"Murdaugh Murders:" Where Is the Guy Who Allegedly Shot Alex Murdaugh Now?
Content warning: This article contains references to murder some may find upsetting. Reader discretion is advised.
The shocking revelations in Netflix's new docuseries, Murdaugh Murders: A Southern Scandal, range from "excuse me, what" to "WHAAAAAT" — but perhaps one of the biggest surprises from the three-part true crime series involved an attempted murder on prominent South Carolina patriarch Alex Murdaugh.
Currently, Alex is on trial for the double homicide of his wife and son, Maggie and Paul Murdaugh, respectively. His surviving son, Buster, has sat in the courtroom during his dad's criminal proceedings and recently testified on his father's behalf.
Besides the two murders, Alex also "faces dozens of charges for alleged financial crimes, including misappropriating money from his law firm, defrauding clients of funds and computer crimes," as reported by People. But, he nearly wasn't able to stand trial and be held accountable for his alleged actions after he was shot on the side of the road in Hampton County, South Carolina.
On September 4, 2021, three months after the murders of Paul and Maggie Murdaugh, Alex was "shot in the head in broad daylight," as the docuseries described it, while changing a tire.
The Netflix series shared the audio recording of Alex's surprisingly calm 911 call, in which he said he was shot, but was "OK" and "bleedin' a lot" from his head.
Eventually, the docuseries revealed the gunshot was allegedly a suicide attempt so Alex could leave money for his surviving son, Buster, through Alex's life insurance policy. According to Valerie Bauerlein from The Wall Street Journal, who investigated the murders and was interviewed for the show, Alex supposedly hired someone to shoot him in the head.
The story Alex's lawyer gave in an interview on The Today Show, which was shown in part on Murdaugh Murders, was that Alex hit up his drug dealer and asked the person to fire a gun into his head. The lawyer explained how the death of Alex's wife and son "took a tremendous toll on him," and Alex, a longtime addict, turned to drugs to get through it.
According to Alex's medical records, which People got ahold of, he was "shot in the back of the head — but just peripherally." The bullet wounds were "superficial."
The Daily Beast reported that Alex wasn't in the hospital for long, quickly going to "an out-of-state rehab facility" for drug addiction.
While Alex was seeking treatment for an opioid addiction, the police began honing in on Alex's distant cousin, Curtis Edward Smith, for allegedly shooting Alex. People reported Curtis was "charged with assisted suicide, aggravated assault and battery and insurance fraud in connection with the shooting."
Curtis denied his involvement in the conspiracy to kill Alex in the suicide-for-hire plot, saying during an interview on The Today Show, "If I'd have shot him, he'd be dead. He's alive." Curtis believes he was set up.
In a 48 Hours interview, Curtis said that Alex called, saying he needed help. When Curtis arrived, he claimed Alex was standing there, holding a gun. Alex wanted Curtis to shoot him, and when Curtis refused, they got in a struggle and the weapon went off. "He wanted me to kill him [to make it look like a homicide]," Curtis said.
One popular theory shared on Murdaugh Murders was that Alex set up Curtis to kill him and make it appear like Curtis planned to kill Alex. In reality, Alex was allegedly manipulating the situation to get Curtis to shoot him, so then Alex could shoot Curtis in what looked like self-defense. The theory also noted Alex was allegedly making it look like Curtis was Paul and Maggie's killer.
The alleged botched suicide-for-hire scheme has not gone to trial, but a judge is allowing the jury to hear evidence about it during Alex's murder trial that's currently happening.
In June 2022, Curtis was indicted, alongside Alex, for "criminal conspiracy and narcotics offenses," and Curtis "was also indicted for additional charges," as reported by The Greenville News. Curtis's bond was set for $250,000.
However, in August 2022, a judge revoked Curtis's bond, ordering him to jail after he supposedly breached the terms of his release agreement. Per The Greenville News, Curtis allegedly "misrepresented his financial information and violated his house arrest travel restrictions."
Fast-forward to February 2023, Bustle reported Curtis "is currently under protective custody at the Lexington County Jail" in Lexington, South Carolina.
You Might Also Like
