Showdown over evidence, leaks looming in Alex Murdaugh case

By JEFFREY COLLINS
Associated Press

COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — A showdown between defense attorneys for disbarred lawyer Alex Murdaugh who say prosecutors are unfairly withholding evidence and those prosecutors who want the defense to agree to secrecy rules first is heading for a courtroom next week. In their latest court filing, defense lawyers said the secrecy rules as Murdaugh awaits a murder trial in the shooting deaths of his wife and younger son are hypocritical. The defense says prosecutors are leaking evidence to media outlets, including a video the leaker said was taken not long before the killings. Prosecutors, including South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson himself, denied the leaks. A hearing about the matter is scheduled for Monday at the Colleton County courthouse.