US NATIONAL NEWS
On stand, Alex Murdaugh denies killings but admits lying
Published
3 years agoon
Disgraced South Carolina attorney Alex Murdaugh denied killing his wife and son but admitted lying to investigators about when he last saw them alive as he took the stand in his own defense Thursday.
Murdaugh, 54, is charged with murder in the fatal shootings of his wife, Maggie, 52, and their 22-year-old son, Paul, who were killed near kennels on their property on June 7, 2021. In his testimony, Murdaugh continued to staunchly deny any role in the killings.
“I would never intentionally do anything to hurt either one of them,” Murdaugh said, tears running down his cheeks.
Prosecutors spent four weeks of the trial painting Murdaugh as a liar who stole money from clients and decided to kill his wife and son because he wanted sympathy to buy time to cover up his financial crimes that were about to be discovered. They have detailed what they called lie after lie, saying Murdaugh reacts violently when the truth is about to emerge, like trying to arrange his own death after his law firm fired him three months after the killings.
Murdaugh lied about being at the kennels with his wife and son shortly before their killings for 20 months before taking the stand Thursday, day 23 of his trial. Murdaugh blamed the lie — first told to a state law enforcement agent hours after the killings — on his addiction to opioids, which he said clouded his thinking and created a distrust of police.
“As my addiction evolved over time, I would get in these situations, these circumstances where I would get paranoid thinking,” Murdaugh said.
The once-prominent attorney had told police that he was napping and did not go to the kennels before leaving the house to visit his ailing mother in another town. But several witnesses testified that they believed they heard Murdaugh’s voice along with his son and wife on cellphone video taken at the kennels about five minutes before the shootings. It took investigators more than a year to hack into Paul Murdaugh’s iPhone and find the video.
Once Alex Murdaugh started lying about being at the kennels, he said he felt he had to continue: “Oh, what a tangled web we weave. Once I told a lie — I told my family — I had to keep lying.”
For prosecutors, that lie underpins a case where investigators haven’t presented the weapons used to kill the victims, a confession, surveillance video or clothes covered in blood. Murdaugh faces 30 years to life in prison if convicted
Murdaugh testified that his wife asked him to go to the kennels the evening of the killings, so he rode down in a golf cart and wrestled a chicken away from a dog before returning to the house and deciding to go visit his ailing mother.
He said that, after returning home from visiting his mother, neither his wife nor his son was in the house. After several minutes, Murdaugh said, he drove his SUV to the kennels where he said he last saw them.
Murdaugh described arriving to find the grisly scene of the killings, pausing his testimony for several seconds as he cried. “It was so bad,” he said.
After his dramatic opening questions about whether Murdaugh killed his son and wife, defense attorney Jim Griffin led his client though several key points of the case.
Murdaugh said he never saw a blue rain jacket that prosecutors found at his mother’s home with gunshot residue on the lining. He said his mother’s caretaker was mistaken when she said he came by unexpectedly at 6:30 a.m. acting oddly.
He told Griffin several times that he urged investigators to get GPS data from his SUV or his wife’s phone that would exonerate him. Earlier defense testimony suggested state agents waited too long to get that information from Maggie Murdaugh’s device and it was overwritten for the night of the killings.
Throughout his testimony, Murdaugh called his son “Paul Paul” and his wife “Mags,” though he didn’t use those nicknames in three interviews with police.
Defense attorneys told the judge that Murdaugh might not have testified at all if prosecutors hadn’t been allowed to introduce evidence of financial crimes.
Murdaugh admitted in court that he stole money from clients and blamed an addiction to painkillers from the lingering effects of a college football injury that got worse nearly two decades ago.
“I’m not quite sure how I let myself get where I got. I battled that addiction for so many years. I was spending so much money on pills,” Murdaugh said.
Murdaugh is charged with about 100 other crimes, ranging from stealing from clients to tax evasion. He is being held without bail on those charges, so even if he is found not guilty of the killings, he will not walk out of court a free man. If convicted of most or all of those financial crimes, Murdaugh would likely spend decades in prison.
Prosecutor Creighton Waters didn’t question Murdaugh about the murders at the start of his cross-examination, focusing instead on clients Murdaugh stole money from.
“We heard about it in a very academic, paperwork manner. But in every one of these, you had to sit down and look somebody in the eye and convince them you were on their side when you were not,” Waters said.
Murdaugh said he couldn’t remember all the details of the thefts that took place over at least 13 years and offered a blanket statement that he was wrong, which Waters rejected before hammering on the personal nature of the thefts.
“There were plenty of conversations where I looked people in the eye and lied to them,” Murdaugh eventually conceded.
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Politics
FORMER PRESIDENTS, CIVIL RIGHTS LEADERS GATHER FOR OPENING OF OBAMA PRESIDENTIAL CENTER
Published
6 days agoon
June 18, 2026
CHICAGO (FNN NEWS) — The long-awaited Barack Obama Presidential Center officially opened Thursday with a star-studded dedication ceremony on Chicago’s South Side, drawing former presidents, national leaders, celebrities, and thousands of invited guests.
The ceremony began at 11 a.m. CDT with Chicago native and Grammy Award-winning singer Jennifer Hudson performing the national anthem.
Obama Center Opens
Former President Barack Obama and former First Lady Michelle Obama delivered remarks celebrating the opening of the center, which is designed to serve as a cultural, educational, and civic engagement hub.
