2019 Murdaugh Boat Crash Lawsuit Settled, Attorneys Say

Lawsuits filed over the fatal 2019 boat crash caused by the son of South Carolina lawyer Alex Murdaugh have been settled.

In February 2019, Paul Murdaugh crashed his family boat into the Archers Creek Bridge in Beaufort, South Carolina. Mallory Beach and several other teenagers were on board at the time. Beach, 19, was thrown into the water and killed as a result.

But while Paul was facing trial in relation to the deadly crash in the summer of 2021, Alex killed him and his mother, Margaret. Prosecutors claim that Alex murdered his family to avoid responsibility for the financial crimes he had previously committed. He was sentenced to life in prison.

Alex was the owner of the boat and was thus the target of legal action over the crash. A trial was scheduled to begin in the coming months, but all lawsuits were settled on July 16. These lawsuits were brought by the four other teenagers on the boat during the incident.

Police said that all the passengers were “grossly intoxicated” despite being under the legal drinking age. Security footage was discovered of Paul buying alcohol earlier in the evening with lawyers claiming he made the purchase with his older brother’s ID.

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The store that sold the alcohol, Parker’s Kitchen, also settled its lawsuits. Mark Tinsley, a lawyer representing the Beach family, said this settlement would act as a precedent for retailers to be held accountable for underage drinking.

The money paid in these settlements has not been publicly announced, but WSAV in Savannah, Georgia, stated that the total amount from Parker’s was about $15 million, which mostly went to the Beach family. The value of the Murdaugh family assets in connection with their settlement has not yet been determined.