Lawyer's murdered son's head exploded 'like a watermelon hit with sledgehammer'
Grim details of how a murdered son and mum were killed have been read in court as the trial of lawyer dad Alex Murdaugh begins.
Defence lawyers described how 22-year-old Paul's head exploded "like a watermelon hit with a sledgehammer".
The 54-year-old dad-of-two is charged with murdering his wife Maggie, 52, and their son Paul at the family's hunting lodge in Islandton, South Carolina, US, on June 7, 2021.
Key evidence outlined by the prosecutors include gunshot residue on a seat belt, bullets pulled from bodies that matched ammunition boxes from around the home and phones never used again just a few minutes after the family were heard in a phone video.
Prosecutors claim Murdaugh killed his family members to distract from a number of other charges from money laundering to trying to get a man to fatally shoot him so his surviving son could collect a $10million (£8.14m) life insurance policy.
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He found his wife Maggie and son Paul shot dead in the grounds outside the family’s hunting estateThe two victims were shot with two different guns, with lawyers saying the force of the shots caused such bad damage to Paul that his brain was blasted right out of his skull.
Defence lawyer Dick Harpootlian said the blast from the shotgun used in the killing "literally exploded his head like a watermelon hit with a sledgehammer".
Murdaugh could be seen crying when his lawyer discussed the details.
Murdaugh has been charged with murdering his wife and son (Uncredited/AP/REX/Shutterstock)His defence team argue prosecutors incorrectly focused on Murdaugh’s guilt from the start and have spent all that time trying to jam bits of evidence.
“There’s no direct evidence. There’s no eyewitnesses. There’s nothing on camera. There’s no fingerprints. There’s no forensics tying him to the crime. None,” defence lawyer Dick Harpootlian said.
If convicted Murdaugh faces 30 years to life in prison.
If convicted Murdaugh faces 30 years to life in prison (Joshua Boucher/AP/REX/Shutterstock)Waters said Murdaugh told detectives he had been checking on his ailing parents at the time of the murders.
Waters said a video on his phone has the voices of him, Maggie and Murdaugh in it.
Murdaugh's wife and son were killed the same day a paralegal at a law firm reported he might be stealing money.
Less than five minutes later, Paul Murdaugh’s phone was never used again. Maggie Murdaugh’s phone “locks forever” about 30 seconds later, Waters said.
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Murdaugh's trial is expected to last up to three weeks
He also faces about 100 charges related to other crimes, including money laundering, stealing millions from clients and the family law firm, tax evasion and trying to get a man to fatally shoot him so his surviving son could collect a $10 million life insurance policy.
He was being held in jail without bail on those counts before he was charged with murder.
The Murdaugh family has been prominent in the area for generations, with members well known as prosecutors and private attorneys. Murdaught himself was disbarred as a South Carolina attorney.
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