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For the second time in four years, a top South Carolina legislative leader is out of commission as he seeks to address a personal issue involving the alleged abuse of alcohol.
Former S.C. House of Representatives’ judiciary committee chairman Chris Murphy – now a member of the GOP-controlled chamber’s influential budget-writing committee – has missed the past two weeks of the 2025 legislative session as he reportedly once again tries to come to grips with addiction.
The 56-year-old North Charleston attorney – whose wife is a state circuit court judge – was last seen at the S.C. State House on March 12, 2025. He has been granted excused absences since then by S.C. House speaker Murrell Smith.
Murphy has represented S.C. House District 98 in Dorchester County for the past fifteen years.
Regular members of our audience will recall Murphy entered a treatment facility in the summer of 2022 after undisclosed illnesses sidelined him for much of the session that year. At the time he entered treatment, he was attempting to install his wife as a justice on the S.C. Supreme Court.
“After struggling with alcohol abuse, I have sought treatment and am currently taking steps to ensure I am healthy moving forward,” Murphy told reporter Joseph Bustos of The (Columbia, S.C.) State at the time.
Those struggles are back, apparently…
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As a recovering drug and alcohol addict myself, I have consistently wished those battling such demons every success… and I would reiterate these well wishes to Murphy as he once again embraces the struggle.
This time, however, his constituents are asking questions publicly – and evidencing an understandable lack of patience with him.
“Where has my S.C. State Representative been for the last two weeks?” conservative activist Lynz Piper-Loomis wrote on X. “Multiple credible sources have told me he is in rehab again. I think at a minimum his constituents should hear from him why he has been absent for the last couple of weeks. We need to have someone who shows up consistently to work.”
“How many trips to rehab during public service will we have to endure before you ask him to resign or at a minimum strip him of his committee assignments?” Piper-Loomis added, addressing her comment to speaker Smith.
Again, I wish Murphy nothing but good health and good luck in his struggle. No one knows better than I how difficult it is to defeat these demons. At some point, though, he probably owes it to his constituents to decide whether it makes more sense for him to stand down and confront these challenges free from public pressure and away from the media limelight.
In fact, if he opts to continue in elected politics after this latest setback – his constituents may ultimately make that decision for him.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR…
Will Folks is the founding editor of the news outlet you are currently reading. Prior to founding FITSNews, he served as press secretary to the governor of South Carolina. He lives in the Midlands region of the state with his wife and eight children.
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5 comments
Maybe he should be promoted to a Cabinet-level position, like, say, Secretary of Defense. Then, his drinking problem wouldn’t be a problem at all.
Yeah – or Secretary of State. Ol’ Hillary handled the job with a cocktail in hand on every plane ride or limo detail.
The good news is Murphy can’t do more harm to his constituents when he’s absent. The bad news is his Low Country voters keep electing a RINO and a drunk. Murphy should do himself and his voters a real big favor and resign.
Sorry Ass Drunk!
We all have sympathy for the disease, but I would submit “too drunk to serve” during some of the most important Judiciary debates in a generation should also reasonably implicate his law license under the state ethics rules.
Any spouse, friend, sponsor, business partner, or semi informed stranger could tell him his recovery depends on surrender, willingness, and committing to the will of God; none of which the SC House is really known for.
He seems to have the unmanageability thing down just fine!
The bottom is when you stop digging, put the shovel down, Rep. Murphy, we are all pulling for you.