Murdaugh's lawyers deny he lied on polygraph test. They want to debate it in open court

COLUMBIA, S.C.— Lawyers for convicted killer and multimillion-dollar fraudster Alex Murdaugh launched a robust attack Thursday on a claim by federal prosecutors that Murdaugh flunked a lie detector test and is therefore eligible for a stiffer federal prison sentence.

Murdaugh “denies the allegation” that he broke a plea deal agreement by giving deceptive answers to an FBI polygraph operator last fall to questions about financial thefts and another unnamed lawyer the government is investigating, defense lawyers asserted in filings in U.S. District Court Thursday afternoon.

Furthermore, Murdaugh’s lawyers said in the filings they want to make public Murdaugh’s interviews with the polygraph examiner and prosecutors, adding the entire polygraph dispute should be aired in open court. Any sensitive matters can easily be redacted, Murdaugh lawyers say.

“The public has a right to know the truth of the matter through judicial proceedings that are open and transparent, not closed and sealed,” Murdaugh’s lawyers wrote.

“To allow the Government to publicly accuse Murdaugh of breaching his plea agreement while also allowing the Government to hide all purported evidence supporting that accusation from the public would violate the public’s right to the truth,” Murdaugh’s lawyers wrote.

That position contrasts with that of government prosecutors, who said in a court filing earlier this week they want the entire transcripts of the Murdaugh interviews and polygraph session sealed to prevent harm to an ongoing federal investigation that involves a lawyer they did not identify.

The dispute could be aired at an upcoming hearing involving Murdaugh.

On Monday, April 1, U.S. Judge Richard Gergel is scheduled to hold a sentencing hearing for Murdaugh, who pleaded guilty last September to a host of federal financial crimes Murdaugh committed over more than 10 years. He stole millions from his law firm, clients, friends and his own brother, who is a lawyer in the law firm founded by their great-grandfather.

In their Tuesday filing, prosecutors asked Gergel to void a plea deal in which Murdaugh agreed to plead guilty last fall to numerous financial crimes that netted Murdaugh more than $9 million.

Under terms of that plea deal, Murdaugh’s guilty plea — in September 2023 — is still valid.

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