, Speaking of Huey. We will try this case in January come hell or high water. Ride by here at 11 or 12 o'clock at night, you're going to see the lights on. We're not going to let this slip by because they're dragging their feet. If anyone happens to be driving by 1410 Laurel Street in Columbia late at night, be sure to take a picture for us.

Starting point is 00:31:01 We want to see those lights on, but we already know it won't be Dick burning the midnight oil. You mentioned that you guys are going to be up at midnight reviewing through this. How many lawyers? They're not me, but somebody works for me to be up at night. Well, how many people will be going through this evidence once you do get it? However many we need. I mean, what if it's five pages?

Starting point is 00:31:18 Won't be many. We don't know. A reporter then asked what the advantage would be for the AG's office to be sitting on evidence. This is a question that played right into Dick's hands. To make it more difficult for us to be a book, let's say for the sake of argument, they've done geo-fencing, which is a word. I've learned recently with cell phones. We have to hire a geo-fencing expert.

Starting point is 00:31:45 They're not easy to find. We have to get the information from them, from the state, give it to them, have them analyze it, and that can't happen overnight. So the longer they take to give it to us, the longer it's going to take for us to get prepared. First off, how is Harputlian a defense attorney, one who is known as a bulldog and one of the most expensive defense attorneys in the state of South Carolina? just now learning about geo-fencing. And another thing Dick wanted to hammer home at this press conference

Starting point is 00:32:17 was that the AEG's office is the source of the leaks to the media. He says that SLED told the family this. That's what SLED told the family. The family wanted to know why they were reading about it in the paper before they heard about it. And SLED agents with them said the Attorney General's office had leaked it. Also, and this is another running theme, Dick made sure that Dick made sure to drop a hint that he finds Attorney General Alan Wilson to be incompetent.

Starting point is 00:32:46 Who is responsible for not turning it over to Chief Keel, Alan Wilson, Creighton Waters, who? Well, Creighton Waters is the prosecutor. Ultimately, he's the frontman, I don't know. I mean, it's not Keel's decision. And I don't know, I mean, as far as I know, Alan Wilson's never prosecuted a case, so that is him. Alan Wilson has never prosecuted a case? A murder case? A murder case?

Starting point is 00:33:10 No. And then, Dick made another comment. This case needs to be resolved, not just for Alec Murdaugh, but for the judicial system, for the state of South Carolina. We need to put this behind us and move on. Notice, he never said why we need to put this case behind us and move on. You would think if he truly believed that his client was innocent, he would have used a few breaths to at least mention that. at least mention the fact that Maggie and Paul's killers could still be out there, and that

Starting point is 00:33:42 is what the media should be focusing on. But he didn't. And then true to the good old boy playbook, Harpoolian was sure to tell us that the South Carolina justice system is doing just fine. A reoccurring defense we've seen from those benefiting from an arguably corrupt and unjust system. of criminal cases, prosecuted and defended. I have full faith in our judicial system. I mean, and when I say that, this isn't some sort of patriotic wave the flag. I've seen it work. I've seen it work. And I've seen it work in wonderful ways. We just need to play by the rules. If you follow the rules, look, his job is to see that justice is done, not to convict somebody. Of course, Dick Harputlian thinks the justice system is working just fine.

Starting point is 00:34:41 Because up until now, and in mostly in the darkness, it has been bending to his favor. It is designed for and by the good old boys. And then Dick compared himself to John Adams and Abraham Lincoln. My job is to represent my client. People say to me, how can you represent this guy? John Adams, the second president of the United States, represented the British soldiers who massacred the colonial protesters on the Boston Commons, four were acquitted, two were hung. It is my duty to do that. It's what keeps this country free.

Starting point is 00:35:18 Abraham Lincoln defended 22 murder cases. It's this whole idea that, I don't, does they not teach civics in high school anymore? I just don't get it. Minor point, and forgive me, because I never took a civics class but the word is hanged not hung and the boston massacre happened in front of the old state house not on the common more importantly if i had a dollar for every defense attorney who likened themselves to john adams i would have a lot of benjamin franklins also if you're being paid hundreds of thousands of dollars to represent elic murdock wouldn't the best answer to the question how can you represent this guy be he's innocent and not john adams and abraham lincoln surely defense attorneys who are Trying to underscore the nobility of their profession shouldn't have to go back to the 18th century to find their hero, right?

