SC solicitor ‘conflicts out’ of Murdaugh investigation. Does that mean there’s a suspect?
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Murdaugh murders in Colleton County
Two members of a powerhouse legal family were shot and killed June 7 in Colleton County, SC. Read more of our coverage.
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This story originally published on Aug. 25, 2021.
14th Circuit Solicitor Duffie Stone has recused himself from the investigation into the June double homicide of Paul Murdaugh and his mother, Maggie, Stone confirmed Tuesday.
Asked Tuesday whether his recusal means that the S.C. Law Enforcement Division has focused on a suspect or suspects in the investigation, Stone declined to answer.
Stone informed S.C. Attorney General Alan Wilson of his recusal in a letter dated Aug. 11 — more than two months after the June 7 murders. He asked Wilson’s office to take over prosecuting authority.
“Considering the events of today in SLED’s investigation ... I am asking that you assume all prosecutorial functions in this matter effective immediately,” the letter said. “By copy of this letter I am informing [SLED] Chief Mark Keel of my decision to recuse myself from prosecuting these cases.”
The solicitor’s letter raises questions about what events Stone is referring to, whether SLED, the agency in charge of the investigation, has finally focused on a suspect or suspects in the double homicide and, if so, how that suspect is a conflict for Stone.
Stone has faced criticism for not immediately stepping away from the investigation due to his office’s ties to the Murdaugh family — a family that for more than eight decades held the elected position of solicitor for Allendale, Beaufort, Colleton, Hampton and Jasper counties.
In late June, Stone responded to that criticism, saying, “there is no clear suspect in this case at this time. As such, speculation about the propriety of my office’s involvement is precisely that — speculation.”
Contacted Tuesday, Stone said he finally decided to “conflict” himself out of the investigation after consulting with University of South Carolina Law School Professor Gregory Adams. He said he has been in “constant consultation” with Adams since the double homicide.
Stone’s office’s connections to the Murdaugh family run deep and have been regularly cited as reasons why he should have stepped away immediately after the double homicide.
Alex Murdaugh, the husband and father of the victims who called 911 and told the operator he discovered the bodies, was “authorized as a volunteer” for the 14th Judicial Circuit Solicitor’s Office, according to a letter obtained by The Island Packet and Beaufort Gazette. Until 2006, when Stone took over the office, three generations of Murdaughs had served in that role.
Two years ago, when Mallory Beach went missing after a boat crashed into a bridge piling near Parris Island, Stone almost immediately stepped away from the investigation. His office said it was an ethical decision because three of the boat’s occupants were related to employees in Stone’s office.
“It would be unethical for our office to be involved in prosecuting or sorting out the facts of any case in which material witnesses, potential defendants or victims have a familial relationship with someone in our office,” Jeff Kidd, spokesperson for the 14th Judicial Circuit Solicitor’s Office, wrote in 2019.
For weeks this summer, Stone’s office refused to clarify what role it was playing in the double homicide investigation. In a June 21 press release defending his refusal to step aside, Stone cited a quote from AG’s Office spokesperson Robert Kittle in The Island Packet and Beaufort Gazette:
“Until the investigation is complete, any decision on a prosecutor is premature. No one has been charged yet, so there’s no one to prosecute,” Kittle told the newspaper.
This story was originally published August 25, 2021 at 6:03 PM.
