Additional Coverage:
- Alex Murdaugh court clerk who wrote book pleads guilty to leaking sealed crime scene photos (the-independent.com)
Former Murdaugh Trial Clerk Pleads Guilty to Obstruction, Perjury, and Misconduct
COLLETON COUNTY, SC – Rebecca “Becky” Hill, the former Colleton County clerk of court who played a prominent role in the high-profile Alex Murdaugh double murder trial, pleaded guilty Monday to criminal charges including obstruction of justice and perjury. Hill admitted to showing sealed crime scene photographs to a journalist and later lying about it under oath.
In Colleton County Circuit Court, Hill also confessed to two counts of misconduct in office. These charges stemmed from her acceptance of nearly $10,000 in federal child support collection bonuses and an additional $2,000 from the Clerk of Court’s office. Furthermore, she acknowledged using her public position to promote a book she authored about the Murdaugh trial.
Judge Heath Taylor sentenced Hill to three years of probation, emphasizing that a more severe punishment would have been imposed had prosecutors found evidence of jury tampering during the Murdaugh trial.
“There is no excuse for the mistakes I made. I’m ashamed of them,” Hill stated briefly to the court, requesting an opportunity for redemption.
Hill’s responsibilities during the six-week Murdaugh trial, which concluded in 2023 with Murdaugh’s conviction for the murders of his wife Maggie and son Paul, included overseeing the jury, managing exhibits, and assisting the judge. The case garnered international attention due to its focus on power, wealth, and a once-dominant legal dynasty in a small South Carolina county.
Solicitor Rick Hubbard informed the court on Monday that investigators were alerted after a journalist reported Hill displaying graphic crime scene photos to members of the media. The images subsequently appeared online, with metadata matching a time when Hill’s courthouse key card records indicated her presence in the secured exhibit room.
A second warrant detailed Hill’s false testimony to now-retired Justice Jean Toal during a January 2024 hearing. When asked, “Did you allow anyone from the press to view the sealed exhibits?” Hill had denied the accusation.
The misconduct in office charges also involved allegations that Hill used county funds to purchase dozens of lunches for her staff, prosecutors, and a vendor, and allowed a photograph of Murdaugh in a holding cell to be taken to promote her book. She also faced 76 counts of ethics violations last May.
Murdaugh’s legal team has been actively appealing his life-without-parole sentence, alleging that Hill attempted to influence jurors to vote guilty and harbored bias against Murdaugh due to her book. While an initial appeal of his murder convictions was denied, retired Justice Jean Toal later expressed doubts about Hill’s credibility, describing her as being “attracted by the siren call of celebrity.”
Prosecutors confirmed their investigation into these claims found no evidence of jury tampering. While three jurors or alternates reported concerns about Hill’s behavior, 11 others stated she did nothing improper. “SLED interviewed the remaining 11 jurors – none of them corroborated the testimony of the three jurors who claim Hill inappropriately attempted to influence Alex Murdaugh’s murder trial,” Hubbard testified.
In addition to his murder conviction, Murdaugh is serving a separate decades-long prison sentence after admitting to stealing millions of dollars from clients and his family’s law firm.
Hill resigned in March 2024, citing the intense public scrutiny of the Murdaugh trial and a desire to spend time with her grandchildren. Her resignation occurred in the final year of her four-year term.