Starting point is 00:36:10 As I said, I've been doing this a long time. The interest in this case is unprecedented. And it's unprecedented because of y'all. Okay, something Dick should know. The interest in this case is unprecedented because of Elyke Murdoch, a man with generational wealth, power and privilege, who used his position. as an attorney to steal millions of dollars from very vulnerable clients who undeniably needed the money more than he did. Elik Murdoch is a man also accused of murdering his wife and son. He is a man at the center of a criminal ring that appears to involve other lawyers, bankers, and even judges.

Starting point is 00:36:57 He is a man who held a public position of trust as a solicitor, and we're not even sure what he did with it. This case is unprecedented because I don't know of another case where a prosecutor has to choose whether to try dozens of financial charges before or after double homicide charges. By pointing to the press and essentially blaming the media for the madness, I'm wondering if deep down Dick Harputlian means that none of this would have come to light if it wasn't for certain media, which is absolutely true. And Dick wasn't done berating the media. He had to make this comment.

Starting point is 00:37:40 And let me just make a little side comment here about y'all. A.J. Leibling, the famous press credit, once said freedom of the press is guaranteed only to those who own one. And that used to mean that you had to own a press. Now all you have to own is one of these. Okay, Dick, let's talk about A.J. J. Liebling, because journalism and misinformation is also a central theme popping up in the saga. Harputlian is completely missing the point that Liebling was making when he published this essay for the New Yorker in the 1960s.

Starting point is 00:38:16 At the time, he was a press critic, and the essay was about his concerns, with corporations buying up newspapers, laying off journalists, silencing voices, and swaying public opinion. He was arguing freedom of the press should be expanded, not limited to those in power who own these companies and the printing presses, which is so ironic considering that 60 years later, a majority of the reporters at Harputlian's press conference work for corporate-owned media companies. Those reporters are the ones Dick should like. They're the ones who have been the most receptive to printing his narrative. Dick does not like independent journalists like Liz and I because we are out of his control. We don't have editors who feel like they have to do favors to quote Harpo

Starting point is 00:39:09 as I've literally heard an editor at McClatchy call him. Oh, and then Dick had to make one more insulting comment to the media before he wrapped up. And now you're all press. Some of you all are good. Some of y'all are professional. And some of y'all are not. This is Harputlian signaling to the press not to cross him or call him out,

Starting point is 00:39:35 or he will immediately deem them as unprofessional journalist, who will never benefit from his tips or influence. And once again, it worked. I'll have David read a few of the headlines from Harputtlian's press conference. Extra, extra. Elick Murdoch's attorneys accused prosecutors of withholding evidence, calling it trial by ambush. That's from oxygen.

Starting point is 00:39:59 Murdoch attorneys accuse A.G. of leaks, withholding evidence in double murder case. That from the posted courier. Murdoch's lawyers accuse South Carolina Attorney General of withholding murder evidence. Leaks to media. That's from the state newspaper. And you get the point. After Dick's press conference and after reporters wrote the headlines he wanted, the AG's office responded with a statement from Attorney General, Alan Wilson.

Starting point is 00:40:25 Contrary to what Mr. Harputlian said at his news conference, it is categorically false that the Attorney General's office leaked any information in the Murdoch murder case. We've been in communication with SLED, and they deny that they told anyone that our office leaked anything. As we said in our response in opposition to the motion to compel, this is, quote, a not unexpected but completely blatant attempt to create drama where formerly there was none. End quote. Along with that statement, the AG's office included its response to Dick and Jim's motion, and Creighton did not hold back. Here is David again with a few excerpts.

Starting point is 00:41:06 It is clearly aimed at generating content for the press conference defense counsel has called on this matter rather than actually doing anything meaningful to move forward litigation of the case. Interestingly, it does not appear defense counsel emailed copies of the defense motion to compel to the state and the judge as is their normal practice. But instead, just snail-mailed them, perhaps to prevent the state from correcting the mischaracterizations in the record prior to their press conference today. And?

