Alex Murdaugh Alleges Court Clerk Tampered With Evidence For Book Deal, Seeks New Trial

Lawyers for Alex Murdaugh filed a motion in a request for a new trial alleging that the court clerk tampered with jurors so she could secure a book deal.

Attorneys Dick Harpootlian and Jim Griffin say the clerk, Rebecca Hill, pressured jurors to "reach a quick verdict" and had "frequent private conversations with the jury foreperson" to push the panel toward a guilty verdict.

Hill released a memoir "Behind the Doors of Justice: The Murdaugh Murders" last month.

"Ms. Hill did these things to secure for herself a book deal and media appearances that would not happen in the event of a mistrial," the filing adds. "Ms. Hill betrayed her oath of office for money and fame."

The filing also accuses Hill of warning jurors "not to be fooled by" Murdaugh's testimony and "misrepresenting critical and material information to the trial judge."

Murdaugh was sentenced in March to the maximum of two life terms for the murder of his wife Maggie, 52, and son Paul, 22.

(Tracy Glantz/The State/Tribune News Service via Getty Images)

Murdaugh was convicted on circumstantial evidence, as most murderers are. And while common sense suggests he was obviously the culprit, legal experts argued the prosecution failed to provide adequate evidence during the trial.

Fox News host Judge Jeanine Pirro told OutKick at the time of the trial that the lack of forensics could result in a hung jury.

"There is virtually no forensic evidence connecting the defendant to this particular murder," explained Piro.

The prosecutors also failed to present a persuasive motive for Murdaugh.

"Ultimately, people are going to disagree because they can’t understand why the guy would kill his son. Why would he blow his brains out?" added Piro.

For what it's worth, Murdaugh's surviving son, Buster, also says the trial was unfair and rigged against his father.

"I do not believe it was fair," Buster recently told Fox News anchor Martha MacCallum of his father's murder trial. "I was there for six weeks studying it, and I think it was a tilted table from the beginning. And I think, unfortunately, a lot of the jurors felt that way prior to when they had to deliberate." 

Harpootlian and Griffin will further detail their allegations against the clerk at a press conference on Monday.