Court to determine if Alex Murdaugh has access to the money needed to appeal his murder conviction

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Attorneys for convicted double murderer Alex Murdaugh want to get paid as they get ready for his appeal.

Jim Griffin and Dick Harpootlian are asking the court for $160,000 to be transferred from an escrow account to pay for attorney’s fees and costs to appeal his recent convictions for murdering his wife Maggie and son Paul. A judge sentenced Murdaugh to two consecutive life sentences without parole on March 3.

Below file video: Investigators who responded to Murdaugh crime scene say his body language gave him away

The escrow was part of the Mallory Beach wrongful death lawsuit.

In a document filed March 21 in Hampton County Court, the defense lawyers wrote, “This court previously entered an order permitting Murdaugh to liquidate his 401(k)-retirement account with $600,000 of the funds to be used for the cost of defending the murders and related charges. The undersigned requests $160,000 to pay for fees and expenses to represent Murdaugh on appeal.”

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Murdaugh’s lawyers believe their client "has sufficient ...property to pay the undersigned, his counsel of choice, to represent him in the appeal of his convictions and sentences. As noted above, $424,941.24 from Murdaugh’s 401(k) retirement account was deposited into the Receivers’ escrow account. These funds are legitimate, untainted funds.”

An attorney representing some of the victims of Murdaugh’s financial crimes is pushing back.

Attorney Justin Bamberg wrote on Facebook, “on behalf of my clients … I will be formally OBJECTING to Alex Murdaugh’s request for an order directing the Receivers to transfer $160,000 from the Receiver’s escrow account to pay for attorney’s fees and costs to appeal his recent convictions …"

Murdaugh's lawyers also warned in their court document that if the court denied payment “the burden of representing Murdaugh will shift to the already overworked appellate public defenders.”

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