A fresh court filing has surfaced, shedding new light on the defense strategy of Alex Murdaugh, who stands accused of having previously murdered his wife and son. This document suggests the defense might have misrepresented the results of his lie detector test.
Released on Wednesday in Colleton County, South Carolina, the filing accuses Murdaugh’s lawyer, Dick Harpootlian, of potentially misleading practices, as detailed by state prosecutors.
In 2023, Murdaugh was initially found guilty and condemned to two consecutive life sentences for these homicides. However, in a twist this past May, those verdicts were vacated after evidence emerged that court clerk Becky Hill had improperly swayed jury members.
On June 29, 2026, Alex Murdaugh appeared at a legal proceeding at the Marc H. Westbrook Judicial Center in Lexington, South Carolina. With his previous conviction nullified due to jury interference, he is set to face a new trial regarding the June 7, 2021, killings of his wife and son. (Tracy Glantz/The State via Pool)
In an August 14 hearing, Harpootlian asserted, “Mr. Murdaugh passed a polygraph with flying colors, using the same examiner. It might become relevant in this upcoming trial.”
Prosecutors argue that when Murdaugh was initially tried in 2023, he never took a polygraph, or lie-detector, test.
The time that he did in fact take a lie-detector test was after the trial in the fall of 2023. He took the test with the FBI when he was under investigation for serious financial crimes.
Defense attorney Dick Harpootlian represents his client, Alex Murdaugh, on June 29, 2026, at a status hearing in Lexington, South Carolina. (Tracy Glantz/The State via Pool)
The new document says:
“Defense council’s claim on the record at the hearing that defendant Alex Murdaugh passed a SLED [South Carolina Law Enforcement Division] polygraph as to the murders, much less than any governmental polygraph on any subject, is categorically false, and clearly said for no other reason that an attempt to prejudice this court and the public.”
Read the filing below.
In response to the state’s filing, Harpootlian emailed a letter to Judge Debra McCaslin on Thursday saying that he incorrectly stated in court that Murdaugh had taken a polygraph and passed “with flying colors, saying he had mistakenly conflated several facts.
Harpootlian said, “I want to offer my apology to both the court and state for any confusion I may have caused.”
Here is the letter:
Murdaugh is scheduled for his new trial in April of next year. That trial will not take place in Colleton County.
Judge Debra McCaslin oversees a judicial hearing on June 29, 2026, at the Marc H. Westbrook Judicial Center in Lexington, South Carolina. (Tracy Glantz/The State via Pool)
On Friday, McCaslin ruled the retrial must move out of Colleton County, but she did not yet mention a new location.
It’s possible the retrial could be in Richland County, as Murdaugh’s defense recently pressed to move it – arguing the possibility of a larger jury pool in a new location.