SHAMED legal heir Alex Murdaugh has been sentenced to life in prison.
The disbarred South Carolina attorney was found guilty of the June 2021 murders of his wife Maggie and his youngest son Paul.
On Friday, South Carolina Circuit Judge Clifton Newman handed Murdaugh, 54, two life sentences.
Newman slammed Murdaugh for "engaging in duplicitous conduct" in the courtroom and when testifying on the witness stand.
The judge also said that drugs may have turned Murdaugh into a "monster."
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He said: "It might not have been you, it might be the monster you become when you take... opioids."
Prosecutor Creighton Waters described Murdaugh as a "cunning manipulator" and said he showed a "lack of remorse."
He said: "No one knew who he really was, and that's chilling.
"This family has suffered and they have had to suffer in the public eye.
"The reality remains that despite all this attention, this case is about Maggie Murdaugh and Paul Murdaugh."
Murdaugh said he was innocent before being sentenced.
He said: "I would never under any circumstances hurt my wife Maggie and hurt my son Paul Paul."
Footage captured by News Nation's Brian Entin showed Murdaugh leaving the courthouse in prison overalls.
Jurors in the case reached their conclusion following a deliberation that lasted less than three hours.
After the sentencing, Murdaugh's defense attorneys, Dick Harpootlian and Jim Griffin, held a news conference.
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The two attorney's told reporters that they plan to file an appeal within 10 days, and will take the case to federal court if need be.
The men were particularly frustrated with the characterization of their defendant through the trial.
"Every other financial misdeed that they could bring in over the last 10 to 15 years was allowed in, and we strongly objected, we respect the judges decision but we believe that was an erroneous decision," they said.
When asked is they are making an effort to find the "real killer', Harpootlian shot back, "It's not our job to find the real killer."
"It was a comedy of errors in terms of forensics on this," he complained, adding that that investigators should have taken footprints, gotten fingerprints, and preserved Maggie's phone.
A QUICK VERDICT
Jurors found the disgraced lawyer guilty after hearing how he shot his son Paul's head off with a shotgun near the family's dog kennels before grabbing a rifle and executing his wife Maggie.
For 20 months, Murdaugh denied being at the scene of the crime - until cell phone video filmed at the kennels proved otherwise and the lawyer dramatically changed his story on the witness stand.
Craig Moyer, a juror, told ABC News that the video helped convict the disgraced attorney, saying he "was certain it was [Murdaugh's] voice" in the clip.
The footage was taken by Paul, 22, shortly before he was killed.
Moyer claimed that jurors reached a decision in 45 minutes to an hour.
Waters said "justice was served" after the verdict was delivered yesterday.
He said: "It doesn't matter how much money you have, or people think you have … if you do wrong, if you break the law, if you murder, then justice will be done in South Carolina."
TWISTED TRIAL
During the trial that lasted weeks, Murdaugh openly confessed that he lied to authorities about his whereabouts on the night of the murders on June 7, 2021.
Maggie, 52, was shot dead four or five times with a rifle.
Meanwhile, Paul was shot twice with a shotgun at the kennels.
Waters argued that Murdaugh committed the heinous crimes to distract from his financial and criminal wrongdoings.
He argued that his legal empire began to unravel after Paul was involved in a fatal boat crash in 2019 that left 19-year-old Mallory Beach dead.
Waters told the jury: “That legacy was in danger, and it was threatening to expose who he truly was, which would destroy that part of the legacy.”
He also argued the family was "watching him [Murdaugh] like a hawk" due to the attorney's opioid addiction, which Murdaugh openly admitted to in court.
Defense attorney Jim Griffin slammed the state's motive as he claimed: “Their theory is he slaughtered his wife and son to distract from an impending financial investigation—but he puts himself in the middle of a murder investigation, and he puts himself in the spotlight of a media firestorm. That’s their motive.”
ALEX MURDAUGH'S TESTIMONY
During the testimony, Murdaugh denied allegations that he hurt his family.
He said: “I would never intentionally do anything to hurt either one of them, ever.”
He blamed withholding information on his years-long addiction to opioids, which he said made him "paranoid."
Murdaugh added: “On June 7, I wasn’t thinking clearly. I don’t think I was capable of reason. And I lied about being down there. And I’m so sorry that I did.
"My addiction evolved over time, I would get in these situations or circumstances where I would get paranoid thinking over anything.”
Murdaugh testified that he had to keep lying.
He told the court: "Once I told a lie - I told my family - I had to keep lying."
Murdaugh made a 911 call on the ill-fated June night to report Maggie and Paul had been shot to death.
He told the operator: "Nobody's breathing."
Colleton County coroners revealed that both victims had gunshot wounds.
In September 2021, Murdaugh was shot in the head while changing a flat tire on a country road.
At the time, he claimed that he was alone but prosecutors revealed that Murdaugh had hired a hitman.
Murdaugh admitted that he hired Curtis Edward Smith to shoot him in the head so his eldest son Buster could profit from a $10million life insurance policy.
Smith was a former client of Murdaugh's.
Murdaugh was pushed out of his law firm the day before he was shot amid allegations that he misused money from the company.
The shamed lawyer was hit with a slew of charges, including conspiracy to commit insurance fraud.
