Alex Murdaugh's party-animal late son allegedly used to physically abuse his ex-girlfriend and once even used his family to cover up a car crash when he was driving drunk. Morgan Doughty, 23, broke her silence on her turbulent relationship with Alex Murdaugh's younger son, Paul Murdaugh.
Doughty who dated Paul in high school has claimed that he allegedly beat and strangled her. Doughty, who spoke for the harrowing abuse, made the bombshell revelations in a Netflix documentary "Murdaugh Murders: A Southern Scandal." She also claimed that one night Paul grabbed her by the throat and punched her. She characterized him as an abusive spouse who would frequently drink.
Bombshell Revelations
Doughty said that one night Paul started kicking her and when she urged him to stop, he tried to strangle her and punched her. She described Paul as a physical abuser who would frequently drink.
Doughty described what happened after a 2017 Christmas party, where she said Paul crashed his truck after drinking too much, and his relatives rushed to the scene to stow weapons and beer cans inside the car before police arrived.
She also described how Gloria Satterfield, the family's housekeeper who died from a fall at their estate the same year, had discovered bags of pills that belonged to Alex Murdaugh, an opiate addict, and alerted Paul about it.
Doughty claimed she was bringing Paul home on Christmas Day when he "aggressively" wanted to drive his truck despite being drunk. He then lost control and slammed into a ditch.
She attempted to contact 911 for help, but Paul allegedly snatched her phone and hung off. Instead, he dialed his well-connected father and grandfather Randolph Murdaugh, according to Doughty.
The former lover claimed that Paul's father, mother, and grandfather quickly arrived at the scene and cleaned up his mess for him after which they scolded her for dialing 911 and perhaps putting Paul in danger.
The incident happened roughly two years before Paul allegedly fatally crashed a boat in 2019 while drunk, killing his friend Mallory Beach.
Paul's father Alex Murdaugh, a prominent lawyer in South Carolina, is currently on trial for shooting and killing Paul, 22, and his wife Maggie, 52, in June 2021.
The three-part Netflix documentary delves into the scandals and unexplained deaths connected to the formerly powerful South Carolina legal scion Alex Murdaugh and his family between 2015 and 2021.
Complicated Family History
Doughty, who moved to South Carolina with her parents when she started high school, claimed in the documentary that she had a close bond with Paul and that they started dating in their junior year.
Doughty said that when they were dating, she and her friends would hang around at Paul's house, where his parents allegedly regularly provided alcohol to the minors. "Whenever I came around the Murdaugh's, it was very normal for them to be drinking and have a lot of alcohol always stocked in the house," Doughty said.
The allegations of the Murdaughs' pervasive drinking culture line up with what Doughty told authorities after her friend Mallory Beach, 19, died in a boat accident in 2019 that was allegedly caused by Paul when he was intoxicated.
Doughty provided 25 videos in her affidavit depicting children drinking alcohol in front of Alex's relatives. He was charged with three counts of boating under the influence in that instance, but he avoided being charged with manslaughter, prompting some to speculate that his family's legal clout helped him get off more lightly.
"Murdaughs don't really get told 'no' much," Doughty says in the documentary.
Her allegations of assault come in the fifth week of the scandalous double homicide trial of Alex Murdaugh.
Paul and Maggie Murdaugh were shot and killed on their property in the rural Lowcountry area, where the Murdaugh family had established a legal dynasty, by the pill-popping former attorney.
"Murdaugh Murders: A Southern Scandal," a three-part series, exposes the story of "corruption, power, and cover-ups."
