Skip to content
Alex Murdaugh— Case Archive
2023 Murder Trialtrial-daytrial-dayJohn B. ConradJohnny E. JamesJohn MeadorsCreighton WatersPhillip D. BarberJim GriffinBrian HudakDwight FalkofskeMegan FletcherAnnette GriswoldMichael Gunncrossredirectrecrossdirectvoir_direDay 11 - February 8, 2023Residue testimony emphasized an unusual interior jacket concentration but could not date its deposit. Griswold identified three voices and described financial irregularities, while FBI vehicle logs showed park-state events with significant interpretive limits.
← Day 102023 Murder TrialDay 12 →

Day 11 - February 8, 2023

Jacket Residue, Griswold's Account, and Suburban Data

Judge Clifton B. Newman
13Proceedings
5Pages
5Witnesses
1,896Lines
Day 11 of 27
Appearing:
John B. Conrad Johnny E. James John Meadors Creighton Waters Phillip D. Barber Jim Griffin Brian Hudak Dwight Falkofske Megan Fletcher Annette Griswold Michael Gunn

Residue testimony emphasized an unusual interior jacket concentration but could not date its deposit. Griswold identified three voices and described financial irregularities, while FBI vehicle logs showed park-state events with significant interpretive limits.

Full day summary

Gunshot-residue examiner Megan Fletcher testified that the blue rain jacket contained 52 confirmed characteristic particles, including an unusual concentration of 38 on its interior. She agreed that residue could transfer from a previously fired firearm and that her analysis could not establish how or when the particles were deposited. Annette Griswold described financial irregularities she encountered while working as Alex Murdaugh's paralegal, including a Faris fee check bearing mobile-deposit markings and instructions to make checks payable to Forge rather than Forge Consulting. She also identified Paul, Maggie, and Alex Murdaugh as the three voices in State's Exhibit 297. The court admitted Murdaugh's text in Exhibit 441 over defense objections after offering a redaction that the defense declined. Michael Gunn testified that Forge Consulting had not authorized Murdaugh to use its name and that the Bank of America account identified in State's Exhibit 335 was not a Forge Consulting account. FBI specialist Dwight Falkofske then explained the extraction of encrypted data from the Suburban. The logs showed the vehicle out of park from about 9:06:50 to 9:22:45 p.m., but he cautioned that they did not establish movement or identify an occupant; he also described an unexplained recording gap after a later out-of-park entry.

Video thumbnail8:29:50
Watch →

1. Megan Fletcher — Cross/Redirect/Recross

Day 13 opened with Megan Fletcher addressing the persistence, transfer, and limits of gunshot-residue evidence, including the unusual concentration of particles inside a blue rain jacket.

→
Cross
Megan FletcherJim Griffin
216 lines

Megan Fletcher agreed that gunshot residue can persist and transfer, could not date or identify the source of particles on the seatbelt buckle or blue rain jacket, and explained why a related blue tarp was not tested.

Redirect
Megan FletcherJohn Meadors
48 lines

Megan Fletcher reported 52 characteristic GSR particles on the blue rain jacket—14 outside and 38 inside—and described the interior concentration as unusual and large while limiting transfer from a recently fired firearm to a possibility.

Recross
Megan FletcherJim Griffin
16 lines

Megan Fletcher agreed that microscopy could not establish how or when residue was deposited and explained that rimfire ammunition can produce varying residue compositions.

Highlights

Megan Fletcher - Cross“Yes, sir. I cannot tell you when that particle was deposited.”— Megan FletcherFletcher acknowledged that the single seatbelt-buckle particle could not be dated.Megan Fletcher - Redirecttestimony highlightFletcher clarified that the jacket had 52 confirmed characteristic particles in total, with 14 on the exterior and 38 on the interior.Megan Fletcher - RecrossadmissionFletcher agreed that microscopy showed what she observed but could not establish how or when the residue got there.

2. Annette Griswold — Direct/Cross/Redirect

Annette Griswold testified about financial discrepancies she discovered while working as Alex Murdaugh’s paralegal, identified Alex, Maggie, and Paul Murdaugh as the voices in State’s Exhibit 297, and described Murdaugh’s family relationships and demeanor on cross-examination. The court also admitted Murdaugh’s September 2021 text message over defense objections.

→
Direct
Annette GriswoldCreighton Waters
321 lines

Annette Griswold described suspicious Forge and Faris fee disbursements, an unresolved law-firm inquiry on June 7, and her September discovery of a deposited fee check in Alex Murdaugh's office.

Procedural
Exhibit 441 Admissibility Argument and Ruling

The court admitted State's Exhibit 441 as a party-opponent statement, offered a rehabilitation-related redaction that the defense declined, denied a renewed motion to strike the financial evidence, and declined to repeat a limiting instruction at that juncture.

