A bomb threat was called in Wednesday to the South Carolina courthouse hosting the double murder trial of Alex Murdaugh while proceedings were taking place, court officials said.
The threat prompted Circuit Court Judge Clifton Newman to announce just before 12:30 p.m. that “we have to evacuate the building at this time. We’ll be in recess until we discover what’s going on.”
He sent jurors to an early lunch and ordered them back by 2:30 p.m. — but it’s possible the trial will not reconvene Wednesday.
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The South Carolina Law Enforcement Division said Colleton County Courthouse personnel received the threat, and that the agency is investigating along with the Colleton County Sheriff’s Office.
“The Colleton Sheriff’s Office urges citizens to use an alternate route of travel and will update traffic conditions as needed,” the sheriff’s office said in a statement.
Murdaugh, 54, is accused of fatally shooting his wife, Margaret, 52, and their youngest son, Paul, 22, on the evening of June 7, 2021, in a case that has captured national attention.
The trial began three weeks ago.
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