Several people were outraged when a picture from Paul and Maggie Murdaugh’s autopsy circulated on social media. According to Clifton Newman, the judge overseeing Alex Murdaugh’s murder trial said the photo was published from within the court.
The judge said:
“There’s a complaint now regarding the posting of autopsy photos that came from within the courtroom. Based on the direction of the photographs, it did not come from the audience it came from within the well of the court.”
The judge said that the court frequently seals such images to protect the parties’ privacy rights. He said:
“Of course one of the reasons that we’ve sought to seal graphic photos is because the parties have the right to privacy and a right to those matters not being publicly disclosed.”
Additionally, he compared to Vanessa Bryant, the wife of Kobe Bryant. Vanessa has filed a lawsuit against the city of Los Angeles for releasing images of the helicopter crash scene in which her husband and daughter perished:
“If anyone has heard about the recent settlement that Kobe Bryant’s wife just made with the Los Angeles County and others out there over certain disclosures involving the death of Kobe Bryant, liability can be substantial and it’s a risk for the most part, that’s not worth taking.”
How did Paul & Maggie Murdaugh Autopsy Photos Leaked?
When Medical University of South Carolina pathologist Dr. Ellen Reimer was being questioned on the stand during a live feed of the trial, the autopsy images of Paul and Maggie Murdaugh were unintentionally shown on one of the prosecutor’s screens.
At this one user said, “The live feed from the Murdaugh Trial showed a Maggie Murdaugh autopsy photo of a GSW that Harpootlian had lying face up on the podium.”
Jesus. The livefeed from the #MurdaughTrial showed a Maggie Murdaugh autopsy photo of a GSW that Harpootlian had lying face up on the podium. Then Poot flashed another one over his shoulder.
Was that deliberate? He seems to have self-corrected for discussion of Paul’s wounds.
— SpaceyG (@SpaceyG) February 27, 2023
Several trolls screenshotted the image and shared it online. A WGN representative addressed the issue and stated that the network did not operate the pool camera that took the pictures:
“During hearing the pool camera reacted slowly during the presentation of certain photographic evidence which was visible at a distance on-air for a few seconds. The pool camera was not operated by WGN-TV and we have since removed the video from our streaming platforms.”
Along with the judge, a number of social media users criticized the release of images of Paul and Maggie Murdaugh’s autopsy while some dubbing it “disgusting and horrific”. The horrifying image depicts Maggie Murdaugh dead with an entrance wound beneath her left ear.
Judge Newman publicly addressed the issue and denounced the distribution but on Twitter, citizens also called out those persons who were disseminating the images.
This man has posted autopsy pictures of Maggie & Paul Murdaugh. It’s against the court order. It’s disgusting & he is pathetic for doing this. Go to his post & report it! I did already & he blocked me. He may be getting scared. #MurdaughTrial @ScSolicitor1 pic.twitter.com/3l4AlynmuD
— Mom Reviews (@KellyW4s4bi) March 3, 2023
One Twitter user shared a tweet and said, “If you’ve got a heart, please take them down.”
It takes a special kind of piece of shit to post leaked autopsy photos of Maggie & Paul Murdaugh,
I don’t know who that POS is who leaked them but I did see a portion of an autopsy photo when Dick Harpootlian held it up in court.
If you’ve got a heart, please take them down.— Dawn Young-McDaniel ♿️ (@justdawn_) March 3, 2023
What Found in Paul & Maggie Murdaugh Autopsy Reports?
On June 7, 2021, Paul Murdaugh and his mother, Maggie were shot and died in the family’s estate’s dog kennels. On February 27, 2023, the defence introduced 14 witnesses including forensic pathologist Jonathan Eisenstat and a blood spatter specialist, Tim Palmbach.
Both witnesses describe graphic details of the autopsies of Paul and Maggie Murdaugh. According to Eisenstat’s testimony, he concluded his investigations that Paul Murdaugh was shot in the head from behind with the gun held on his head.
Throughout the testimony which featured horrible images of the victims’ bodies and autopsies, Alex Murdaugh could be heard sniffling and wiping his eyes. According to Eisenstat, Paul Murdaugh appears to have been shot from a high elevation with the rifle pointing downward.
Eisenstat did not make this claim as fact, but it is possible that the shooter was taller than Murdaugh. The shooter would have been smeared in bodily fluid and bullet debris given the shooting’s close proximity.
Alex Murdaugh contradicted his indictment which claimed that he had no blood on him in his evidence. Palmbach testified that the evidence points to a two-shooter scenario.
Crime Scene Analyst Tim Palmbach says he believes two shooters likely killed Paul and Maggie Murdaugh.
What do YOU think? ⚖️#CourtTV #MurdaughTrial pic.twitter.com/tyfgKYr2rs
— Court TV (@CourtTV) February 27, 2023
He claimed that if there had been only one gunman, the person who shot Paul Murdaugh would have been too shaken or injured by the explosion to shoot Maggie Murdaugh.
According to Palmbach, Maggie Murdaugh was shot with the rifle first and Paul Murdaugh with the shotgun. As a result, Palmbach briefly declared, “I think that particular shooter is out of this.”
On Thursday, March 2, 2023 evening, Murdaugh found guilty two counts of murder and two counts of possession of a weapon during the commission of a violent crime and he was sent to jail.
To know more about his punishment and how he found guilty, you can check out our below posts:
- What Was Alex Murdaugh’s Motive for Killing His Own Family?
- The ‘Monster Murdaugh’ Has Been Sent to Prison to Die
Have a look at the below post in which announced that Alex Murdaugh sentenced to spend his life in prison:
‘A MONSTER'” – Heartbreaking words by Judge Clifton Newman who just sentenced convicted heartless murderer Alex Murdaugh to life in prison. Watch. pic.twitter.com/7FHn8xjCmQ
— Simon Ateba (@simonateba) March 3, 2023
You can follow us on Twitter and read our other most recent pieces where we covered additional information if you want to stay up to date on information relating to these and other issues.
