- The federal court has sentenced killer Alex Murdaugh to an additional term in jail. He entered a guilty plea to over two dozen charges of conspiracy, fraud, and money laundering, and the judge sentenced him to forty years. The federal punishment greatly above the recommendation of the prosecution and mandates that Murdaugh make compensation to his victims in excess of $8.7 million. Prosecutors claim that the now-disbarred lawyer used many methods to cheat his personal injury clients and his company out of millions of dollars, which gave rise to both charges.
- Murdaugh, 55, was given two consecutive life terms without the possibility of parole for killing his wife Maggie and son Paul, 22, in what state prosecutors claimed was a desperate attempt to divert attention from and postpone an inquiry into his increasingly obvious financial misdeeds. Even though Murdaugh maintains his innocence of the killings, he has previously acknowledged fraud and did so once more on Monday, stating that he thought “some of the things I did” were the result of an opiate addiction. Even so, he declared, “I knew better.”
- In September of last year, Murdaugh entered a guilty plea to 22 federal crimes, which included money laundering, wire fraud, bank fraud, and conspiracy to commit wire fraud. Federal prosecutors proposed a 30-year prison sentence, which US District Court Judge Richard M. Gergel surpassed by 10 years because the court “believes is sufficient but not greater than necessary.” The court frequently mentioned the “staggering human toll” of Murdaugh’s actions and his persistent targeting of weak persons who sought legal assistance from the attorney because they were ill, injured, or mourning.
- Murdaugh’s claims were rejected by Gergel, who attributed his behavior to his addiction and claimed that “no truly impaired person could pull off the complexity of some of these transactions.” Murdaugh’s behavior embarrassed the legal profession as a whole, and a “serious sentence” was required to deter future attorneys from acting in a similar manner. Gergel stated, “This sentence needs to speak the truth, and the truth in this case is that this is a heinous crime.”
- Adair Boroughs, the US Attorney, stated that her office was “very happy with the outcome.” The goal of today’s sentencing, according to reporters outside the court, was to bring justice to Alex Murdaugh’s financial victims and ensure that the man, who is now fighting his murder convictions, stays behind bars.
- It’s unclear if Murdaugh will be able to reimburse his victims for the reparation he owes them. Although the amount that federal authorities may collect was “yet to be determined,” Boroughs stated that “we do pursue restitution ordered by the court and try to make victims whole.” However, another lawyer representing Murdaugh’s victims, Justin Bamberg, asserts, “The reality is that Alex will never be able to pay anybody he hurt a smidgen of what they truly deserve, of what he owes them.”
Source:
CNN