Alex Murdaugh, a disgraced South Carolina attorney, is seeking independent DNA testing by a Texas-based forensic lab in his upcoming retrial for the murder of his wife and son. Murdaugh’s attorneys want to test unknown male DNA found beneath his wife’s fingernails, which they claim could support an alternate-suspect theory.

Background

Murdaugh was convicted in 2023 of killing his wife, Maggie, and their younger son, Paul, at the family’s hunting estate in June 2021. However, his convictions were later overturned, and a new trial has been tentatively set for April 2027.

The Texas-based forensic lab, Othram Inc., has been involved in several high-profile cases, including the investigation into the 2022 murders of four University of Idaho students. Othram’s technology has been used to help identify suspects or unknown victims when traditional law enforcement databases do not produce a match.

Request for DNA Testing

Murdaugh’s attorneys have asked for independent testing by Othram, citing the potential for the unknown DNA to support an alternate-suspect theory. However, prosecutors have disputed the significance of additional DNA testing, arguing that the evidence has already been tested by the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division (SLED) and produced only a mixture of Maggie’s DNA and a partial profile from another contributor.

Original reporting: Fox News (HLL/CB) — read the source article.