HAMPTON COUNTY, S.C. (Court TV) — Alex Murdaugh allegedly planned a birthday party for his son, Paul, from behind prison walls.
Alex Murdaugh stands in the courtroom at the Colleton County Courthouse in Walterboro, S.C., Thursday, March 2, 2023. Murdaugh was found guilty on two counts of murder in the shooting deaths in June 2021 of his wife Maggie and son Paul. (Joshua Boucher/The State via AP, Pool)
According to the new book “Tangled Vines: Power, Privilege, and the Murdaugh Family Murders” by John Glatt, orchestrating a party was just one of many demented steps the once-prominent lawyer took to try and convince the world that he didn’t kill his son.
The party took place in April 2022, just 10 months after Alex gunned Paul down at their family’s South Carolina home. Alex was also convicted of killing his wife, Maggie, that same night in June 2021.
At the time of the alleged party, Alex had not yet been charged with killing Paul, but he had been jailed for some of his other crimes. Alex had reportedly given his surviving son, Buster, an explicit list of who to invite to Paul’s 23rd birthday party. In reality, Paul never made it to 23.
Glatt told Court TV that he learned about the birthday party because a fellow journalist had filed a Freedom of Information request for the jail Alex was being held in, and the more than 200 calls Alex made when he was first arrested were released.
Evidence shown in Alex Murdaugh’s trial for murder at the Colleton County Courthouse on Tuesday, February 14, 2023. (Joshua Boucher/The State/Pool)
Glatt said that in an April 14, 2022 phone call — the day of the party, which was Paul’s actual birthday — Alex was speaking to Buster about arrangements for the celebration. The party was to be held at a Charleston Harbor bar, and Buster assured his dad that the gathering would be big, and word was spreading on social media.
RELATED: Details of Alex and Buster Murdaugh’s jailhouse phone call released
According to Glatt, Alex also pressed Buster to leave flowers in his name at Maggie’s grave for Mother’s Day, and even followed up with Buster’s aunt to make sure he did it.
Alex’s attempts to cover his tracks caught up with him in the end. He’s currently serving two life terms with no chance of parole at the maximum security McCormick Correctional Institution in South Carolina.
