Murdaugh Murders: What happened to Morgan Doughty?

❘ Published: 2023-09-19T15:48:49

Netflix

Netflix is about to drop Season 2 of its explosive documentary series Murdaugh Murders: A Southern Scandal – ahead of its release, here’s everything you need to know about what happened to Morgan Doughty and where she is now.

Every now and then, a true crime case develops in real-time, leading documentary filmmakers to revisit the investigation and provide updates to viewers who have been watching it unfold. We saw this with the NXIVM series The Vow, we’re (potentially) getting a Natalia Grace follow-up, and now Michael Gasparro and Julia Willoughby Nason are doing the same with their Netflix series on the Murdaugh murders.

There’s a lot of new ground to be covered. Since Season 1 dropped in February, Alex Murdaugh – the patriarch of the wealthy South Carolina dynasty and the man at the center of the crimes – has been found guilty of double murder for the fatal shootings of his wife Margaret and son Paul, and sentenced to two consecutive life terms.

The first installment of Murdaugh Murders: A Southern Scandal focused a lot of time on Paul, his friends, and the death of Mallory Beach. Morgan Doughty gave key testimony in the docu-series, but what happened to her and where is she now?

Murdaugh Murders: What happened to Morgan Doughty?

Morgan Doughty is the ex-girlfriend of Alex’s youngest son Paul Murdaugh, and was present when their friend Mallory Beach died in a 2019 boating accident. She claims Paul had a drinking problem, and was physically and emotionally abusive towards her during their relationship.

Doughty keeps a low profile online, although she is once again interviewed for Season 2 of Murdaugh Murders: A Southern Scandal on Netflix, giving further insight into the shocking criminal case and the family at the center of it.

She was one of five surviving passengers on the boat when it crashed into Archer’s Creek near Parris Island, alongside her then-partner Paul. All of those who were present accuse Paul of being inebriated at the time, slapping Morgan across the face, and refusing to allow anyone else to drive the vessel.

Buster Murdaugh, Paul’s older brother who wasn’t killed in the June 2021 shooting, was accused of lending him his ID in order to buy the alcohol that night.

Paul was seen heading into a bar on the night of the boat crash

Although the teens on the boat weren’t heavily involved in Alex Murdaugh’s trial, they all gave testimony in Season 1 of the Netflix documentary series. Morgan is visibly shaken as she recalls the moments that led up to that night, as well as the alleged abuse she suffered at the hands of Paul.

She and Paul started dating in their junior year of high school after Morgan moved from New York to South Carolina. She describes how the family gave the couple and their friends alcohol, with Paul proving to be a particularly heavy drinker.

“Whenever I came around the Murdaughs’, it was very normal for them to be drinking,” Morgan explains. “But just for Paul and I, being the age that we were, they were okay with us drinking and they would always get us alcohol.”

Morgan goes on to say: “Alcohol definitely changed Paul and his manner. We called Paul Timmy when he was drunk. That’s his name that Anthony Cook actually gave him.” Anthony, a friend who was also there on the night of the boating accident, says that it was just a “random name” because he “wasn’t Paul anymore.”

All of the passengers describe how Paul had been drinking heavily on the night of the crash – and none of them were comfortable with him driving the boat. As tensions rose, Mallory Beach – who had been dating Anthony at the time – fell off. Her body was later discovered approximately five miles from the scene, with the cause of death ruled as blunt force trauma and drowning.

Morgan and Paul dated in high school

All of those onboard suffered injuries from the collision, including Morgan, who had extensive hand injuries and needed stitches. In February 2022, she was one of numerous victims, including Mallory’s mother and Miley Altman, who filed a lawsuit with injury claims totaling $65 million against the Murdaugh family estate.

Another important piece of Morgan’s testimony in the Netflix documentary is that she claims Alex Murdaugh and his father Randolph Murdaugh attempted to cover up the details surrounding the incident.

Although she tried to call 911 immediately after, she accuses Paul of snatching the phone from her to contact his family members instead. Morgan alleges that she was criticized by Alex for attempting to phone the police, with court documents claiming Alex visited the teens’ hospital rooms to tell them to keep quiet when speaking to investigators.

As for the present day, Doughty shares updates on her Instagram page, where she has nearly 33,000 followers. It appears she is still living in South Carolina, and has been in a relationship for several years.

What is Murdaugh Murders: A Southern Scandal about?

As per Netflix, Season 1 of Murdaugh Murders: A Southern Scandal takes place in South Carolina’s Lowcountry, telling the true story of how “the Murdaugh family dynasty began to crumble after a series of events over the course of six years caused the deaths of five people.”

The deaths include Mallory Beach, as well as Stephen Smith, a friend of Alex’s oldest son, Gloria Satterfield, Alex’s housekeeper, Paul Murdaugh, Alex’s youngest son, and Maggie Murdaugh, Alex’s wife. It also details the alleged attempted murder of Alex himself.

The streamer continues: “A lot of the evidence points to one man’s suspected involvement in either the deaths or the attempts to cover them up. Murdaugh Murders: A Southern Scandal tells the story of the Murdaugh family, their rise to power and sway with law enforcement, and details the suspicious deaths that have destroyed their family legacy.”

Alex Murdaugh with his wife Margaret and sons Paul and Buster

Alex Murdaugh has been found guilty of murdering his wife Margaret and their youngest son Paul (left)

Season 2 will explore the case in further detail, with “firsthand accounts from those who were there the days leading up to and following the murders of Maggie and Paul Murdaugh, including former Murdaugh family housekeeper Blanca Turrubiate-Simpson and matriarch Libby Murdaugh’s former caretaker Mushell ‘Shelly’ Smith, both of whom were crucial witnesses at the trial.”

The second chapter also features accounts from Curtis Edward Smith, better known as Cousin Eddie, Gwen Generette, one of the trial’s jurors, and Wall Street Journal reporter Valerie Bauerlein, while Morgan and Anthony are set to return for further interviews.

For the release date and time of Murdaugh Murders: A Southern Scandal Season 2, head here, and you can check out more of our true crime coverage below: