By JEFFREY

COLLINS

Associated Press

COLUMBIA, S.C. –A mother whose son was found dead in the middle of a South Carolina road eight years ago is opening a private investigation into his death after raising almost $90,000 amid the publicity surrounding the murder trial of Alex Murdaugh.

There is no current evidence linking Stephen Smith’s death to the Murdaugh family, the lawyers for the mother say. State investigators, who are also looking into Smith’s death, have also remained tight-lipped about taking over the case around the same time police said Murdaugh killed his wife and son. He is serving a life sentence for those killings.

But the lack of evidence hasn’t stopped speculation. And that attention in turn helped Sandy Smith raise in less than two weeks more than $87,000 through Go Fund Me. Her goal was $15,000 — enough to pay to exhume her son’s body and have a private autopsy.

“It’s important to me because I love my son and since I couldn’t protect him, I’m going to fight for him,” Sandy Smith told reporters Monday as her lawyers announced the private investigation.

Stephen Smith was found dead in the middle of a two-lane Hampton County road on July 8, 2015. His car with the gas cap removed and his wallet still inside was found a short distance away

The trooper who responded didn’t think it was a hit and run, but the pathologist who did the autopsy theorized Smith was hit in the head by the side mirror of a passing truck that did not stop.

Police said it appeared he ran out of gas and was walking for help, but attorney Eric Bland, who is representing the Smith family, said Smith didn’t make any calls on his cellphone and his shoes, which were tied loosely, were still on his feet. People hit by cars are often found without their shoes from the force of the wreck.

Smith’s family thinks his injuries, including head injuries and a dislocated arm bent behind him, indicate he was beaten to death and dropped on the highway. There were no skid marks on the road or debris like broken glass or mirror parts found nearby, said Ronnie Richter, another lawyer for the Smiths.

State agents took over the case in 2021, though they have never said why they decided to do that or whether it is linked to information found during the investigation into the death of Alex Murdaugh’s wife and son. Troopers typically investigate traffic deaths in South Carolina, where state agents typically investigate other crimes.

State Law Enforcement Division Chief Mark Keel reached out to Smith’s new lawyers to ask if they will share any new information they find through the autopsy or any other investigation, agency spokesperson Renee Wunderlich said.