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Alex Murdaugh Sentenced to Life successful Prison for Murdering Wife and Son
A lot happened betwixt the greeting successful 2015 that 19-year-old Stephen Smith was recovered lying successful the mediate of the roadworthy and the day—almost 8 years later—that authorities confirmed they were investigating his decease arsenic a homicide.
"As a parent there's questions that I request to ask," his mother, Sandy Smith, said March 20 on TODAY. "And there's questions I request answers to." She said she didn't cognize who's responsible, "but I privation to find retired wherefore you did it and who you are."
The South Carolina Law Enforcement Division (SLED) opened a caller probe into Stephen's decease successful June 2021, days after Paul Murdaugh, 22, and his parent Maggie Murdaugh, 52, were recovered changeable to death, stating that the determination was "based upon accusation gathered during the people of the treble execution investigation."
Authorities person yet to accidental what that accusation was, nor person they implicated immoderate subordinate of the Murdaugh household successful what happened to Stephen, but it wasn't the archetypal clip that the 2 names had been associated: The 2015 case file first unearthed by FITSnews two years agone contained dozens of mentions of Paul's older brother, Buster Murdaugh.
Then and since, Buster has denied having thing to do with what happened to Stephen, calling speculation that helium was progressive successful his decease "vicious rumors." He has ne'er been named arsenic a fishy oregon charged with immoderate crime.
Meanwhile, his father, Alex Murdaugh, was sentenced to beingness successful prison past period for the murders of woman Maggie and lad Paul. (He has maintained his innocence and his attorneys filed a announcement of entreaty days aft helium was found blameworthy of murder connected March 2.)
But the probe into Stephen's decease continues. On April 3, his household announced $35,000 reward for accusation oregon a extremity that leads to an apprehension successful the case.
Kacen Bayless/The State/Tribune News Service via Getty Images
What happened to Stephen Smith?
Early connected the morning of July 8, 2015, Smith was recovered lying facedown successful the mediate of Sandy Run Road, a two-lane agelong cutting done agrarian Hampton County, S.C., according to a study compiled by the South Carolina Highway Patrol Multi-Disciplinary Accident Investigation Team (MAIT). The study said that a passing operator had called 9-1-1 astatine 3:57 a.m.
Smith's vehicle, a yellow 2013 Chevrolet Aveo, was parked off of Highway 601 astir 3 miles away, the car's state vessel doorway unfastened and the state headdress dangling, per a 2015 SLED report obtained by section NBC affiliate WIS. The Aveo's artillery was functioning but the car wouldn't start, the study noted. Investigators stated successful the study that they believed Stephen had been walking location erstwhile the incidental occurred.
But from the beginning, not everyone was connected the aforesaid leafage astir what they were looking at. And his household told investigators that the nursing student, who had been connected his mode location from a nighttime people astatine Orangeburg Technical College, would ne'er have been walking successful the mediate of the road.
"I saw nary conveyance debris, skid marks, oregon injuries accordant with idiosyncratic being struck by a vehicle," South Carolina Highway Patrol Cpl. D.B. Rowell wrote in the archetypal July 8, 2015, incident report obtained by NBC News. "The victim's shoes were loosely tied and some were inactive on. After consulting with MAIT, we spot nary grounds to suggest the unfortunate was struck by a vehicle."
Smith's telephone and car keys were successful his pocket, and determination was besides nary solid oregon debris successful the roadworthy by the body, according to investigators.
The SLED study also noted what looked similar a "defensive wound" connected Smith's near manus and injuries to his near limb and head, per WIS. "A spread successful the skull was located supra the victim's close eye," the study stated. "It was inactive unclear astatine this clip whether the spread arsenic caused by a projectile."
Kacen Bayless/The State/Tribune News Service via Getty Images
Why was Stephen Smith's decease primitively called a hit-and-run?
Dr. Erin Presnell, the pathologist who performed Smith's autopsy successful 2015, determined cause of decease to beryllium blunt unit trauma to the caput from being deed by a centrifugal vehicle. She speculated successful her report that the fatal wounded could person been inflicted by a vehicle's mirror.
The manner of decease was listed arsenic "undetermined" (as opposed to being ruled an mishap oregon a homicide).
In a MAIT report obtained by FITSnews, South Carolina Highway Patrol investigator Todd Proctor detailed a July 22, 2015, speech with Presnell, penning that she "had nary evidence" different than Stephen being recovered successful the roadworthy to reason helium was deed by a car. "She asked wherefore we did not deliberation it was a conveyance onslaught and I explained to her that we had nary grounds of this idiosyncratic being struck by a vehicle."
Proctor also asked the pathologist if the caput trauma could person been caused by a shot bat, according to his notes in the report. She said no, helium wrote, but past erstwhile asked if a bat being held retired the model of a moving conveyance could person caused the aforesaid injury, she said, 'Well, I conjecture it's possible.'"
She besides called her findings "preliminary," the study continued, and told Proctor that it was up to him to fig retired what, exactly, deed Stephen.
Proctor also noted in the MAIT report that Hampton County Coroner Ernie Washington—who, per the report, was among the investigators who saw Stephen's assemblage astatine the scene of the incident—told him on Aug. 18, 2015, that helium disagreed with the decision that Stephen was deed by a moving vehicle.
(Presnell, who is now director of the pathology section astatine the Medical University of South Carolina, has not commented on the renewed scrutiny of her findings successful the Smith case, but different doc she helped bid told The State last week that coroners are the ones who talk publicly and pathologists don't usually remark connected cases unless they're called to attest successful court.)
