by WILL FOLKS
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Try as she might, South Carolina circuit court judge Debra McCaslin can only do so much to rein in the circus surrounding the upcoming retrial of accused killer Alex Murdaugh.
Days after she chided prosecutors and defense attorneys – specifically warning them against using her courtroom “as a platform for publicity or theatrics” – news broke that several members of the prosecution team were participating in a “sizzle reel” promoting a new behind-the-scenes documentary.
Our media outlet reported this week that state grand jury chief and lead prosecutor Creighton Waters was among the prosecutors allegedly involved in the envisioned production – although the office of the attorney general moved quickly to tamp down the controversy.
“We’re not promoting a behind-the-scenes documentary about the Alex Murdaugh retrial,” spokesman Robert Kittle said. “We haven’t even agreed yet to participate in a documentary about the retrial. If we did, we wouldn’t allow any behind-the-scenes audio or video to be shot, and nothing would be released until after the retrial.”
While the sizzle reel drama provided a headache for prosecutors, much bigger potential problems surfaced on Friday (November 13, 2026) when McCaslin heard arguments in open court related to the defense’s motion to quash the murder indictments issued against Murdaugh in July 2022.
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Widely regarded as a long-shot bid by Murdaugh’s attorneys, McCaslin didn’t reject the indictment dismissal request outright following the hearing. In fact, she even inquired as to whether prosecutors would be able to re-indict him ahead of the scheduled April 2027 trial if she ruled against them – a clear sign she is considering the defense’s motion.
In this week’s episode, founding editor Will Folks and research director Jenn Wood discussed the fallout from the sizzle reel – and this week’s big hearing.
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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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