Murdaugh defense says newly disclosed reserve DNA samples should go to Othram before state analysis

Alex Murdaugh's attorneys say prosecutors recently disclosed that previously unprocessed reserve DNA samples remain in the murder case, fueling a renewed effort to have an independent laboratory analyze the evidence before South Carolina investigators conduct additional testing. Defense attorneys wrote allowing the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division (SLED) to conduct additional short tandem repeat, or STR, testing first could consume or degrade the remaining DNA before Texas-based Othram In