Starting point is 00:41:40 Meanwhile, the defense filed the current motion with all its mischaracterizations and inflammatory language failed to tell the state it was filing the motion, failed to email the motion to the court, or the state as is defense counsel's normal practice, but instead snail-milled it and scheduled a press conference. And? Moreover, this manufactured drama is just a well-known part of the defense counsel's

Starting point is 00:42:08 playbook. Interestingly, during phone calls, one defense counsel jokingly agreed with the state that no matter how much the state provides in discovery, the other defense counsel's MO is to scream to the high heavens that violate are occurring. Creighton included with his response a copy of the proposed protective order. There are lines in the protective order that Dick and Jim described as Glipp, and they're not wrong. We wish to be clear that the Attorney General has every intention that this case be tried in the light of day,

Starting point is 00:42:42 and none of this is meant to preclude appropriate public observation of the process. And none of this is to suggest that any lawyers involved would violate their ethical obligations regarding pre-trial publicity. However, this case has received a lot of pre-trial publicity which continues. And the murder discovery contains very sensitive materials such as crime scene photos and PII. Having this discovery left in Alvin S. Glenn does not seem a good idea. We'll be right back. You think you understand how this business works, but you don't.

Starting point is 00:43:20 Landman, TV's biggest phenomenon. returns to Paramount Plus from Taylor Sheridan co-creator of Yellowstone starring Billy Bob Thornton you have to know the rules of the game and bend them and you really have to know them to break them Demi Moore I want success get it for me Andy Garcia Ali Larder and Sam Elliott you don't even know the game we're playing to you landman new season now streaming only on Paramount Plus you know what's better than the one big thing two big things exactly the new iPhone 17 Pro on Tellis' five-year rate plan price lock. Yep, it's the most powerful iPhone ever, plus more peace of mind with your bill over five years. This is big. Get the new iPhone 17 Pro at tellus.com slash iPhone 17 Pro on select plans. Conditions and exclusions apply. PII, by the way, is personal identifiable information.

Starting point is 00:44:17 The idea that evidence in the Murdoch murder case would be left around the jail is a new one for us. Is that a thing that happens? Are inmates getting their discovery and then leaving photos of murder scenes at the canteen kiosk? Are they forgetting ballistics reports in the rec yard? What does Creighton think Jim, Dick, and Eleg are going to do with the discovery? Mandy and I have talked about this a lot and I think we've landed on the understanding that the AG's office might be trying to limit Dick's manipulation of the media. We can already see that he has no hesitation in misstating the details of the so-called leaks, lying about knowing who leaked the information, and exaggerating whatever he needs to exaggerate to help his case, knowing that

Starting point is 00:44:58 hardly anyone is going to fact-check him. So in the original motion to compel, Dick and Jim accused the state of deciding that Ellick was the prime suspect before any evidence was collected or reviewed. They also explained that their desire for a gag order was based on the attorney general's quote, year-long campaign of surreptitious leaks of purported evidence. against Murdoch and to force the AG to try the case in the courtroom. We obviously believe that Dick and Jim wanted the gag order to keep the public, and more importantly, Ellix and Maggie's families, from knowing any of the more shady of details. Defense counsel was also concerned the Attorney General will continue his campaign by using court filings as a device to selectively release

Starting point is 00:45:40 prejudicial material to the public in advance of jury selection. So here's where this all started, by the way. In his August 12th email to Dick and Jim, Creighton made the mistake of telling them that he'd like them to get their edits on the protective order ASAP so as not to delay the process. Dick, ever the opportunist, seized upon that and has now twisted Creighton's words to mean this. Mr. Waters strongly implied the state would refuse to comply with its duty to disclose evidence unless Murdoch agreed to the protective order. stating agreement to the protective order ASAP was necessary to keep discovery on track. Now, on Monday, August 22, Harputian and Griffin fired back at the state,

Starting point is 00:46:31 arguing against a blanket protection order, claiming that the selective leaks made to the media paint their client, quote, in the worst possible light. As an example of this, the defense focused on a video recording that Paul took on his phone showing Elyke, Maggie, and Paul apparently talking right before the double homicide allegedly occurred. Now, the entire point of this evidence and why we previously published a story and a podcast about it is that it places Ehrlich at Moselle right before the murders, and it destroys the alibi he initially gave to police. From what we know, law enforcement did not

