HAMPTON COUNTY, S.C. — Convicted murderer Alex Murdaugh has settled a lawsuit over a boat crash involving his son that led to the death of University of South Carolina student Mallory Beach.
Court records show Judge Daniel Hall signed an order on October 10 ending the civil case. The order came after Progressive, Murdaugh's insurer, agreed to pay out $500,000 to Beach's family.
Beach, 19, was one of five passengers in a boat allegedly driven by Paul Murdaugh that crashed into the Archers Creek Bridge in Beaufort in February of 2019 after an evening of underage drinking. Paul Murdaugh allegedly used his older brother's identification to purchase alcohol at a store and later at a dockside bar near Beaufort.
Beach was tossed from the boat during the accident and her body was found eight days later in the river, about five miles from the crash site. She had died from drowning and blunt force trauma.
Paul Murdaugh faced charges of boating under the influence but he was murdered at his family's estate in Colleton County before that case was ever heard.
Mallory Beach's family sued multiple defendants including Alex Murdaugh (he owned the boat involved in the crash) and Parker's Kitchen, the store where the alcohol was purchased.
Last July, a judge approved a $15 million settlement between the victim's family and Parker's Kitchen. An investigation revealed that a clerk for the store did not stop Paul Murdaugh from using his older brother's ID. Parker’s Kitchen did not undertake liability for Beach’s death through the settlement. The Beach family said they hoped the high total would compel stores to seriously follow alcohol laws.
That left open the matter of a payout from the Murdaugh family. Progressive told the judge it would not pay out unless other lawsuits against Murdaugh were settled and he was dropped from this lawsuit. The Beach family confirmed to the judge recently that since those outstanding issues had been settled, they had received a check of $500,000 from Progressive. With that notification, the judge then agreed to end the case.
Alex Murdaugh is serving a life sentence without parole for the June 2021 killings of his wife, Maggie, and Paul. During his trail, prosecutors argued that Alex Murdaugh feared a wrongful death lawsuit stemming from the boat crash would uncover the millions of dollars he had stolen from his clients and law firm.
Murdaugh was also sentenced in both state and federal court for stealing from clients and his law firm. He has appealed his sentence for the murders.
