MURDAUGH MURDER TRIAL 1/31/2023, NOTES.
This is a stream of thoughts and questions that I had watching the testimony on January 31, 2023. I will do an episode on this a bit later. Please note, I have done NO EDITING of my notes.
Shout out to @BasicBravoLovingBitch on Instagram who does a perfect one slide recap every day.
Weapons guy - SLED Special Agent Croft
Cross Examination of the SLED Special Agent Croft - weapons guy
Verizon guy - Michael Knich
Custodian of Records for Verizon.
He laid foundation for phone records for Alec, Maggie, Paul, Buster, Rogan, and ______.
Cross examination of the Verizon guy, Michael Kinch. By Attorney Mr. Harpootlian
The attorney was so confused and it confused the verizon guy.
MO: Mobile originated. Dialed out on Verizon's network. A phone call transpired over the Verizon network.
MT: If the subscriber answers the phone.
MF: Mobile forwarding - if someone called him and it forwarded to voicemail
MAGGIES RECORDS - The defense attorney made everything about this expert into a CLOWN. I felt bad for the guy on a personal level.
23:40 a call came to maggie’s phone and went voicemail
She made 2 outbound calls
Last call Maggie out: 19:50 (7:50 p.m.)
Last call Maggie Received and Answered
Then all voicemail calls after that.
But if the caller hangs up before the answerer can answer, it's a voicemail call.
Defense attorney asked if there were text message records. The guy was like yeah I gave them but we’re just not looking at them.
Verizon purges everything after 18 months.
Redirect:
Voicemail:
The phone can be turned off and it'll look the exact same
The phone can be on airplane mode
There’s no way to tell.
Direct examination of Charleston County Digital Forensic Examiner Paul McManigal.
He looks like Spock or whatever that bald guy is on the enterprise.
Task force agent for the secret service
No offense but didn't they just delete a bunch of records?????
Redacted the attorney client privilege comms from Alex Alec’s phone.
Cross examination:
Literally thought that guy was my dad and i had to rewind bc my dad is not a lawyer.
RE Phone:
“When you received this phone, was the battery completely dead?”
The phone was powered off
Did you charge it?
Yes.
John VanHouten: US Secret Service Agent
Yew Nighted StAytes Secret SERviceeee
21 years with the Columbia police department.
Phone was locked and SLED asked the secret service to unlock the device bc they couldn’t they don’t have the tool. (Cell Break Premium)
He talked about how hard it was to unlock the phone and their process of trying to unlock it themselves first and then letting the machine do it.
They let the machine do it bc Apple only allows so many attempts per day, and if they exhausted all of the 4 digit pins and the last one was correct it would take 68 days to unlocks.
If the pin code is 6 digits, it would take upwards of 19 years. - mumbles from courtroom like they were shook.
He didn’t examine the contents, he just got the data off the phone, put it on a hard drive, and then gave it to Britt Dove from SLED who will analyze it.
They put in it a “Fair Day” bag???
Because if they don’t when you turn it on someone can make it clear itself.
Cross Examination of John Van Houten
None at all!
It should be noted that the judge came in with a Lisa Barlow sized soda pop
Matter of Law:
BEFORE THE JURY COMES:
Attorney General is super weird.
Mr. Harpootlian brings up States Exhibit 299 receipt of property for paul murdaugh’s phone.
Bobby Bankraugh received it from david owens who gave it to R. Kelly, then Paul McManigal gave it to Brian Heddech, The point is that there are so many people in the chain of custody that havent testified yet.
He wants the chain of custody to be established by Prosecution.
AG is like look at the chain on paul's phone and there’s no objection to the chain of custody being into evidence. Admitted to the phone being in the custody of “couriers”
Is it fungible or non fungible.
Defense attorney says you cant tell one phone from another if theyre off… There is no identifying information on the phone or the chain of custody is says “Paul’s Phone”
AG says its not fungible bc what’s inside is unique.
Reasonable demonstration of the chain of custody is enough. Perfect chain of custody is not required.
Headnote 4: fungible
Direct examination of John Bedingfield, Capitan at the Department of Natural Resources.
This is a law enforcement position.
License to sell and manufacture firearms, side business and passion.
FFL Federal Firearms License.
Hes talking about what he does as an “arms dealer….”
He’s talking about how bullets fit into an AR--15 and the different calibers.
Murdaugh’s Grandma and his grandma are sisters.
In 12 of 2016 Alex Alec asked Cousin John about buying 2 guns for the boys to shoot hogs at.
These are the black and tan guns that were discussed earlier that Paul’s went missing.
My questions
I’m still wondering why we are here.
Alex Alec seemed to have an alibi of being at his mothers old folks home.
Alex Alec was clean and no bloody clothes were ever recovered.
Obviously two people are dead. But I cannot grasp a motive from the Prosecution.
The defense has made it clear that they think there are two shooters. But any time the defense points to the possibility the Prosecution’s experts argue back that its not possible like THEY’re the ones on trial.
THe last witness bothered me: it’s alec’s cousin, they grew up together, he’s Captain at Department of Natural Resources and an arms dealer. The gun thing is his passion…. Where does he run his business? Does he have an office? Is it his basement?
$9,188 for the two guns.
Defense Cross Examination:
Hogs are a severe nuisance
They root up the crops and woodlands and yards and are super destructive.
Estimates selling “a lot”
Discussed the family connection:
Went camping together
Fishing
Known him his entire life
What kind of relationship did he have with his kids?
Was excited they had a good relationship he was excited to get his boys christmas presents.
Re-cross:
Can you get your gun coated in color at any time?
Yes.
Direct Examination of Britt Dove, SLED Computer crime analyst.
Britt Dove is identical to the last 3 witnesses.
This guy sounds like he memorized his testimony.
He looked at maggies phone and used software to extract information.
He’s a good explainer.
He’s talking about how he got all of this data off the phones.
5 missed calls from Alex on Maggies phone.