How did the Murdaugh household get connected to the Stephen Smith decease investigation?
From the beginning, Stephen's parents Joel and Sandy Smith had their doubts astir the authoritative mentation for their son's death.
"It conscionable doesn't marque consciousness to me," Sandy told Bluffton Today in November 2015. "He was struck successful the caput by a motortruck mirror? I conscionable can't spot that happening, helium would person got retired of the way. The reports authorities that helium was walking successful the mediate of the roadworthy and was recovered 2.7 miles distant from his car. The mode his assemblage was laying successful the road, with his limb dislocated and bent backmost down his body, I conscionable don't judge that helium was struck by the reflector of a vehicle."
In the caller Netflix docuseries Murdaugh Murders, Will Folks of FITSnews recalled getting a tip aft Paul and Maggie Murdaugh were killed to cheque retired the road patrol study from Stephen's death. As Folks soon learned, the sanction Murdaugh was noted astatine least 40 times by authorities successful the months pursuing the incident, including a notation successful the archetypal patrol report.
Former Wade Hampton High School subject teacher Sam Crews recalled successful Murdaugh Murders that Stephen tutored Buster a bit, and some helium and Paul's erstwhile woman Morgan Doughty said successful the series that there were rumors at the clip that the teens, who some graduated successful 2014, mightiness person been much than friends. Which, according to Morgan, wouldn't person sat good with the remainder of the Murdaughs.
"Stephen was successful the process of discovering himself and his sexuality," ma Sandy told Bluffton Today in 2015. "He was gay."
Describing what she had heard from radical purporting to cognize what happened to her son, Sandy continued, "They took him from his car; everybody knew his car due to the fact that helium had the ugliest small 'banana' successful town. These boys were coming from a shot crippled and I deliberation that they were close down him, truthful erstwhile helium had to propulsion over, they were close there. I conscionable don't judge my lad would person been walking successful the mediate of the roadworthy similar that. He would person seen headlights coming and got disconnected the road. It conscionable doesn't marque immoderate sense. The worst portion is that immoderate of the individuals liable were Stephen's classmates."
Kacen Bayless/The State/Tribune News Service via Getty Images
Also in Murdaugh Murders, Hampton County Guardian reporter Michael Dewitt recalled proceeding successful the months pursuing Stephen's decease that the almighty Murdaugh household was someway progressive and had enactment unit connected authorities to spell with the hit-and-run theory. (Alex and different household members person denied trying to power outcomes of instrumentality enforcement investigations.)
According to documents obtained by FITSnews, Sandy alleged successful a missive she wrote to the FBI dated Sept. 28, 2016, that the probe had been "deliberately derailed."
"The Murdaughs are astir apt the astir salient household successful Hampton County," Sandy wrote. "Stephen had connected much than 1 juncture mentioned to friends and his duplicate sister that helium was progressive romantically with idiosyncratic from a salient household successful the region who was hiding his sexuality. He said it would daze radical to cognize this idiosyncratic was gay. We fishy this could beryllium the young antheral Stephen was referring to, though helium ne'er named him."
Joshua Boucher/The State/Tribune News Service via Getty Images
What has Buster Murdaugh said astir the Stephen Smith case?
"I person tried my champion to disregard the vicious rumors astir my engagement successful Stephen Smith's tragic decease that proceed to beryllium published successful the media arsenic I grieve implicit the brutal murders of my parent and brother," Buster said successful a March 20 statement to NBC News. "I emotion them truthful overmuch and miss them terribly."
He continued, "I haven't spoken up until present due to the fact that I privation to unrecorded successful backstage portion I header with their deaths and my father's incarceration."
Saying helium had been "targeted and harassed" by the media, helium concluded, "This has gone connected acold excessively long. These baseless rumors of my engagement with Stephen and his decease are false. I unequivocally contradict immoderate engagement successful his death, and my bosom goes retired to the Smith family."
Randy Murdaugh, Alex's older brother, told the New York Times after his sibling was convicted of execution that the household is focused connected supporting Buster.
What has happened since authorities called Stephen Smith's decease a homicide?
"This is what I've been warring for, and I'm yet getting it," Sandy told CNN's Anderson Cooper March 22 aft authorities confirmed Stephen's decease was being investigated arsenic a homicide. "I'm unfastened to the grounds and the lone quality I had was that it was not a hit-and-run. That's what I've been saying from the beginning. I felt my lad was murdered."
Lawyers for the Smith household said astatine a quality league that they had "no cognition astatine each astir Buster oregon the Murdaughs having thing to bash with this close now. We're starting with a caller acceptable of eyes."
Kacen Bayless/The State/Tribune News Service via Getty Images
SLED said successful a connection obtained by NBC News that "the extremity has been to find retired however Mr. Smith died and find the person(s) liable for his death." Additional agents had been assigned to the case "in the hopes that those who whitethorn cognize what happened to Mr. Smith are much consenting to talk freely present than they whitethorn person been successful 2015 oregon 2021."
SLED Chief Mark Keel went a measurement further, telling The State, "We bash judge it was a murder. We don't judge it was a hit-and-run."
The Smith household subsequently raised capable wealth done a GoFundMe to person Stephen's assemblage exhumed and a caller autopsy performed earlier this month. They person not yet shared immoderate findings. After the money reached $43,000, Sandy expressed acknowledgment connected the tract to each of their supporters for "not allowing Stephen's communicative to beryllium swept nether a rug."
And with investigators present focused connected her family's case, she told NBC News, "It's Stephen's year."
