The co-author who worked with Colleton County Clerk of Court Becky Hill to publish a book about Alex Murdaugh’s murder trial now says his share of proceeds from book sales will be donated to charities in South Carolina’s Low Country.
A signed copy of Becky Hill’s book is inscribed “XOXO.” (Court TV)
Neil Gordon wrote “Behind the Doors of Justice” with Hill and released the book shortly after the trial ended. The pair self-published the book, which Hill recently admitted to plagiarizing portions of.
Hill was thrust into the national spotlight after the trial ended when Murdaugh’s defense attorneys filed a motion seeking a new trial that accused her of jury tampering. In the motion, Murdaugh’s attorneys allege that Hill made inappropriate comments to the jury that suggested Murdaugh’s guilt.
There have also been reports of ethics investigations into Hill for allegedly using her position as clerk to promote her book. Court TV obtained letters sent to and from the South Carolina State Ethics Commission where Hill had questioned whether it would be a problem for her to write a book about the Murdaugh case.
READ MORE: Court clerk Becky Hill apologizes for plagiarizing book on Murdaugh murders
Though early on Gordon was a vocal supporter of Hill’s, things took a turn in December when he discovered the plagiarism. Though Gordon once told Court TV, “It was an honor for me to work with someone with such integrity and character as Becky Hill,” he had very different things to say when he returned to talk to Vinnie Politan on Closing Arguments on Jan. 8.
“Really disappointed. Really shocked, I felt betrayed,” Gordon said. “Sometimes, Vinnie, in life you think you know someone, and then other things occur, and maybe it wasn’t the person that you thought that they were.”
Immediately upon learning about the plagiarism, Gordon announced his intention to stop selling the book, but quickly learned that unpublishing a book isn’t so simple.
“When Becky Hill’s husband ‘unpublished’ our book, Kindle and audio book online Dec. 22, we were under the impression that sales would cease immediately,” Gordon said in an news release. “When sales continued, we examined our publishing agreement, and discovered it takes more time to remove a book from circulation.”
The book Becky Hill co-authored with Neil Gordon was pulled from shelves after Gordon found alleged plagiarism. (Court TV)
Gordon said that since his first attempt to unpublish the book, nearly 900 more were sold. His net royalties for his share come out to approximately $2.50 per book, which Gordon has announced he intends to donate to the Low Country charities.
“We want this money that came out of a bad choice to be used for good,” Gordon said.
All proceeds from book sales after Dec. 22 will be donated.
