Clifton B. Newman (born November 7, 1951) is an American attorney and former at-large judge of the South Carolina Circuit Court.
When Newman was three years old, his mother left his family in Greeleyville, South Carolina to work in New York as a domestic worker.
[3] In high school, Newman acted as an attorney in a dramatization of Briggs v. Elliott, a precursor to the landmark Brown v. Board of Education.
[2][6][7] During his time as a private practice attorney and solicitor, Newman handled litigation in hundreds of cases involving personal injury, wrongful death, and medical malpractice.
In his role as assistant solicitor, Newman litigated approximately ten murder cases, four of which involved the death penalty.
[5][8][9][10] In 2000, the South Carolina General Assembly unanimously elected Newman to circuit court judge at-large seat three, as the other candidates withdrew their candidacy.
His first capital case involved Mikal Mahdi, a defendant accused of killing a public safety officer and then burning the victim's body.
[3] In 2015, he was the judge in the state trial of Michael Slager, the police officer accused in the killing of Walter Scott, which resulted in a mistrial.
[3] In 2018, Newman ordered that the South Carolina Statehouse corruption investigation grand jury report be released to the public.
[22] In 2021, Newman presided over the trial of Nathaniel Rowland, the defendant in the state's case related to the murder of Samantha Josephson.
[24] On September 28, 2021, South Carolina Supreme Court Chief Justice Donald W. Beatty issued an order assigning Newman jurisdiction in "criminal investigations concerning Richard Alexander Murdaugh" and "all pending and future criminal investigations concerning the deaths of Margaret Kennedy Branstetter Murdaugh, Paul Terry Murdaugh, Gloria Harriott Satterfield, and Stephen Nicholas Smith, including any criminal charges which may hereafter be brought by law enforcement or the prosecutor assigned to these matters.
"[25][26] In the murder trial of Alex Murdaugh, Newman denied a pre-trial joint motion request to seal proceedings, stating that "the public is entitled to know how justice is being administered.
[3] In April 2024, several months after his mandatory retirement from the circuit court, JAMS, announced that he had joined the private arbitration firm.
[41] He served as co-chair of the American Bar Association's Judges Initiative Committee,[7] and was a co-author of The Business Courts Benchbook.
[2][47] • Coastal Carolina University awarded Newman the honorary degree Doctor of Public Service, and made him its 2024 commencement speaker (May 2024).
[50] • Valedictorian and student body president, Williamsburg County Training School in Greeleyville, South Carolina.