Starting point is 00:47:17 find out what was on Paul's phone until it was unlocked this past spring, according to our sources. Now remember, the state newspaper, local mainstream media that typically writes in favor of the good old boys, published a story in June, as rumors of upcoming charges in the murder cases were heating up. In the story, Jim was quoted slightly changing Elyke's alibi, and suddenly saying that Alec was at Moselle shortly before the murders, which is not what he told police. Now, when that story came out, Liz and I wondered if it was because Dick and Jim did have knowledge of the recording, which hadn't been reported before that point, and they wanted to pretend like they've been saying that all along, like they were getting

Starting point is 00:48:09 ahead of it. So I don't really buy the part of this motion that says they first learned of the recording and news articles. Speaking of that, there's another weird thing about this video. On the day, Dick gave his wacky press conference, Sled agents allegedly under the direction of the Attorney General, showed Elyke Murdoch's family members this video before they showed his attorneys. They showed Ellick's family evidence after murder charges were filed and before they gave that evidence to the defense attorneys. We have asked several attorneys why SLED would have done this and we're still not really sure why. I would think that considering what we've heard on the jailhouse phone calls and considering the Murdoch family's long history of using power and trickery to get what they want, The AG's office and SLED would be particularly careful with sharing evidence in this case.

Starting point is 00:49:12 The question is, would the AG's office do that if it were any other family? Do they do that often? But anyway, for whatever reasons, officials showed Elic Murdoch's family this video last week. Also, in the motion filed last week, Harputian says the video was focused on a dog that belonged to Paul's friend that was staying at Moselle at the time. The motion says... A conversation between Maggie, Paul, and Alec is also captured on this recording.

Starting point is 00:49:44 Family members report that Maggie, Paul, and Alec are having a convivial conversation about the behavior of their own dog, Bubba. There is absolutely no indication of a disagreement or dispute between Maggie, Paul, and Alec according to family members who viewed the recording. However, the state contends that, within minutes after this convivial, light-hearted conversation, Alec murdered both Maggie and Paul

Starting point is 00:50:08 for no apparent reason. Essentially, Harpoonian is saying that perhaps officials specifically left out the part about the conversation being friendly when they leaked that to the media. Because what kind of man has a friendly chat about a dog named Bubba before he murders his wife and son in cold blood? But again, this is. This all just Dick spinning in circles. The point of that video is that it destroys Ehrlich's alibi. The point is that Ehrlich told police he wasn't at Moselle right before his wife and son were murdered, but he was.

Starting point is 00:50:49 This is very important because Dick and Jim have claimed over and over that he had an ironclad alibi completely covered his whereabouts on June 7, 2021. But oh look, the mainstream press once again wrote exactly what Dick wanted them to. In an especially egregious display of a journalist slanting his words to favor Murdoch, John Monk, who was a veteran reporter for the state newspaper, referred to the video as, quote, derogatory confidential information calculated to hurt disbarred lawyer Elyke Murdoch. The headline, quote, document colon, prosecutors in Murdoch murder case leaked confidential information to media.

Starting point is 00:51:37 We often talk about how journalists have a series of choices on how to present a story. Monk chose the most aggressive and egregious route, claiming a document says that prosecutors leaked confidential information. The headline makes it sound like Monk had discovered absolute proof that the AG's office was behind the leaks, when really it was a motion made by a defense attorney who has been factually incorrect more times than we can count throughout this case. Let's be real. Harpoolian does not know who the leak is. He is guessing, again, because he knows he will not be held accountable when he's wrong. And that is the problem. We can all see that Dick and Jim do this.

Starting point is 00:52:28 That is the strategy. Create chaos and exploit every opportunity in the press. If we can all see it, then why can't the AG's office see that? Again, if you come for the king, you cannot miss. Creighton did fire back Dick and Jim in his response to their motion, and we do believe his request to have the court issue a protective order for the evidence is because he is trying to keep Dick and Jim and the Murdoch family and their PR firm from being able to use that information as a way to bend the narrative in their favor.

Starting point is 00:53:04 But if that is the case, then the AG's office should just say that. Instead, the protective order makes a point of saying they have no reason to believe the defense would leak this information. This is not the time to be polite. Dick and Jim aren't worried about being polite. Elek Murdoch is not worried about being polite. This is time to show the public that hiring a state senator to defend you is no longer the get out of jail free card that it used to be.

