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South Carolina Judge Grants Alex Murdaugh Defense Request for DNA Testing Ahead of Retrial
Just the facts
Judge Debra McCaslin authorized forensics company Othram to perform Y-STR analysis on swabs collected from Maggie Murdaugh's cellphone and fingernail clippings. Murdaugh's defense attorneys argued that the testing could establish whether an unidentified male contributor was present and potentially exclude Murdaugh as the perpetrator. Lead prosecutor Creighton Waters opposed the testing in court, stating that previous quantification found no significant male Y-chromosome DNA and noting that the process will consume the final testable samples. Murdaugh was convicted in 2023 of murdering his wife Maggie and son Paul at their Colleton County estate, but the South Carolina Supreme Court vacated the convictions following findings of jury tampering by a former court clerk. Murdaugh's double murder retrial is scheduled to commence on April 5, 2027.
Why this is news
Circuit Court Judge Debra McCaslin ruled in Lexington, South Carolina, granting a motion by defense attorneys representing Alex Murdaugh to conduct specialized forensic DNA testing ahead of his April 2027 retrial. The order permits testing on biological material gathered from Maggie Murdaugh's cellphone and fingernails despite objections raised by state prosecutors.
Sources
This summary is compiled strictly from the original reporting below.