The official cause of death at the time was that Smith, 19, died from a hit and run. Stephen Smith, 19, was found dead in the middle of the road outside of Hampton with a gaping head wound, his skull partially crushed and his shoulder dislocated. Even Dr. Erin Presnell, a pathologist at the Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC), didnt give much information to police about what led her to decide a motor vehicle killed Stephen. State investigators have released scant information on the case including an 18-page redacted report with nearly 8 pages fully redacted. "When they told me hit and run I said that's impossible because Stephen wouldn't have been walking in the road to start with. SCHP: Allen tells Duncan and SCHP that they are not needed at the autopsy, according to SLED and HCSO. Everything to Know About the Murdaugh Family Murders and the Ongoing Drama Surrounding Dad Alex Murdaugh, Hampton County Detention Center/AP/Shutterstock, Alex Murdaugh Allegedly Lured Wife to Cabin On Night She Was Killed and She Texted Friend It Seemed 'Fishy', Everything to Know About the Murdaugh Family Murders, Including Details of Allegations Against Alex, Alex Murdaugh's Slain Son Paul Allegedly Strangled Ex-Girlfriend in 2017, She Says in Netflix Documentary, Investigators Will Exhume Body of Murdaugh Family Housekeeper Who Died Under Mysterious Circumstances. 8:53 a.m. SLED: Burke meets with Moore at Peeples Rhoden Funeral Home in Hampton to provide documentation from the original crime scene and to transfer evidence. Stephens relative didnt believe the person who said they were dating Stephen and said the family was skeptical of him. Mother and son were gunned down on their 1,770-acre estate in the small town of Islandton. Investigators reported he was the victim. The timeline (below) shows a sketch of how officials came to the decision to rule the death a hit and run and how that decision appeared to confuse nearly everyone involved. I think its a situation when you grow up and your family is kinda high-profile and you get away withsome things because of your family name, Proctor said in 2015. As I was leaving she stated that the report was preliminary and it was my job to figure out what struck him, not hers, Proctor wrote. But a former state trooper who worked on Smith's case told Fox News last week that he still believes Smith's death might have been a homicide,and not a vehicle collision like the autopsy report said. His body was found in the middle of Sandy Run. "And it's amazing to be a part of that and to see it. For more than two decades, she had served as the family housekeeper and nanny. There, they listened to gospel songs, speeches and unveiled a new headstone for the 19-year-old's grave, which is close to the spot where his father, who died three months after his son, is buried. Years before Maggie and Paul were killed, there was another murder in South Carolina that also might have ties to the Murdaugh family. The old way of doing business in Hampton does not exist anymore. He would not let a car, let alone a truck, get close enough to hit him. "I just couldn't believe it," she said. Allen, of the SCHP, telling him about a possible hit and run on Sandy Run Road. Cookies collect information about your preferences and your device and are used to make the site work as you expect it to, to understand how you interact with the site, and to show advertisements that are targeted to your interests. 5:18 a.m. SCHP: Booker notifies Cpl. The 19-year-old nursing student who had been a classmate of Buster Murdaugh at Wade Hampton High School was found dead with a head wound on Sandy Run. Kacen Bayless/AP At the time, police said Smith had a massive head wound and they. Investigators had said at the time that it appeared Smith was hit by a . His name is going to be right there with everyone elses name and I dont care who knows it.. (Center) Alex Murdaugh in Murdaugh Murders: A Southern Scandal. The Hampton community is hoping a suspect can be identified, after 19-year-old Stephen Smith was found dead on Sandy Run Road in an apparent hit and run. 8:25 a.m. SLED: Tallon and Burke arrive at the scene. For more information, please read our Legal Disclaimer. Moore then Walked the scene and saw no evidence of any car parts or pieces and then had all units clear the scene.. A 48-year-old man has been sentenced to three-and-a-half years' jail for a hit-and-run crash that left cyclist and Perth university professor Thomas Lyons, with a serious and ongoing brain injury . Hes never been around Stephen., When asked who told her that she said Stephens friend, another kid who she named, and a couple other people.. On June 22, 2021, SLED said it was . Send your tips tomandy@fitsnews.com. Upon entering the scene, agents observed that the scene was secured by HCSO personnel and yellow barrier tape, the SLED agent wrote. Earlier this week, FITSNews exclusively reported that South Carolina Law Enforcement Division (SLED) opened an investigation into the death of Stephen Smith a Hampton County teenager whose death has been unsolved since 2015. Mallory Beach's parents also spoke out in the 20/20 documentary, remembering their daughter who died after an accident involving a Murdaugh family boat. He stated he would have to go with the doctors ruling, Moore wrote. The final autopsy report said that Stephens cause of death was blunt head trauma, motor vehicle crash, pedestrian vs. vehicle. CLICK HERE. in. Proctor then