Convicted murderer and fraudster Richard “Alex” Murdaugh is seeking a retrial on the grounds of jury tampering. Judge Jean H. Toal is presiding over the upcoming hearing into the allegations and has made preliminary rulings that are setting the stage for a challenging process. The hearing, which is set to begin on Jan. 29, will be conducted in open court with media access, but the privacy and identity of the jurors will be protected.
Judge Toal also clarified the legal standard for the case, stating that actual prejudice must be proven in order to grant a retrial based on improper contact with a juror. She emphasized that only the 12 jurors who deliberated on the case and reached the guilty verdict will be questioned during the hearing. Jurors who were dismissed before deliberating will not be questioned.
Toal stated that the focus of the hearing will be on interactions between Colleton County Clerk of Court Rebecca Hill, who oversaw the trial, and the jurors. She clarified that it is not the trial of Mrs. Hill and that it is not the time to explore every mistake or impropriety made by her. Hill, who has denied the jury tampering allegations, is expected to take the stand after the jurors are questioned and may invoke her Fifth Amendment rights.
The jurors will be questioned individually by Toal to determine if there was improper contact and whether it influenced their verdict. After being questioned individually, the jurors will be seated in the jury box and may later be questioned as a group.
Witnesses who will likely not be allowed to testify include attorneys involved in the trial, the retired judge who presided over the trial, attorneys for the jurors, and law enforcement officers. The judge may consider allowing other witnesses to testify once the hearing is underway.
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