The 5 Biggest Revelations from Netflix's Murdaugh Murders Season 2

Just when you thought you were done with hearing the name Murdaugh, Netflix is bringing true crime fans back to the courtroom for Murdaugh Murders: A Southern Scandal Season 2.

Now streaming, the three new episodes arrive just months after the streamer debuted the much-discussed first season, which chronicled the controversies and crimes of the Murdaughs of South Carolina Lowcountry. The family became a national story in recent years after Alex Murdaugh was charged with the double murder of his wife and son, Maggie and Paul, on their Moselle property in June 2021. In turn, the spotlight on the case exposed decades of deaths and alleged conspiracies tied to the family, all of which were explored in the first season.

But Season 2's episodes are exclusively concentrated on Alex's trial, which was still ongoing when the first episodes debuted in February. He has since been convicted of both murders and sentenced to life in prison. However, it should be noted that in September 2023, Alex's lawyers appealed that decision, alleging Rebecca Hill, the Colleton County clerk of court, influenced the jury against Alex. Hill is one of many people involved with the trial that are prominently featured in the docuseries' new episodes.

While the Murdaugh story is ongoing in South Carolina, here are the biggest revelations the series unearthed as it sifted through the murder trial.

Cousin Eddie Tells His Side of the Story

For many people beyond the Lowcountry, the first time they heard about the Murdaughs was in relation to a bizarre turn of events in September 2021 when Alex said he was shot in the head while changing a tire on the side of the road. Pretty quickly, his story unraveled and he confessed to a botched (and grief-induced) assisted suicide attempt –– the gun for which he put in the hands of distant family member Curtis "Cousin Eddie" Smith. The interview with Cousin Eddie is the series' biggest get of the season, so to speak, and opens the final episode. It gives the much-discussed figure the chance to share his own version of events — and there's a lot for Cousin Eddie to answer for. Rumors say he was the man supplying Alex's crippling drug problem. However, he denies that point — "If I was a drug dealer, I would have only had one client." It was also well known that he cashed mysterious checks for Alex, something Cousin Eddie admits to doing but only because Alex assured him it wasn't money laundering (authorities now allege it was). He would even meet people at various airports with packages from Alex that he said rattled like pill bottles. Cousin Eddie uses his camera time to make the case that he tried to stop the check-cashing business (which continued after the murders), but Alex leveled some veiled comments about his daughter that he took as a threat without labeling it as such.

But the biggest ask from Alex came after Paul and Maggie's murders when Cousin Eddie says Alex met him discreetly on a country road to ask if Cousin Eddie would kill him (a request Alex later publicly claims was so his son Buster could collect the insurance payout on his death). But Cousin Eddie claims when he asked Alex why, he told him it was because they were going to be able to prove he was responsible for Maggie and Paul's deaths. Cousin Eddie says that after he refused to do this, Alex fled and he pursued him. Eventually, Alex stopped and came at Cousin Eddie carrying a gun. At this point, Cousin Eddie says he shot his own gun in the air as a warning shot to Alex. But when he did, Alex fell back and hit his head on the pavement, causing the bloody wound he later claimed was from someone shooting him in the head. "I knew I hadn't shot him. I knew there wasn't no blood on him, there wasn't no blood on me so I went home," Cousin Eddie says. Soon, he was arrested for the scheme based on Alex's confession. Cousin Eddie's comments will be new to followers of the Alex's trial, as he did not testify. However, the series ends with the important acknowledgement that Cousin Eddie is still awaiting his own trial for all that he addresses, specifically charges of presenting a firearm, conspiracy, assisted suicide, false claim for payment and four counts of money laundering.

Paul Murdaugh Kept Mallory Beach's Obituary

Perhaps the most insightful voice in the new episodes is Blanca Turrubiate-Simpson, the former housekeeper and friend of the Murdaugh family. Turrubiate-Simpson was one of the prosecution's most consequential witnesses during the trial, offering what she saw in the aftermath of the murders that raised questions about Alex's actions. But in the docuseries, she primarily shares memories of her time with the family and even reveals something about the late Paul –– he kept Mallory Beach's obituary in his truck until his death. This is noteworthy considering that when he was killed, Paul was still facing trial for his role in Beach's death in February 2019. He was allegedly drunk and erratically driving a boat when it crashed into a bridge and killed Beach, along with injuring their friends. The lingering controversy of the boat crash and Paul's role in it is what some believe led to Paul and Maggie's death. As a lawyer, Alex was said to be working behind the scenes to clear his son's name, something made more difficult by the news that…

Authorities Found Paul Drinking and Boating Again While Awaiting Trial

Just a week before he and his mother were murdered, Paul was boating with some friends when they were pulled over by law enforcement over Memorial Day Weekend 2021. On board, authorities reportedly found alcohol and Paul was removed from the boat, according to Rebecca Hill, the outspoken clerk of court in Alex's trial. Recalling a conversation she had with Maggie days later, Blanca confirms the incident. She says Maggie told her Paul had once again gotten in trouble and Alex had been called in to handle it. Again, this all happened while he was still waiting to face charges for the deadly 2019 boat crash. In the series, Hill questions if this incident may have been another "pressure point" in Alex's still-unknown motive to kill Paul and Maggie because he was struggling to control his son's behavior and that risked exposing even more secrets (i.e. Alex's financial crimes, for which he is still awaiting a trial).

Buster Murdaugh Broke Down After the Verdict

A focal point for many of those watching the trial unfold was keeping an eye on Buster Murdaugh, Alex and Maggie's oldest and only surviving son. During the trial, Buster was frequently seen in the audience and testified on behalf of the defense. But it was noted by many throughout the coverage just how stone faced he remained through it all, even as they spoke in graphic detail of how his mother and brother had been murdered. But according to Hill, that wall came crumbling down after the verdict was read when the family retreated to a private space away from the cameras. "Even though there was no emotion in the room by the family, I was told that when they got back to the room that was a holding place for the family to gather, Buster did break down and fall to his knees and just cried," she says in the series.

Maggie Was a "Scared" Person Who Warned of Being Involved With the Murdaughs

In the first season, Murdaugh Murders featured extensive interviews with Morgan Doughty, Paul's former girlfriend who had been close with the family. Morgan doesn't appear as much in the new episodes, but she does pop in to offer some powerful memories of her time spent talking with Maggie. She specifically mentions one such conversation when she learned that Alex's mother, Libby, had once talked of divorcing his father, Randolph Murdaugh. When Randolph found out, he ran an obituary in the Hampton Guardian newspaper that he had written for his wife while she was still alive –– a move some saw as a threat should she actually try to leave him. The docuseries even shows the article. "That was her way of letting me know what I was signing myself up for," Morgan says of Maggie. "I think it was kind of like a warning." It is now known that Maggie herself had visited a divorce lawyer in a neighboring town to discuss possibly separating from Alex prior to her death.

Morgan also notes that she was confused about why Maggie was at the kennels where she and Paul were killed in the first place. "Ms. Maggie was a scared person," Morgan says. "If Mr. Alex wasn't home, she would make Paul sleep in the bedroom that was right next to hers. She would go around and lock every door and every window." Alongside footage of the kennels, which the jury visited during the trial, Morgan wonders if Maggie had made that fateful trip to kennels at someone's request. "I feel like she would have been called down there for a reason," she says.

Murdaugh Murders: A Southern Scandal Seasons 1 and 2 are now streaming on Netflix.