spoke with Kelly Greene, Hampton County deputy coroner and a SLED agent who both attended the autopsy and said they didnt make any reference to the pathologist about the victim being struck by a vehicle, only that he was found in the road. Her body was found seven days after the February 2019 boat crash. Then it turned out it was a hit and run. SLED agents noted minor injuries to victims left arm, left hand and head. At first, they thought it was a hit and run. Or an issue youd like to address proactively? Stephen Smith, 19, was found dead in the middle of the road outside of Hampton with a gaping head wound, his skull partially crushed and his shoulder dislocated. King World Productions Inc. 2023 Inside Edition Inc. and CBS interactive Inc., Paramount companies. The coroner stated that he had made contact with the pathologist, Dr. Presnell and she stated that she would be willing to change her report to read however he wanted it, Proctor wrote. CLICK HERE. His loosely tied shoes were still on and his clothes appeared untouched. Alex Murdaugh called 911 Saturday and said he had been shot as he stood at the side of a road in Hampton County, South Carolina, according to a statement from the state police. July 8, 2015: Stephen Smith, 19, is found dead on Sandy Run Road in Hampton County.No arrest is made in the case. Singleton tells Moore he wasnt at his desk and would call him back in 30 minutes. Stephen's murder was ruled a hit-and-run with no one arrested for the crime, but in 2021, the case was reopened. The two were shot and killed in June 2021. The Hampton County Coroner's Office said the 19-year-old was hit and killed back in 2015 by blunt-force trauma to the head. Stephen's death is one of several mysterious or accidental deaths that have swirled around the Murdaugh family in recent years. In early June, a son and mother, both members of a. 2023 Minute Media - All Rights Reserved. 8:22 p.m. SCHP: Moore calls Burke. At nearly $29 million, Clark is set to have the third-largest cap hit in 2023 of any defensive end. Currently, Murdaugh is on trial for murder for the deaths of his wife, Maggie Murdaugh, and their son, Paul Murdaugh. He was bright and determined to make a better life for himself. Moore tells him to make sure that the coroner and HCSO are also ruling it a homicide. The battery was functional, however the vehicle would not start., 9:40 a.m. SLED: Agents leave the scene of the car after doing a walk-through with Singleton and Jarrell. His death was ruled a hit-and-run, but his mother Sandy Smith, who attended Sunday's unveiling, has long suspected he was murdered. Smiths mother, Sandy Smith, agrees. Moore leaves his home and heads to Sandy Run Road. You go back to the Murdaugh name and their ties in that community, and that dont matter to me What weve done is take that investigation out of that and their reach I dont care what your name is and how much money you got., He then said Im not saying that the Murdaugh boy did it., But if were going to be throwing out names, Im not going to be withholding names, Proctor wrote. The vehicle doors were locked. Randolph "Randy" Murdaugh is the older brother of Alex Murdaugh, a member of the influential Hampton family. Source: YouTube/Law&Crime Network (video still) Buster Murdaugh This will be a 3-part series revealing the case file. So they can play that card like they care about everyone else. "He wouldve called somebody.. According to our sources, all of the boat crash survivors and Beachs family members voluntarily submitted to questioning and volunteered to provide their DNA as a part of the double homicide investigation. Stephen Smith's body was found along Sandy Run Road in Hampton County in July 2015. Proctor then spoke withKelly Greene, Hampton County deputy coroner and a SLED agent who both attended the autopsy and said they didnt make any reference to the pathologist about the victim being struck by a vehicle, only that he was found in the road. RELATED | Murdaugh Murders: The Latest On The Boat Crash Lawsuit And Obstruction Of Justice Investigation. August 18, 2015, SCHP: The coroner tells Proctor that he did not agree with the final autopsy results in the Stephen Smith case. She had no evidence other than that for the statement being put in the report., Proctor said that he explained to her that law enforcement officers had no evidence of this individual being struck by a vehicle.. Moore asks about any other injuries on Smith, and Presnell tells him only a partial dislocated right shoulder., He asks Presnell if she found any glass fragments or any other evidence of a motor vehicle and she stated no., I then asked her why she was ruling it as a motor vehicle accident and what she thought caused the head injury, he wrote. 