Where Is Surviving Family Member, Buster Murdaugh, Now?

July 2024 · 4 minute read

TV

Disgraced lawyer Alex Murdaugh is on trial. His wife and youngest son are dead. Where is surviving family member, Buster Murdaugh, now?

Published on February 20, 2023

3 min read

Two years ago, South Carolina lawyer Alex Murdaugh was accused of murdering his wife Maggie and son Paul. The tragedy made headlines around the country as his alleged misdeeds became public.

Now, Netflix is telling the story on Murdaugh Murders: A Southern Scandal. From the creators of Fyre, the three-part docuseries premieres on Februay 22, 2023. Currently, Alex is standing trial for their deaths, but what about his other son? Here’s what Buster Murdaugh has been doing since his family was rocked by murder accusations as well as 100+ other charges.

Alex Murdaugh is accused of murdering his wife and son

In June 2021, Alex Murdaugh called 911 and said he found the bodies of his wife Maggie Murdaugh and youngest son Paul Murdaugh at the family’s hunting lodge. Maggie and Paul had been shot multiple times.

In July 2022, Alex was arrested and charged with two counts of murder and two counts of possession of a weapon during the commission of a violent crime. 

Who is Buster Murdaugh?

Alex’s oldest son, Buster, is currently dealing with the fallout from his father’s alleged crimes. Buster attended the University of South Carolina School of Law from 2018-19 and worked for his father’s law firm.

Today, Buster lives in a one-bedroom condominium on South Carolina’s Hilton Head Island with his 26-year-old girlfriend, Brooklynn White. It’s unknown when the pair began dating, but White was at Buster’s side for Maggie and Paul’s joint funeral service. 

White is a lawyer at Olivetti McCray & Withrow, specializing in probate and estate planning, according to Fox News. The couple also share a golden retriever named Miller. 

A friend says Buster Murdaugh is ‘miserable’ and ‘not doing well at all’

According to People, the 26-year-old has not returned to the hunting lodge where his mother and brother were shot. He also has not been back to the beach house where his mother was living before she was killed. A former college classmate told the outlet Buster is “not doing well at all,” adding that he is withdrawn and no longer responds to texts. 

A childhood friend said Buster is “collateral damage” in his father’s situation: “He’s gained some weight, he’s grown a beard, as much as he can. He doesn’t make eye contact and he doesn’t really engage like he used to. He looks tired. He’s aged like 10 years in the past year. He has bags under his eyes and he just looks miserable. It’s just a shame.”

They added that Buster has also said he’s not sure if his father is innocent of the murders or not — something he alluded to during an interaction with a Daily Mail journalist. The reporter, who ambushed him while Buster was walking his dog, said he was “presumably” supporting Murdaugh in the trial. Buster allegedly replied, “You have no right to presume anything,” then added, “I don’t want to see it written anywhere that I’m supporting my father.”

Buster Murdaugh’s connection to mysterious hit and run death

After the murders of Maggie and Paul Murdaugh, investigators say they found information that led them to open a new investigation in an old case: the mysterious death of Stephen Smith.

"48 Hours" takes a look at another death touching the Murdaugh family: https://t.co/oOuxkF3vnZ pic.twitter.com/Sitrorv96r

— 48 Hours (@48hours) July 16, 2022

Murdaugh isn’t the only one in the family who has been involved in a mysterious death. In 2015, teenager Stephen Smith, an openly gay classmate of Buster’s, was found dead from blunt force trauma on a road in Hampton County. 

No suspects have been charged in what police deemed a hit and run. But some have hypothesized that Buster was in a relationship with Smith and might have had something to do with his death, according to ABC News

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