Starting point is 00:53:35 It is time to show the public that there is hope for the future in the South Carolina justice system. And it's time that the press starts caring about that too. are a couple more things that happened in this last week that I want to quickly go over before we go. On August 17, 2022, Russell Lafitte was hit with the superseding federal indictment with an additional fraud charge related to the Plyler case. We will update you more on the Plyler case in a later episode. Russell will appear for a bond hearing Wednesday, August 24th, where he will ask for ankle monitors to be removed because he thinks his bond conditions are unfair due to what his

Starting point is 00:54:25 attorneys call a media firestorm. On August 19th, State Attorney General Alan Wilson announced two additional indictments against Alec Murdoch for additional financial crimes related to PMPED, which we will cover in a later episode because there is always so much more under the surface with everything in this case. Also on August, 19th, two additional defendants were indicted in relation to the apparent criminal enterprise in Colleton County related to this case. We're still trying to piece together exactly what's going on here and we are going to cover all of this in a later episode because this takes a lot of FOIA requests and research,

Starting point is 00:55:09 etc., etc. But what we know so far is this. Two weeks ago, before Eddie Smith-Bond revocation hearing, a 34-year-old man named Spencer Roberts appeared before the court for his own bond hearing, which was also prosecuted by Creighton Waters. At the time, Roberts was charged with fraud related to a PPP loan, but Waters made it a point to mention that Roberts is accused of suspiciously receiving a downstream of checks related to Elic Murdoch. On August 19th, the AG's office announced that Roberts was indicted on one count of obtaining a signature of property by false pretences, one count of money laundering, one count of computer crime, and one count of insurance fraud. But what's weird is the indictments don't specifically say

Starting point is 00:56:01 how his charges are related to the Murdoch case. That same day, a man named Jerry Rivers was indicted for obstruction of justice. Oddly, the first obstruction of justice charge in this whole saga. He is accused of taking Spencer Roberts' cell phone after he was arrested on August 10th, 2022. Officials are being super cryptic by vaguely connecting these two individuals to the Murdoch case. However, after doing a background search on Roberts and Rivers, we found a lot of commonalities. They both have faced drug charges in the past. They both are from Walterboro, where the cowboy gang supposedly attached to this originates from, although we have not found any direct cowboy connections to the Murdoch case. Both of them, along with Eddie Smith, owned transportation

Starting point is 00:56:56 companies. Rivers and Roberts both have been accused in separate insurance fraud schemes for allegedly staging car accidents to collect insurance money, which is really odd. And both incidents also happen to involve a man named Eric Middleton. Again, we'll get a into more of this in a later episode. Obviously, the insurance fraud accusations raise suspicions about what, if any, connections these guys might have to local lawyers. So we're wondering if the prosecution is hinting here that they are getting close to revealing more about this alleged drug ring tied to Murdoch. And more importantly, will more powerful people go down for this? Stay tuned.

Starting point is 00:57:43 This episode taught us that chaos is a strategy. Dick Harputlian weaponized every procedural motion and attempted to create confusion at every turn. He understood that most media would simply report his claims as fact without verification. and that continues to be a trend today, he knew that appearing outraged would generate sympathetic headlines, even when his outrage appeared to me as manufactured. You can see him reeling in interviews about his portrayal in Murdoch death in the family, among other things he likes to complain about. And we see this today, his strategy in ORI County Corruption Investigations on true sunlight. It's not a new tactic. The lesson, though, is to hold power accountable,

Starting point is 00:58:48 even when they're loud, even when they're connected, and even when they invoke John Adams, Abraham Lincoln, and others. The lesson is question everything, verify claims, and don't let theatrics distract from facts. Most importantly, this episode showed us the power of independent journalism. When mainstream media largely regurgitate, talking points, we question, investigated, and exposed the contradictions, something we continue to do today. But in the end, his chaos did not work. Truth did. At least for now. The Murdoch Murder's podcast is created by me, Mandy Matney, and my fiance, David Moses. Our executive editor is Liz Farrell.

Starting point is 00:59:41 by Luna Shark Productions.

Murdaugh Murders Podcast - MMP Remastered #58 - ‘If You Come For The King, You Best Not Miss’ - Chaos In The Murder Case

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