6:08 a.m. SCHP: Moore is advised by Allen that MAIT is en route and that Allen is almost at the scene. His head was misshapen by blunt force. Fox News boss Rupert Murdoch said in a deposition under oath that any Fox News executives who knowingly allowed lies to be broadcast on the air "should be reprimanded" or "maybe got rid of," according to a new court filing on Monday by Dominion Voting Systems. Perry Singleton and Chief Billy Jarrell, the SLED report said. Sandy Smith was told that if she wanted her sons case to be looked at by SLED, she would have to write a letter. It was determined that the wound in the victims head was not caused by a fired projectile., The pathologist stated that it appeared the victim was struck by a vehicle., Tallon contacted Singleton to tell him SCHP would need to be contacted to investigate, They collect the Gun Shot Residue (GSR) kit from MUSC, Cause of death: Blunt head trauma due to motor vehicle crash, 7.25-inch laceration on the right side of Stephens forehead along with bruises on both sides of his forehead, Right side of skull has multiple fractures, bruising and contusions, He has smalls cuts on the inside of his left arm, He has cuts and bruises on his right hand, He has cuts on his right arm, including a 6-inch irregular cut on inside of right arm, 12 3-inch aggregate of irregular to angulated abrasions on right arm, Smalls tells him that the doctor was ruling it a motor vehicle accident and they were turning it over to us., Moore then calls Singleton and asks for any notes or information he had.. I asked her why she stated that in the report and her answer was because he was found in the road,' Proctor wrote. Netflix 2023. "My hope is that she finds answers that will give her a little bit of peace," she adds. At first, when police arrived, they suspected his death was a result of a hit-and-run. . SCHP: Moore calls Presnell to try and understand what made her decide Stephen was killed in a hit and run. The Hampton County Coroner's office authorized the autopsy. An official autopsy had ruled the death as a possible hit-and-run, yet some authorities refuted that report after making their own observations at the scene. Michael E. Duncan of the incident. Submit your letter to the editor (or guest column) via email HERE. Hes never said anything bad about Stephen. We've made no secret about what our goal is. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. CLICK HERE. "Sandy and I both believe that this was a murder. HAMPTON, S.C. (WCSC) - A new headstone for Stephen Smith was unveiled at the Gooding Cemetery in Hampton County Sunday. Someone just left him in the middle of the road to die . Mallory and Paul were part of a group of six teenagers who went out on the boat in 2019. part of an apparent hit and run. The19-year-old was found lying in the middle of the roadway with severe head traumain the early morning hours of July 8, 2015. Sadly, the latest update in the Stephen Smith case came back in 2021, but with Alex Murdaugh on trial and with the release ofMurdaugh Murders: A Southern Scandal, were crossing our fingers we hear more developments soon. Last Sunday afternoon, family and friends of Stephen Smith, a South Carolina teen who died under mysterious circumstances in 2015, traveled to the Gooding Cemetery in Hampton County, S.C. Alex Murdaugh is currently in jail, on a $7 million bond that he has yet to meet, facing 51 charges for financial crimes, and multiple lawsuits. Smith's death was attributed to severe head trauma and controversially ruled a hit and run at the time, which the family and some investigators have disputed, and official investigations into his . The killings also led the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division to open an investigation into the 2015 death of Stephen Smith, a 19-year-old man whose body was found in a road 10 miles from. I then reminded him that earlier that morning they were certain it was a gunshot wound and he told me he had to go by the opinion of the doctor. Moore asks where Smiths body is. SLED is simply looking at anyone who may have had a possible motive in the case including the survivors of a high-profile February 2019 boat crash that killed 19-year-oldMallory Beach. "That no family, no community, no friends, no one had come to help her try to get a headstone. Washington tells him its been taken to the funeral home per the familys wishes at the time of the death notification.. Sandy says that Stephen was smart and a study person who was typically serious about school. They just throw their cases on a shelf to collect dust.. Officially, Smiths death was classified as a hit and run. She told FITSNews this week that SLED came to her house to tell her they were opening an investigation. Investigators theorized that the mirror of a semi-truck hit Stephens head. In a recording that features in the documentary, a South Carolina State Trooper tells an unidentified phone tipster that he received at least "nine phone calls" about a rumor connecting the Murdaugh family to Stephen's mysterious roadside death. You become invincible in a way and you get a little liquor and you think youre untouchable.. Additional counties and states will be added to this database as time and funding permit. The man says that hes done a lot of drugs and had brain injuries. It looked like it was more staged, like possibly the body had been placed in the roadway.. She stated they told the Sheriff and Coroner and that they didnt believe it to be a gunshot wound. 3:57:43 a.m. Hampton County Communications: A man called 911 to report seeing a white male lying in the middle of Sandy Run Road. Since the murders of Paul Murdaugh, 22, and Maggie Murdaugh 52, the State Law Enforcement Division, the agency that has been investigating the homicides, announced that it will now be investigating the death of 19-year-old Stephen Smith. The doctor ruled out a gunshot wound and said it was possible the injury was a result of the impact from theside-view mirror of a semi-truck. The teens had been "grossly intoxicated," according to police, even though they were all underage and could not legally buy alcohol. 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