Photo Illustration by Thomas Levinson/The Daily Beast/Reuters
The decision to call Alex Murdaugh to the stand at his own double-murder trial shocked legal observers—with one going so far as to describe his appearance as a “train wreck.”
But the full impact of the disgraced ex-lawyer’s testimony—which continues Friday—won’t be known until prosecutors are done cross-examining him.
“Murdaugh’s decision to take the stand is a huge surprise, and the entire case will rise or fall on his testimony,” former federal prosecutor Neama Rahmani, who is following the trial, told The Daily Beast. “Murdaugh has already admitted to lying to law enforcement and is trying to explain away the bad cell phone and other forensic evidence against him.