Alex Murdaugh.Photo: Facebook
When beleaguered attorney Alex Murdaugh was shot in the head on Saturday on the side of the road in South Carolina, theories about what actually happened — and if a still-unidentified gunman had really targeted him — began swirling.
The day before, the 53-year-old scion of a local legal dynasty had resigned from Peters Murdaugh Parker Eltzroth & Detrick (PMPED), the practice his great-grandfather founded a century ago, following allegations that he stole money from the firm,The New York Timesreported.
Murdaugh was thrust into the national spotlight in early June after he found his wife, Maggie Murdaugh, 52, and son, Paul, 22, shot and killed on their Islandton property.
On Friday, Amanda Loveday, a spokesperson for Murdaugh, reached out to PEOPLE to clarify details of Saturday’s shooting, saying in an email that “it was not a self-inflicted wound.”
Echoing what Jim Griffin, one of Murdaugh’s lawyers, told PEOPLE on Thursday, the spokesperson wrote, “After the shooting, Alex had an entry and exit wound, his skull was fractured and it was not a self-inflicted bullet wound.”
From left, Buster Murdaugh, Margaret “Maggie” Murdaugh, Paul Murdaugh, Alex Murdaugh.Maggie Murdaugh/Facebook
Sharing a few more details about the incident, many of which haven’t been publicly revealed, she wrote, “Alex pulled over after seeing a low tire indicator light. A male driver in a blue pick-up asked him if he had car troubles, as soon as Alex replied, he was shot.”
On Thursday, Griffin told PEOPLE in an email that Murdaugh was bleeding and suffered “significant head trauma” after getting shot while changing a tire.
He was correcting a key detail in an incident report the Hampton County Sheriff’s Office released Thursday that initially indicated that Murdaugh bore no “visible injury” after the shooting.
Later on Thursday, the HCSO sent out a revised report, this time with the box beside “visible injury” checked off. The words “other major injury” were added next to “visible injury.”
The first report also said that Alex was not using alcohol or drugs at the time of the incident. The revised report said it was “unknown” whether Alex was using alcohol or drugs.
In an email to PEOPLE Thursday, Griffin wrote,“I understand that the Sheriff has clarified this ‘no visible sign of injury’ entry to some reporters.”
“I presume that the deputy checked the no visible sign of injury on the incident report because he was not able to assess Alex since [Alex] had left the scene before the deputy arrived,” he wrote.
Griffin also said that Murdaugh’s injuries were far more serious than was initially reported.
Confirming what he toldThe Island PacketThursday, Griffin told PEOPLE that Alex suffered “an entry and exit wound, a skull fracture, and minor brain bleeding in two places.”
He also said that the gunshot wound was not self-inflicted.
The HCSO sent PEOPLE the initial report and the updated report. Hampton County Sheriff T.C. Smalls did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment.
The Island Packetspoke to Smalls, who said the box was likely checked in error.
The rest of the brief report, which calls the incident “attempted murder,” goes on to say that deputies were dispatched to the area in reference to a shooting.
“While en route, Deputies learned the victim, later identified as Alex Murdaugh, had been shot in the head and was being flown out from a landing zone on Charleston Highway (Varnville) to the hospital.
“Corporal (Kendrell) Henderson met with the victim before he was flown out while I, Sergeant (Samuel) White, secured the scene of the crime until HCSO and SLED investigators arrived. Further investigation required.”
A Whirlwind of Shocking Events
On Monday, after being released from the hospital, where Murdaugh was treated for “a superficial gunshot wound to the head,” according to SLED, he announced that he was resigning from PMPED, and would be undergoing treatment for addiction.
Maggie and Paul Murdaugh.Maggie Murdaugh Facebook
“I am immensely sorry to everyone I’ve hurt, including my family, friends and colleagues,” he said in the statement. “I ask for prayers as I rehabilitate myself and my relationships.”
He did not address the shooting in his statement.
On Monday, night,The New York TimesandThe Island Packetreported that members of PMPED had accused Murdaugh of misusing the firm’s funds and pushed him out.
On Wednesday, his older brother, Randolph Murdaugh IV, 54, spoke out for the first time, saying in a statement, “I was shocked, just as the rest of my PMPED family, to learn of my brother, Alex’s, drug addiction and stealing of money.”
Randy Murdaugh and John Marvin Murdaugh on “Good Morning America” in June.ABC News
No arrests have been made in connection to the shootings of his wife and son — or the shooting on Saturday. Police continue to investigate.
Entrance to the Murdaugh property.FitsNews.com
Also on Wednesday, the Solicitor’s Office said Murdaugh would no longer prosecute cases as a volunteer,The Island Packetreports.
Earlier this week, PMPED issued a statement about the allegations.
“This is disappointing news for all of us,” the firm said, adding that it had cut all ties with Alex. “Rest assured that our firm will deal with this in a straightforward manner. There’s no place in our firm for such behavior.”
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Griffin told PEOPLE in a previous statement that “Alex resigned from the firm after being accused of diverting lawyer fees. These allegations prompted him to confront his dependency and he voluntarily checked into an in-patient substance abuse rehab facility after being discharged from the hospital Monday.”
As authorities investigate Saturday’s shooting, they continue to search for a motive and a suspect or suspects in the killings of Maggie and Paul.
Murdaugh property.Andrew J. Whitaker/The Post And Courier via AP
At the time of his death, Paul was facing charges in the death of Mallory Beach, 19, in a 2019 boating accident.
As a result of the crash, Beach’s family sued Murdaugh, his oldest son, Buster, and a store where Paul allegedly bought alcohol on the night of the crash in a wrongful death lawsuit.
source: people.com
