'Good Samaritan' Drove a Bleeding Alex Murdaugh to the Hospital After Shooting, His Lawyer Says

Murdaugh's lawyer says his client suffered "an entry and exit wound, a skull fracture, and minor brain bleeding in two places" when he was shot on Saturday — and that it was not self-inflicted

Alex Murdaugh. Photo: Facebook

Beleaguered lawyer Alex Murdaugh was bleeding and suffered "significant head trauma" after getting shot while changing a tire on the side of a desolate South Carolina road, claims his attorney, who corrected a key detail in a police incident report saying he bore no visible injuries afterward.

On Thursday, the Hampton County Sheriff's Office released an incident report to the public from Saturday, indicating that the victim, 53-year-old Alex, had no "visible injury" after being shot in the head on Old Salkehatchie Highway in Varneville.

Hours later, the HCSO sent out a revised report, this time with the box beside "visible injury" checked off. The words "other major injury" were added next to "visible injury."

The first report also said that Alex was not using alcohol or drugs at the time of the incident. The revised report said it was "unknown" whether Alex was using alcohol or drugs.

In an email to PEOPLE Thursday, Alex's attorney Jim Griffin wrote, "I understand that the Sheriff has clarified this 'no visible sign of injury' entry to some reporters."

He continued, saying, "In any event, when the Deputies arrived, Alex Murdaugh was not at the scene. He was picked up by a good Samaritan and who drove him toward the hospital."

Griffin says he does not know the identity of the "good Samaritan."

"They ultimately met up with the ambulance on the highway, where he was examined and because of the extent of his injuries, the EMTs call for him to be airlifted to the hospital. He had significant head trauma and there was blood at the scene, which is indicated by the evidence cones placed in the roadway. I understand that most of the cones mark blood.

"I presume that the deputy checked the no visible sign of injury on the incident report because he was not able to assess Alex since [Alex] had left the scene before the deputy arrived," he wrote.

Griffin also said that Alex's injuries were far more serious than was initially reported.

Confirming what he told The Island Packet Thursday, Griffin told PEOPLE that Alex suffered "an entry and exit wound, a skull fracture, and minor brain bleeding in two places."

He also said that the gunshot wound was not self-inflicted.

The HCSO sent PEOPLE the initial report and the updated report. Hampton County Sheriff T.C. Smalls did not immediately respond to PEOPLE's request for comment.

The Island Packet spoke to Smalls, who said the box was likely checked in error.

"He did have an injury," Smalls told the paper. "That probably was a mistake," likely caused by a "computer error."

The rest of the brief report, which calls the incident "attempted murder," goes on to say that deputies were dispatched to the area in reference to a shooting.

"While en route, Deputies learned the victim, later identified as Alex Murdaugh, had been shot in the head and was being flown out from a landing zone on Charleston Highway (Varnville) to the hospital.

"Corporal (Kendrell) Henderson met with the victim before he was flown out while I, Sergeant (Samuel) White, secured the scene of the crime until HCSO and SLED investigators arrived. Further investigation required."

A Whirlwind of Shocking Events

On Monday, after being released from the hospital, where Alex was treated for "a superficial gunshot wound to the head," according to SLED, he announced that he was resigning from his law firm, Peters Murdaugh Parker Eltzroth & Detrick (PMPED), and would be undergoing treatment for addiction.

"The murders of my wife and son have caused an incredibly difficult time in my life," he said in the statement, which was obtained by The Island Packet. "I have made a lot of decisions that I truly regret. I'm resigning from my law firm and entering rehab after a long battle that has been exacerbated by these murders.

"I am immensely sorry to everyone I've hurt, including my family, friends and colleagues," he said in the statement. "I ask for prayers as I rehabilitate myself and my relationships."

He did not address the shooting in his statement.

On Monday, night, The New York Times and The Island Packet reported that members of PMPED had accused Alex of misusing the firm's funds and pushed him out.

On Wednesday, his older brother, Randolph Murdaugh IV, 54, spoke out for the first time, saying in a statement, "I was shocked, just as the rest of my PMPED family, to learn of my brother, Alex's, drug addiction and stealing of money."

Alex was shot three months after he came home on June 7 and found his wife, Maggie Murdaugh, 52, and their son, Paul, 22, shot to death on their property in Islandton in the South Carolina low country.

No arrests have been made in connection to the shootings of his wife and son — or the shooting on Saturday. Police continue to investigate.

Alex's troubles continued Wednesday, when the South Carolina Supreme Court placed Alex on an interim suspension, prohibiting him from practicing law in the state where he's been a lawyer for decades, according to an order obtained by PEOPLE.

Also on Wednesday, the Solicitor's Office said Alex would no longer prosecute cases as a volunteer, The Island Packet reports.

Earlier this week, PMPED issued a statement about the allegations.

"This is disappointing news for all of us," the firm said, adding that it had cut all ties with Alex. "Rest assured that our firm will deal with this in a straightforward manner. There's no place in our firm for such behavior."

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Griffin told PEOPLE in a previous statement that "Alex resigned from the firm after being accused of diverting lawyer fees. These allegations prompted him to confront his dependency and he voluntarily checked into an in-patient substance abuse rehab facility after being discharged from the hospital Monday."

As authorities investigate Saturday's shooting, they continue to search for a motive and a suspect or suspects in the killings of Maggie and Paul.

At the time of his death, Paul was facing charges in the death of Mallory Beach, 19, in a 2019 boating accident.

As a result of the crash, Beach's family sued Alex, Buster and a store where Paul allegedly bought alcohol on the night of the crash in a wrongful death lawsuit.