Alex Murdaugh’s only surviving son testified in his double-murder trial Tuesday to help the disgraced lawyer deny that he blasted to death his wife and other son — insisting the accused murderer was “heartbroken” and “destroyed” after finding the bodies.
Buster Murdaugh, 26, was the defense’s first witness Tuesday when his 54-year-old father’s trial resumed.
He said his dad sounded “normal” in a call at 9:10 p.m. on June 7, 2021 — some 20 minutes after police believe Maggie, 52, and Paul, 22, were shot to death in kennels on their Colleton County getaway estate.
“We just talked about, like, ‘Hey, how you doing,” and he was just letting me know that he was going out” to check on his ailing parents nearby, he said of the “not unusual” call.
However, Buster immediately knew something was wrong when his dad called more than an hour later to break the brutal news.
“He asked me if I was sitting down … he sounded odd and then he told me that my mom and brother had been shot,” Buster recalled as his dad wiped away tears in court.
“I kind of just sat there for a minute … I was in shock,” he said.
Buster Murdaugh, 26, was called Tuesday by his dad’s defense team.Reuters
Buster (from left) with mom Maggie, brother Paul and dad Alex.Facebook
Buster’s girlfriend packed his stuff, helping him get to his dad’s side in the early hours, he recalled.
“He was destroyed — he was heartbroken,” he said of the accused murderer.
“I walked in the door and saw him and gave him a hug and — [he was] just broken down” and barely able to talk, he said.
He claimed that night was the first time he heard his dad sob that “they did them so bad” — testifying that that was also what he said in a pivotal recording played in court, one an officer claimed caught Murdaugh saying “I” instead of “they.”
Previous
Buster Murdaugh walking past his father on the way to the witness stand during the murder trial.AP
Murdaugh getting sworn in to testify.Grace Beahm Alford/The Post And Courier via AP, Pool
Advertisement
Murdaugh watching his son testify in court.Jeff Blake/The State via AP, Pool
Advertisement
Buster said after the murder he spent “every day” with his dad “for a good while,” without seeing anything of concern. They jointly penned an appeal for info along with a $100,000 reward.
Buster earlier recalled how guns would have been easily accessible at the estate where they hunted “everything.”
“We had a lot of guns,” he told the court — recalling “12-gauge shotguns, 20-gauge shotguns, 16-gauge shotguns, 28-gauge shotguns” as well as a slew of rifles and ammo for each.
It included .300 Blackout rifles that he and his brother both got for Christmas — before his brother’s was “stolen, lost [or] taken,” he said.
He and his kin would often leave the weapons — usually loaded — where they found them.
“Guns would not always find their way back to the gun room,” he said — saying that included being left in unlocked vehicles.
His slain brother was “not good” and “left guns probably more on the property than anybody else,” Buster testified, admitting it angered him because his brother borrowed his .300 Blackout when his own went missing and was “not very good about putting it back where he found it.”
Alex Murdaugh denies killing his wife and son, Paul.Reuters
The red-headed surviving son has been a constant presence in the courtroom — once even getting admonished by the judge for allegedly flashing an obscene hand gesture at one of the witnesses testifying against his dad.
Buster briefly noted one of the most bizarre incidents after the double murders — when his dad tried to get a pal to murder him in a con to cash in $10 million life insurance for him.
Buster spoke of the stress at legal woes over his brother being charged for a drunken boat crash that killed teen passenger Mallory Beach in 2019.
Murdaugh testified that his father was “destroyed” after finding his mother and brother’s bodies.Grace Beahm Alford/The Post And Courier via AP, Pool
His father immediately tried to pin his wife and son’s murders on the backlash to the crash, video from the scene showed.
Buster said that he and his family were also sued over it, and the “spite” aimed their way “consumed” his mom.
“When she read the negative stuff that made her feel upset and whatnot. It ultimately it kind of caused her to distance herself from Hampton” County, where their main family home is, he said.
Alex tried to get himself killed to cash in a $10 million life insurance policy for his surviving son, Buster (right).Facebook
However, even after the murders he did not take security precautions despite the apparent threat.
Buster conceded he “knew a little bit about” his dad’s “usage of pills,” but had no idea he was stealing millions from his family’s law firm and clients.
His testimony came as his father’s lawyers have yet to indicate if the disgraced legal scion will take the stand in his own defense.
Prosecutors called 61 witnesses and introduced more than 550 pieces of evidence — much of which appeared to challenge Murdaugh’s claims that he was not at the house when his wife and son were shot dead.
The defense said Tuesday that it expects to finish its evidence and testimony by Friday.
The now-disbarred lawyer has always denied the murders.
He faces roughly 100 other charges, including stealing cash from clients and his family’s once-powerful law firm, all alleged crimes that emerged after the double-slaying put the spotlight on him and his family.
162Legal experts suggest those charges could stop him from wanting to testify during the murder trial, because it could open him up to be quizzed about them, painting him in a bad light.
Murdaugh faces 30 years to life if convicted of murder
