Alex Murdaugh jurors begin deliberations in double murder trial

Defense says in final arguments South Carolina police failed miserably' to consider alternative suspects in death of wife and son

After nearly six weeks of testimony, jurors in the Alex Murdaugh double murder trial heard the final arguments from opposing legal teams, as presiding judge Clifton Newman prepared to hand them the case for deliberations.

In the last hours of a trial that has gripped the US with its complex blend of deep south violence, power and fraud, defense lawyer Jim Griffin told the court that investigators had failed miserably" in their investigation of the deaths of Murdaugh's wife Maggie and son Paul, and he accused them of fabricating evidence".