He previously served as Chargé d'affaires and Deputy Chief of Mission in the Kingdoms of Thailand and Lesotho.

He was nominated on January 16, 2019 to be Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the United States of America to the Kingdom of Cambodia.

[3] Murphy was raised and educated in Vermont, graduating from Brattleboro Union High School (BUHS).

[5] Since his first mission at the U.S. Consulate General in Guangzhou, China, Murphy has completed diplomatic assignments in Thailand,[6] Burma (Myanmar), Iraq, Lesotho, Guinea, and Mali.

His experience also includes various positions in Washington, including Acting Special Representative and Policy Coordinator for Burma, Office for Mainland Southeast Asia Director, senior political advisor for the Haiti Working Group, and desk officer for Burma, and Laos.

[9] Murphy's nomination was resubmitted to the 116th Congress on January 16, 2019, and reported favorably by the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations on April 3.