Before, we were introduced to Paul Murdaugh, in the previous episode of “Murdaugh Murders: A Southern Scandal,” an alcoholic brat with a wealthy father, Alex Murdaugh, a prominent South Carolina attorney. On February 24, the boat Paul Murdaugh was driving collided with a bridge on Archers Creek, injuring his friends severely, but one of his friends, Mallory, a 19-year-old girl, went missing. While his friends dialed 911, Paul instead spoke to his grandfather and blamed everything on Connor, claiming that he was the driver. Consequently, we might infer that Paul wasn’t just a careless drinker but also a wealthy despicable person with self-serving motives. Let’s see if Paul can get away with it in this instance.
Spoilers Ahead
Has Mallory Beach Ever Been Found?
Episode 2 of “Murdaugh Murders: A Southern Scandal” opens with the tragedy that followed Mallory’s disappearance. When Mallory’s family heard the news, they were unable to take it. They had no idea what they would do when they got there. Anthony chose to remain by the river’s edge because he was traumatized by his lover’s disappearance, while the other members of the group who were seriously injured were transported to the hospital. He was so in love with Mallory that he wanted to wait on the bank to see whether Mallory could walk out of the river. The families of the victims had already arrived at the hospital when Randolph and Alex Murdaugh came to visit Paul. They didn’t even inquire about Mallory since they were worried about Paul and tried to make sure that Connor was getting all the blame. Alex called Connor’s father and begged him to acknowledge that Connor was in charge of the boat. Connor was also conscious of Murdaugh’s plot to frame him while he was suffering from a mouth injury. Connor was aware that he was being set up for the crime, even though his parents refused to help the Murdaughs.
Miley, Morgan, and Anthony made the decision to cut ties with Paul after witnessing his indifference to Mallory’s abduction and the accident. It was obvious that the detectives working on the case and the rescue mission for Mallory Beach were Murdaugh accomplices because they made no meaningful effort to locate Mallory as soon as feasible. While Mallory’s family and friends were coping with the stress and were hopeful that Mallory would be rescued, the rescue team discovered Mallory’s lifeless corpse seven days after the crash, on March 3, in the water of the Beaufort River. Both Mallory’s friends and family were devastated. However, it turned out that the Murdaughs were trying to hide Paul’s involvement and didn’t care one bit about Mallory’s passing. While the inquiry was still ongoing, Mallory’s family recruited Mark Tinsley, an attorney, to thoroughly investigate who truly drove the boat that night. He examined all of the CCTV footage from the area around the bridge, where Paul could be seen clearly inebriated.
Mark looked into Paul’s blood alcohol level, which was three times the legal limit, as well as the phone logs, which only showed Paul calling his parents and grandfather. Even before a biomechanical model was created to depict the precise location of the passengers on the boat, it was obvious that Connor wasn’t operating the controls, because if he had, he wouldn’t have smashed severely into the side of the boat and suffered a jaw injury. Without a doubt, Paul Murdaugh was the driver of that boat that night. Three months after the accident, Paul Murdaugh was finally taken into custody. Morgan was determined never to return to their relationship because she had been humiliated and abused over the course of it. Prior to the crash, Paul had called Morgan derogatory names, which prompted Morgan to ultimately decide to end the relationship.
Unexpectedly, Paul received special treatment as he was being detained and hauled before the court. He wasn’t wearing the orange jumpsuit or being held in chains. Even his parents, who were present in court, didn’t appear overly concerned about the situation. Paul was accused of driving while intoxicated and causing physical harm, but he entered a not-guilty plea to all of the allegations. Following his court appearance, where he entered a not-guilty plea, Paul started residing at his house in Moselle and engaging in his customary drinking and partying. Paul showed not a bit of remorse over what had happened to Mallory, which was so unbearable to Morgan and her companions that they could not endure the fact that Paul was still partying and continuing his alcohol habits.
What Happened On June 7, 2021?
While the inquiry into the boat crash was ongoing, Alex Murdaugh called 911 at night on June 7, 2021, to report that his son Paul and wife Maggie had been shot and injured severely at their house in Moselle. When Alex discovered them, no one was breathing, indicating that they had been shot to death. Wall Street Journalist Valerie Bauerlien emphasized the findings that Maggie and Paul were killed by different guns. While Maggie was killed by a shotgun, Paul was killed by a less common rifle called an AR-style sporting rifle, which Alex Murdaugh owned. During the time of the murder, Alex claimed he went to his parent’s house that evening to check on his father, and when he returned at 10:15, he discovered that his wife and son had been shot to death. Even if Alex’s evidence did not refer to his presence during the crime, the homicidal weapons showed that these family weapons had been utilized in the crime.
So, presumably, if Alex Murdaugh had any kind of involvement in this case, Maggie had an extremely problematic relationship with Alex before she passed away; she even sought legal advice regarding divorce. Maggie hired a forensic accountant after realizing that many bills were going overdue. So, it might suggest that Alex and Maggie had a difficult relationship that contributed to Maggie’s passing. However, following Paul’s death, suspicion fell on his friends, Connor, Anthony, and Morgan, with rumors spreading that they were involved in the murder, which all of them categorically denied. Given the scandalous tendencies the Murdaugh family exhibited, there is no need to focus on anyone other than Alex himself when conducting an investigation. At the time, it was rumored that the Murdaughs were particularly adept at ‘disappearing people’. Meanwhile, several other past incidents came to light during the investigation into Paul and Maggie’s deaths, including the death of their housekeeper Gloria in 2018 and the murder case of Stephen Smith, a young boy, in 2015. Let us take a look at them in the final episode of “Murdaugh Murders: A Southern Scandal.”
