This man is accused of brutally shooting his wife and son to death 3:50
(CNN) --
After hearing from dozens of witnesses in the Alex Murdaugh murder trial, a South Carolina jury last week heard Murdaugh himself after taking the stand, a move legal experts say was risky. but that might have helped in your case.
In dramatic testimony, which included heated exchanges between Murdaugh and the prosecutor who questioned him, Murdaugh admitted repeatedly lying — including to law enforcement about his whereabouts on the night of the crimes — and stealing millions of dollars from deals with clients of his law firm over the course of approximately two decades.
But, he testified, murder is not on his list of wrongdoing.
This is the Murdaugh family: surrounded by accusations of crimes, deaths and the trial of Alex Murdaugh
Murdaugh has pleaded not guilty to the June 7, 2021 murders of his wife, Maggie, and son, Paul, who were shot to death on the family's property in Islandton, South Carolina.
Prosecutors accuse Murdaugh of killing the two to try to prevent discovery of their alleged financial crimes.
The defense portrayed Murdaugh as a loving father and husband wrongfully accused while the real killer is on the loose.
Having Murdaugh testify was a bold move and likely a calculated risk by the defense, legal experts told CNN.
While many lawyers don't like putting their clients on the stand because it's hard to predict what questions prosecutors will ask and how the jury will perceive the defendant, Murdaugh was the perfect defendant for the job, experts said.
advertising
"If you're going to have someone testify, have a lawyer who's smart, who's been in the courtroom, who's lied for 20 years ... that's the guy you want on the stand," said the criminal defense attorney and former prosecutor. Mark Eiglarsh.
"And all it takes is one juror to connect emotionally with him."
Here's what legal experts thought of Murdaugh's testimony.
What might have prompted your testimony?
While defendants can often find themselves at a disadvantage when taking the stand, in this case, multiple attorneys told CNN that Murdaugh had virtually no choice but to testify.
That's because the prosecution pointed to a big question throughout the trial that it had to answer: Multiple witnesses identified Murdaugh's voice in a video clip filmed at the family kennel, which authorities say was recorded shortly before the crimes. and near where the bodies were found.
During the course of the investigation, Murdaugh lied to authorities and maintained that he was not at the pound at the time.
But he changed his story on the stand last week, acknowledging that his voice is heard in the clip and admitting to the jury that he lied about his whereabouts on the night of the murders.
But Murdaugh was emphatic in denying that he shot his wife and son.
Murdaugh told the court that he lied about being in the pound due to "paranoid thinking" stemming from his drug addiction to opioid pain relievers for years, as well as his distrust of investigators.
That paranoid thinking, Murdaugh testified, was triggered when detectives began questioning him about his relationship with his wife and child.
“It is the million dollar question that everyone wanted to know: why did you lie that you were not in the kennel?
So he had to give an explanation for that,” said criminal lawyer and former prosecutor Bernarda Villalona.
"That's what I think is the main reason the criminal defense attorney in this case made the calculated decision to put him on the stand."
"The question will be whether it was worth it."
Witnesses say Murdaugh's voice is in a video that was recorded before the murders 2:25
two double edged swords
There are two key issues in Murdaugh's testimony that could backfire, experts say.
Risking it all and coming clean, as Murdaugh appeared to do during the trial by sharing details of his drug addiction and admitting to a series of financial crimes, may have been an attempt by his defense to win over jurors, experts said. .
Alex Murdaugh is charged with the murders of his wife and son
“They try to use it to a very positive effect, to show that he had a problem (with addiction), that he is sympathetic to trying to deal with it and that it may have made him paranoid and suspicious of the police and telling them this lie about not being there. said defense attorney Shan Wu.
“But if he was so confused by the addiction, he could have been acting very irrationally at the time and the jury could believe that this same person who was addicted to opioids went into this paranoid frenzy and killed his own family,” Wu said.
"So, it's a double-edged sword."
There's another big reason admitting lies could backfire, the lawyers said: It underscores that Murdaugh isn't credible.
Under questioning, prosecutor Creighton Waters noted that Murdaugh, for years, looked his clients in the eye and lied about his deals while taking the money for himself, just as he lied for months to investigators, family and friends about what he was saying. he did the night of the murders.
Waters also noted discrepancies in Murdaugh's new timeline of events.
“What they are doing, the prosecutors, is saying that he is a liar, he is a cheat, he cannot be trusted and nothing he says should be taken at face value,” said the criminal defense attorney and analyst. CNN legal Joey Jackson.
What could help Murdaugh?
In many ways, Murdaugh was a model witness, according to experts.
He looked directly at the jurors as he spoke, and became visibly emotional as he discussed his murdered wife and son, often referring to them with pet names.
He called his son "Paul-Paul" during testimony, and often referred to his wife as "Mags."
"That's one of the biggest sticking points for the prosecution in this trial: would they really do this?" said Jessica Roth, a law professor at Cardozo Law School.
“Despite all the other crimes he admitted to, would he really kill his wife and child?
Alex Murdaugh and another open cause: the death of his housekeeper and his estate
Murdaugh also offered the jury alternatives to who might have committed the crime, which helped cast reasonable doubt, Jackson said.
Murdaugh opened up about his addiction — hinting at "nasty people" he may have been in contact with for drugs that could have hurt his family — and also nodded in agreement with threats Paul allegedly received after his involvement in a 2019 boating accident. in which a young woman died.
"The defense, by doing that, presents reasonable doubt," Jackson added.
Ultimately, Murdaugh was able to use his decades of experience as a lawyer to control the narrative when questioned by prosecutors, experts said.
During those lines of questioning, prosecutors ideally want to get only "Yes" or "No" answers from a defendant to try to drive their point home, legal experts said.
But Murdaugh continually gave lengthy explanations when responding.
In that way, the experts pointed out, he could potentially become more human and seem more sympathetic to the jurors.
“I think it actually did very well for the defendant and quite badly for the prosecutor,” Wu said.
"Murdaugh (was) a tough witness, I mean he's a skilled lawyer himself."
What will be key in the end, several lawyers said, is whether Murdaugh's lengthy answers were able to convince at least one person on the jury panel, which could save him from conviction on the charges and potentially spend the rest of his life behind bars. the jail.
“You never know with a jury,” Wu said.
"It only takes one."
Court is expected to resume this Monday morning.
Alex MurdaughTrial