COLUMBIA, S.C. — Colleton County Clerk of Court Becky Hill is facing two state police investigations even as she is set to be the central figure in Alex Murdaugh's efforts to overturn his murder conviction.
The South Carolina Law Enforcement Division (SLED) confirmed to News19 Tuesday that they have two open investigation investigations involving Hill. One of the probes involves alleged intersections she may have had with the jury in Murdaugh's trial, while the other involves allegations she used her position for personal gain.
SLED had announced months ago they were looking into claims of jury tampering involving the Murdaugh trial. However, they had previously not said they were looking into any other misconduct claims surrounding Hill.
Murdaugh's attorneys are seeking a new murder tria for their client based on their claim that Colleton County Clerk of Court Hill tampered with the jury, making multiple prejudicial remarks. His attorneys said they heard from three jurors who said Hill told some of them not to trust Murdaugh when he testified in his defense. They said the court clerk, in charge of helping jurors and ensuring the trial ran efficiently, also had private conversations with the jury foreperson and pressured jurors to come to a quick verdict.
Hill has denied the claims.
The defense also argues that Hill's credibility is now in question, with the recent admission by one of her lawyers that she plagiarized material in her book about the trial. Sales of that book have now been stopped. And in November, Hill's son Jeffrey Hill, the former Colleton County information technology director, was charged with wiretapping. In warrants, SLED accused Jeffrey Hill of illegally listening in on a phone conversation he wasn't a part of back in July of 2023. The conversation was recorded, the warrant states, unbeknownst to either of the other parties.
Murdaugh's hearing to argue for a new trial begins on January 29 in Columbia and is expected to last three days. The presiding judge will be Jean Toal, the former South Carolina Supreme Court Chief Justice.
Murdaugh was convicted in March of 2023 of shooting to death his wife, Maggie Murdaugh, and his adult son, Paul Murdaugh, at the family's sprawling estate in Colleton County in June of 2021.
Murdaugh has also been convicted and sentenced in federal and state court for scores of financial crimes. He admitted to stealing millions from his clients and the law firm his family founded. In November, he was sentenced to 27 years on financial charges.
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