Alex Murdaugh’s lawyer, Dick Harpootlian, says the defense is ready to take on the piece of evidence that helped sink him the first time around. In a new interview, Harpootlian revealed his team has a strategy for dealing with the infamous kennel video that prosecutors used to place Murdaugh near the scene of the murders of his wife, Maggie, and son, Paul.

Challenging the Kennel Video

The cellphone video, recorded by Paul Murdaugh shortly before he and his mother were killed in June 2021, became one of the most damaging pieces of evidence presented during Murdaugh’s 2023 murder trial. Prosecutors argued the recording destroyed Murdaugh’s original alibi and placed him at the family’s Colleton County kennels minutes before the killings.

Harpootlian declined to reveal specifics, but the comments offer the clearest indication yet that Murdaugh’s legal team intends to challenge one of the prosecution’s most powerful exhibits when the case returns to court.

Retrial Plans

Another major question hanging over any retrial is whether Murdaugh would once again take the witness stand after testifying during the original proceedings. Harpootlian said that decision remains far from settled.

The retrial itself could look very different from the first proceedings. Harpootlian told Rotunno he expects the second trial to be significantly shorter, in part because the defense believes much of the evidence related to Murdaugh’s financial crimes could be limited or excluded.

Harpootlian also said the defense plans to seek a change of venue, arguing that years of intense media coverage and the televised nature of the original trial have made it difficult to find jurors who have not already formed opinions about the case.

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