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Pennsylvania

Lawyer testifies he trusted Alex Murdau despite bizarre fee payments

Attorneys who testified at Alex Murdaugh’s double murder trial in South Carolina said he was guilty despite the disgraced attorney’s proposed unusual method of splitting the charges from the case the two worked on together. Murdaugh said he trusted Murdaugh. Murdaugh asked that the $792,000 fee be deposited directly into his account rather than being paid directly to Murdaugh Family Law Firm. At the time, Murdow said his intention was to protect the money as his son Paul was involved in a wrongful death lawsuit.The direct payment was against the company’s rules.There was no reason not to trust him. I did,” Wilson told the jury. Murdow, 54, could face 30 years in prison if convicted of murdering his wife and son. Prosecutors allege that Murdoh killed them to gain sympathy and buy time to cover up a series of thefts. said it was unreasonable to assume that it would not be scrutinized further. Steal money from a client and his law firm. Defense attorneys have always disagreed, stating before each witness that the financial crimes were not directly related to the killings and were intended to smear Murdow and make him look like a horrible person. Eyewitness Tony Satterfield said Murdoh told him that he would leave the insurance company to look after him and his brother financially. Murdoh ended up in a settlement of more than $4 million, but Satterfield said his family found out about it after the killing and never saw it. But why did he agree?” asked prosecutor Clayton Waters. “Because I trusted him.” A fraud that attempted to arrange for his own death in a roadside shooting in September 2009 allowed his surviving son to receive a $10 million life insurance policy. Witnesses were called in. He testified away from the jury last Thursday when the judge decided whether to allow evidence of financial misconduct. Murdow’s law firm demanded that Wilson send a second check for the fees, which he did out of his own pocket. I promised to pay you back, but I could only give you $600,000. Wilson said he had to lend the remaining $192,000 to his friend, and the money never came back. I don’t have it in my trust account. It’s a trust account,” said Wilson. “Trust accounts are other people’s money.” When Wilson was asked about his friends he met in high school, he sometimes had to pause. Their wives were sorority sisters. Their children grew up together. They spoke several times a week. Wilson rushed to Murdaw’s home where he learned of the June 7, 2021 murder, which took him 1 hour and 40 minutes. “I didn’t want to know what he had found out. I had to explain it to him. The family. Mr. Murdoh, after the killing, said Mr. Murdoh was to stay at the family’s home.” Murdow’s family, for generations, dominated the small Hampton County legal system, both as prosecutors and private attorneys. The impact also extended to rural banks in South Carolina’s Lowcountry, where Palmetto State Bank CEO Jan Malinowski said Murdow’s accounts could be in the dozens by 2021. The former executive, who was frequently debited as much as $10,000 and was convicted in federal court in November, testified that he had loaned himself and Murdo money from a client trust fund. Murdow testified that more than $347,000 had been debited from his account.”How much is the overdraft fee?” asked the prosecutor.”$5,” Malinowski said, causing the court to laugh.

Attorneys who testified at Alex Murdaugh’s double-murder trial in South Carolina held Murdaugh to justice, even though the disgraced attorney suggested an unusual way to split the charges from the case the two worked on together. He said he trusted him.

Attorney Chris Wilson said Murdoh had no reason to doubt when he asked that the $792,000 fee be deposited directly into his account rather than pay it directly to the Murdoh Family Law Firm. , said his intention was to protect the money as his son Paul was involved in a wrongful death lawsuit. Direct payments were against company rules.

“I’ve known him for over 30 years and had no reason not to trust him,” Wilson told the jury.

Murdow, 54, could face 30 years in prison if convicted of murdering his wife and son. Prosecutors allege that Murdoh killed them to gain sympathy and buy time to cover up a series of thefts. He stated that it would be meaningless to consider that without further scrutiny.

A murder trial judge allows prosecutors to present extensive evidence that Murdoh was stealing money from a client and his law firm. and has always objected in front of each witness, saying that it was intended to slander Murdoh and make him look like a terrifying person.

Another witness testified on Thursday that his mother, who had been a housekeeper and babysitter at the Murdos’ home for more than 20 years, died of her injuries weeks later.

Witness Tony Satterfield said Murdoh told him he would have insurance companies look after him and his brother. , Satterfield said his family found out about it after the killing and never saw it.

“When the defendant came to you around your mother’s funeral and said he was going to help you and file a lawsuit on your behalf, why did you agree?” Clayton Waters asked.

“Because I trusted him,” said Satterfield, who, with the help of other attorneys, raised more than $4 million from banks, officials and other attorneys involved in the settlement.

Murdoh faces about 100 other criminal charges unrelated to the killing. It covered everything from theft, money laundering and running a drug cartel, tax evasion, to arranging his own death in a roadside shooting in September 2021 to make sure his surviving son won his $10 million. to fraud in an attempt to obtain with life insurance.

Wilson was the 40th witness called in the trial, which began on January 23. Wilson testified away from the jury last Thursday when the judge decided whether to allow evidence of financial misconduct.

Mr. Wilson said he paid Mr. Murdough a $792,000 fee directly when the question popped up. Murdoh’s law firm requested that Wilson send his second check for his fees, but he did it out of his own pocket. Murdow promised to repay Wilson, but he could only give out $600,000.

Mr. Wilson said he had no choice but to lend the remaining $192,000 to a friend, who never returned the money.

“You can’t tell someone that you have money in your trust account that you don’t have in your trust account,” Wilson said. “Trust accounts are other people’s money.”

Wilson sometimes had to stop when asked about a friend he met in high school. Their wives were sorority sisters. Their children grew up together. They spoke several times a week.

As soon as Wilson learned about the June 7, 2021 killing, he drove 1 hour and 40 minutes to rush to Murdoh’s home.

“I went in and hugged his neck and cried. I didn’t know what to say,” Wilson said. “I didn’t want to know what he found. I didn’t want him to have to explain it to me.”

During cross-examination, the defense mostly asked Wilson personal questions and made him talk about how much he loved his family. Wilson said Murdau did not appear to have stayed at his family’s home after the murder, staying at his brother’s or in-law’s home each time he called.

“He was distraught. He was overwhelmed, agitated all the time, didn’t eat, didn’t sleep,” Wilson said.

Both as prosecutors and private attorneys, the Murdow family has dominated the small Hampton County legal system for generations. Its influence extended to rural banks in the South Carolina Lowcountry.

Palmetto State Bank CEO Jan Malinowski said Murdeau’s accounts were frequently overdrafted by hundreds of thousands of dollars in 2021, a former executive who was convicted in federal court in November. testified that he had lent himself and Murdo money from a client’s trust fund.

There were moments of levity in Malinowski’s sober testimony. He testified that in August 2021 Murdoh’s account balance was debited over his $347,000.

Waters pointed to the fees in a statement. “What is the overdraft fee?” asked the prosecutor.

“Five dollars,” Malinowski said as the courtroom roared with laughter.

https://www.wgal.com/article/alex-murdaugh-trial-february-9-2023/42817948 Lawyer testifies he trusted Alex Murdau despite bizarre fee payments

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