Following the life sentencing of disgraced attorney Alex Murdaugh, South Carolina investigators are looking into the mysterious “slip and fall” death of the family’s housekeeper in 2018.
Police said there had been some suspicion surrounding the death of the housekeeper, Gloria Satterfield, 57, after she allegedly slipped and fell over the family’s four dogs on the steps leading to their home.
On Thursday, a jury determined that the only two witnesses, Paul Murdaugh, 22, and his mother, Maggie, 52, were killed on June 7, 2021, by Alex Murdaugh.
NY Post reports that investigations are now looking to exhume Satterfield’s body.
According to a lawsuit filed on Sept 21 by the deceased’s children, Satterfield had worked for the Murdaugh family for over 20 years and was treated like “part of the Murdaugh family.”
“Gloria died for a purpose,” Bland said Friday. “She was the first, and it really brought all the victims together in a sense.”
Police launched the investigation shortly after the lawsuit was filed once they learned that Satterfield’s “death was not reported to the coroner at the time, nor was an autopsy performed.”
“On the death certificate, the manner of death was ruled ‘Natural,’ which is inconsistent with injuries sustained in a trip and fall accident,” said Hampton County Coroner Angela Topper.
According to Bland, the Satterfield family has given police permission to exhume her body, but he is unsure when it will occur.
“But when it does, it will probably be in the middle of the night, when the public doesn’t know, to ensure her dignity and privacy,” Bland said.
