Has Alex Murdaugh ever admitted guilt?

Disgraced South Carolina attorney Alex Murdaugh was recently found guilty of the double murder of his wife and younger son. After a six-week trial that consisted of testimonies from dozens of witnesses, the jury reached a verdict after just 45 minutes of deliberation. The next morning, Murdaugh was sentenced to two consecutive life sentences. Throughout the trial, Murdaugh maintained his innocence. Has he ever confessed his guilt? Here’s what we know.

Not only has Alex Murdaugh never admitted he was guilty of killing his wife Maggie and son Paul, but he has also doubled down on his innocence. During his testimony, Murdaugh was asked by his attorney if he used a gun to “blow your son’s brains out.” In response, Murdaugh said vehemently, “I never shot my wife or my son.”

He admitted to lying to law enforcement on several occasions, particularly about where he was the night Maggie and Paul Murdaugh were killed. Initially, Murdaugh told authorities he was taking a nap and then drove to his ailing mother’s home while his wife and son went downstairs to visit their dogs in the kennels on the property’s grounds, where they were fatally shot. However, a Snapchat video recorded by Paul recorded Murdaugh’s voice in the kennel when Maggie and Paul were killed. Several witnesses testified that this was his voice, and Murdaugh later admitted he lied.

“I wasn’t thinking straight on June 7,” Murdaugh testified. “I don’t think I could be sane… and I lied about being down there. And I’m so sorry I did it.” He attributed his fuzzy thinking to an alleged addiction to painkillers and a general paranoia he felt about the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division.

The jury found the video was enough to convict him. Later during the sentencing hearing, Murdaugh again pleaded his innocence. “I’m innocent. I would never hurt my wife Maggie and I would never hurt my son Paw-Paw.”

“I stole money that wasn’t my money, I misled people I shouldn’t have misled and I acted wrongly,” he said during his double murder trial. According to the BBC“Murdaugh faces 99 state indictments alleging the theft of at least $8 million in settlement funds from clients at his law firm, money laundering and tax evasion.”

Per CNNthese charges consist of “32 counts of embezzlement, 21 counts of computer crime, 14 counts of money laundering, 11 counts of obtaining signatures or property under false pretenses, nine counts of tax evasion, seven counts of conspiracy, three counts of false testimony or misrepresentation and two counts of forgery.” Although Murdaugh admits to these allegations, he has yet to formally file a plea.

His attorney plans to appeal the double murder conviction. Murdaugh’s financial crimes were used as evidence so long as they “fit the motive”. Defense attorney Dick Harpootlian believes the jury decided who he was, not actual evidence. “When they got that character information – ‘He’s a thief, he’s a liar’ – this jury had to think he’s a despicable human being and they shouldn’t be believed,” Harpootlian said.