Lawyers for Alex Murdaugh, a South Carolina lawyer convicted of murder, are seeking a new trial claiming that the clerk of the court had inappropriate conversations with jurors and committed other misconduct during the trial. Professor Bruce Green outlines for the New York Times the explosive nature of these allegations.
Bruce A. Green, a law professor at Fordham University who specializes in criminal law and ethics, said he had never before heard of a clerk of court publishing a book about a trial in which she was involved. Professor Green said that the actions alleged in Mr. Murdaugh’s motion would not have been appropriate, and would probably lead to a factual inquiry by a judge.
“If it really happened, it would really be improper,” he said.
He noted that jurors were not supposed to discuss a case even with one another before formal deliberations began, let alone discuss it with a clerk. “It’s a pretty incendiary allegation,” he said.
Read “Murdaugh’s Lawyers Seek New Trial, Saying Clerk Tampered With Jury” in The New York Times.