Direct
Annette GriswoldCreighton Waters
30 lines

Annette Griswold described Alex Murdaugh's customary phone use, identified Paul, Maggie, and Alex as the voices in State's Exhibit 297, and read an excerpt from his text message in State's Exhibit 441.

Cross
Annette GriswoldJim Griffin
161 lines

Annette Griswold described Alex Murdaugh as family-oriented but difficult to work for, recounted his changed demeanor after the killings, and explained her fear over reporting the Faris check before reading Exhibit 441 in full.

Redirect
Annette GriswoldCreighton Waters
26 lines

Annette Griswold said Alex Murdaugh remained professionally trusted until her discovery of the Faris fee check showed her that he had lied and stolen the money.

Highlights

Annette Griswold - Directevidence eventShe testified that on September 2 she found a Faris fee check made payable to Richard Alexander Murdaugh with mobile-deposit markings, took it to Seckinger, and learned Murdaugh was fired the next day as the firm began a broader review.Annette Griswold - Direct (Continued)evidence eventAfter State's Exhibit 297 was played, Griswold identified the voices she heard as Paul Murdaugh, Maggie Murdaugh, and Alex Murdaugh and said she was 100 percent sure.Annette Griswold - Direct (Continued)“I hear Paul Murdaugh, Maggie Murdaugh, and Alex Murdaugh.”— Annette GriswoldGriswold expressly identified all three voices she recognized in State's Exhibit 297.

5. Michael Gunn — Direct/Cross (Recall)

Michael Gunn addressed legitimate Forge Consulting settlement work and Alex Murdaugh’s unauthorized use of the Forge name, then described the Murdaugh family in professional and social settings.

→
Direct
Michael GunnJohnny E. James
215 lines

Michael Gunn explained legitimate structured-settlement practices, described an unfunded Deon Martin proposal and Lee Cope's client-file inquiries, and testified that Murdaugh's DBA Forge account was not a Forge Consulting account.

Cross
Michael GunnJim Griffin
77 lines

Michael Gunn described his limited social relationship with the Murdaughs, their family attendance at legal conventions, and Alex's visibly upset demeanor after Maggie and Paul's funeral.

Highlights

Michael Gunn - Directevidence eventAfter denying that Murdaugh had permission to use the Forge name, Gunn identified State's Exhibit 335 as a Bank of America statement for an account that was not a Forge Consulting account.

6. Brian Hudak — Direct

Brian Hudak testified about removing the Suburban’s infotainment and OnStar modules, documenting their custody, and transferring them to the FBI before an evacuation and lunch recess interrupted the examination.

→
Direct
Brian HudakJohn B. Conrad
113 lines

Brian Hudak explained SLED's inability to examine the Suburban's system, authenticated custody records for its infotainment and OnStar modules, and identified the modules before they were marked for identification only.

7. Dwight Falkofske — Direct/Cross/Voir Dire

FBI automotive forensic specialist Dwight Falkofske explained the extraction and limits of encrypted Suburban data before cross-examination paused for review of a device-history printout.

→
Voir Dire
Dwight FalkofskeJohn B. Conrad
44 lines

FBI electronics engineer Dwight Falkofske described his automotive-data extraction work and was qualified without defense objection as an automotive forensic specialist.

Direct
Dwight FalkofskeJohn B. Conrad
523 lines

FBI engineer Dwight Falkofske explained the Suburban's encrypted logs, test-vehicle validation, 911 call entries, and park-state timeline while stressing that the data could not prove movement or identify an occupant.

Cross
Dwight FalkofskePhillip D. Barber
54 lines

Falkofske limited what could be inferred from the Suburban's infotainment logs and required the original data before validating a defense device-history printout.

Highlights

Dwight Falkofske - Directtestimony highlightThe vehicle logs showed the engine running at about 9:06:49 to 9:06:50 p.m., the Suburban shifted out of park at 9:06:50 p.m., and returned to park at 9:22:45 p.m. Falkofske said the vehicle could have moved during that approximately sixteen-minute interval but that he had no evidence from these logs that it did.Dwight Falkofske - Directtestimony highlightFalkofske identified an out-of-park entry at 10:13:39 p.m. with no matching return-to-park message. He said testing showed the system sometimes stopped recording messages for an unclear reason and reiterated that the data could not establish movement or identify who was in the vehicle.Dwight Falkofske - Direct“We found during the testing of our test vehicle that there are times when the system decides to temporarily stop recording a message. The reason is not clear.”— Dwight FalkofskeThe testimony identifies an unexplained recording gap that limits interpretation of the final out-of-park entry.
← Day 102023 Murder TrialDay 12 →