Alex Murdaugh’s lawyers seek sanctions against Satterfield attorney for media comments
Attorneys for suspended Hampton lawyer Alex Murdaugh are asking a judge to sanction the attorney representing the estate of Murdaugh’s deceased former housekeeper for comments he’s made to various news organizations, according to an emergency motion filed in Hampton County Tuesday.
The motion by attorneys Dick Harpootlian and Jim Griffin asks a judge to impose a gag order against Columbia lawyer Eric Bland, who represents the two sons of Gloria Satterfield. The motion also asks that Bland be referred to the state agency that investigates lawyers, alleging Bland violated the code of ethics.
Bland has sued Alex Murdaugh over $3.5 million in settlement money intended for the Satterfield estate. His clients, he said, never received a dime. Murdaugh is facing criminal charges that he illegally diverted that money to his own bank accounts.
A gag order would silence Bland from talking about the case outside of court, an attempt to limit publicity before the trial.
Harpootlian, a Democratic state senator from Richland, and Griffin argue that Bland’s comments are intended to taint a future pool of jurors against their client and to boost the amount in legal damages he could win for the Satterfield estate. They highlight comments from Bland that allege Murdaugh committed many more crimes and say Bland “implicitly” accused Murdaugh of murdering Gloria Satterfield.
The S.C. Law Enforcement Division is investigating the death of Satterfield after a fall at the Murdaugh property in 2018.
Among the examples cited in Monday’s filing as inappropriate and worthy of sanctions:
▪ Comments from Bland that Murdaugh is “as morally bankrupt” as a serial killer.
▪ Comments from Bland that advocate in the media for criminal charges against Murdaugh.
▪ The comparison of Murdaugh to serial killer Pee Wee Gaskins, which the lawyers contend is a “dig” at Harpootlian, who prosecuted Gaskins.
▪ A comment from Bland that Gloria Satterfield’s sons “want to believe that their mother died accidentally.” He called Murdaugh a “really, really, really bad person. That’s the bottom line. That’s the tough pill to swallow.... There’s no bottom to him.”
Griffin and Harpootlian argue that Bland is “implicitly” accusing Murdaugh of murdering Satterfield.
“These highly publicized media statements regarding Mr. Murdaugh are meant to prejudice prosecutors, judges, and, ultimately, jurors against Mr. Murdaugh,” the filing says. “Mr. Bland hopes to prejudice the legal proceedings to award him and his client more punitive damages by inflaming the jury pool and by making it impossible for Mr. Murdaugh to say or do anything to mitigate his alleged actions.”
Harpootlian and Griffin argue that Bland’s “ceaseless barrage of attacks” violate the rules of professional conduct governing S.C. lawyers and ask that the judge refer Bland’s conduct to the Office of Disciplinary Counsel, the arm of the Supreme Court that investigates lawyers.
In an emailed statement Tuesday, Bland and law partner Ronnie Richter responded that the motion is a “false narrative” intended to shift attention away from the fact that Harpootlian admitted on national television that Murdaugh committed financial crimes.
Asked on Good Morning America on Oct. 15 about the allegations regarding the Satterfield estate, Harpootlian said Murdaugh “is reconciled to the fact he’s going to prison. He understands that. He’s a lawyer.”
Bland and Richter said Harpootlian’s motion “is an illusionist’s attempt to distract attention away from harm that he has inflicted upon his own client by his very attorney.”
Griffin declined to comment.
Last week, the S.C. Attorney General’s Office indicted Murdaugh on 27 counts of financial crimes, including allegations that he stole $3.5 million intended as death settlement money for the estate of his deceased housekeeper. Murdaugh is accused of organizing the scheme by installing his friend as the estate’s attorney and a friendly banker to help divert the money to his personal account with a fraudulent name.
In the request for the gag order, Murdaugh’s attorneys allege Bland ventured too far when he compared Murdaugh to a South Carolina serial killer whom Harpootlian prosecuted.
Pee Wee Gaskins, a man who confessed to murdering 15 people and burying them in three Pee Dee counties, was prosecuted by Harpootlian when he was chief homicide prosecutor for the 5th Circuit Solicitor’s Office.
Two weeks before Gaskins was to be sent to the electric chair, Gaskins plotted with his son to kidnap Harpootlian’s 3-year-old daughter. Harpootlian and his family were forced to live under armed guard at a secure location as a result.
“Mr. Bland’s statement that Mr. Harpootlian’s current client is morally equivalent to the mass murder(er) who threatened his daughter was meant as a ‘dig’ against Mr. Harpootlian as much as a comment about Mr. Murdaugh,” the motion stated.