The opening marks the formal debut of one of the most anticipated presidential centers in modern history. The campus opens to the public on Juneteenth and is expected to attract visitors from across the United States and around the world.
Former Presidents in Attendance
Among the dignitaries attending the ceremony were:
- Former President Joe Biden
- Former President George W. Bush
- Former President Bill Clinton
- Former First Lady Jill Biden
- Former First Lady Laura Bush
- Former Secretary of State and former First Lady Hillary Clinton
National Leaders and Celebrities Attend
The event also attracted prominent political leaders, civil rights advocates, entertainers, and business leaders, including:
- California Gov. Gavin Newsom
- Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro
- Civil rights leaders Andrew Young and Al Sharpton
- Media icon Oprah Winfrey
- Comedians David Letterman, Conan O’Brien, and Stephen Colbert
- Actor Tom Hanks
- Tennis legend Billie Jean King
- Chicago Cubs Chairman Tom Ricketts
Several attendees, including Newsom and Shapiro, are widely viewed as potential contenders for the 2028 Democratic presidential nomination.
A Landmark for Chicago’s South Side
The opening of the Obama Presidential Center represents a significant milestone for Chicago’s South Side, bringing national attention, tourism, and economic development opportunities to the community.
Thousands of invited guests attended the ceremony, while residents and supporters gathered at a free public watch party to celebrate the historic occasion.
The center is expected to serve as a lasting tribute to the legacy of the nation’s 44th president while inspiring future generations of leaders through civic engagement, education, and public service.
About the Obama Presidential Center
The Obama Presidential Center is a world-class campus dedicated to preserving and advancing the legacy of President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama. The center includes museum exhibits, public gathering spaces, educational programming, and community resources aimed at fostering leadership and civic participation.
Politics
State Department Offers Up to $15 Million in Rewards for MS-13 Leaders Wanted on Terrorism, Drug Trafficking Charges
Published
6 days agoon
June 18, 2026
WASHINGTON (FNN NEWS) — The U.S. Department of State announced Thursday that it is increasing reward offers totaling up to $15 million for information leading to the arrest and/or conviction of two senior leaders of Mara Salvatrucha (MS-13), a transnational criminal organization designated as a Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO).
Reward Offers Increased
The State Department’s Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs announced a reward of up to $10 million for information leading to the arrest and/or conviction of Yulan Adonay Archaga Carías, also known as “Porky,” and up to $5 million for information leading to the arrest and/or conviction of Víctor Eduardo Morales Zelaya, also known as “Cuervo.”
The reward offers were announced by Thomas “Tommy” Pigott, spokesperson for the U.S. Department of State.
MS-13 Leadership in Honduras
According to federal court documents, Archaga Carías and Morales Zelaya are the highest-ranking members of MS-13 operating in Honduras. Authorities allege they direct the gang’s criminal operations, including:
- Drug trafficking
- Money laundering
- Murder
- Kidnappings
- Other violent criminal activities
Federal authorities also allege the two men are responsible for coordinating the importation of significant quantities of cocaine into the United States. Both remain fugitives.
Among America’s Most Wanted
Archaga Carías is listed on the FBI’s Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list and is also among the most wanted fugitives sought by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).
The case is part of the Homeland Security Task Force (HSTF) established under Executive Order 14159. The task force is a permanent, whole-of-government initiative focused on dismantling criminal cartels, foreign gangs, transnational criminal organizations, and human smuggling and trafficking networks operating in the United States and abroad.
How to Provide Information
The reward offers were authorized by the Under Secretary for Arms Control and International Security under the Transnational Organized Crime Rewards Program (TOCRP), which supports global law enforcement efforts to combat transnational criminal organizations.
Anyone with information is encouraged to contact the FBI through WhatsApp, Signal, or Telegram at +1-832-267-1688.
Individuals located outside the United States may also contact the nearest U.S. embassy or consulate. Those within the United States may contact their local FBI field office.
Confidentiality Guaranteed
U.S. officials emphasized that all identities of individuals providing information will be kept strictly confidential. Government officials and employees are not eligible for rewards based on information obtained through their official duties.
US NATIONAL NEWS
Rubio, Jaishankar Discuss Strait of Hormuz Security During Diplomatic Call
Published
2 weeks agoon
June 13, 2026
WASHINGTON (FNN NEWS) — U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio spoke with Indian External Affairs Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar to discuss recent developments in the Strait of Hormuz, according to a State Department readout released Friday.
According to Principal Deputy Spokesperson Tommy Pigott, the conversation focused on maritime security and commercial shipping in one of the world’s most strategically important waterways.
Focus on Maritime Security
During the call, Rubio stressed that commercial vessels operating in the Strait of Hormuz should immediately comply with instructions issued by U.S. forces as they work to maintain regional peace and security.
The secretary also emphasized U.S. concerns regarding the transportation of Iranian oil and warned that violations of U.S. enforcement measures would not be tolerated.
Critical Global Waterway
The Strait of Hormuz serves as a vital shipping route connecting the Persian Gulf to international markets and is one of the world’s most important energy transit corridors. Any disruption to commercial traffic through the region can have significant implications for global energy supplies and international trade.
The call highlights continued diplomatic coordination between the United States and India on regional security issues and freedom of navigation in key international waterways.
