Nationally revered Judge Clifton Newman discusses high-profile trial at Cleveland State University – The Cauldron

The Cleveland State University College of Law welcomed graduate and nationally revered Judge Clifton Newman Tuesday, March 28, for a discussion and audience Q&A.

Judge Newman, who recently presided over the high-profile trial of former South Carolina attorney Alex Murdaugh, has received national esteem for his “even-handed demeanor” throughout the trial and “insightful comments” during sentencing.

The discussion, which took place in the College of Law’s Moot Court Room and attracted an audience of more than 300 students, faculty, staff, and community members, was led by Cuyahoga Court of Common Pleas Judge Brendan Sheehan. Judge Sheenan asked Judge Newman about his work on the Murdaugh trial and his legal career.

“The chief called and asked if I could take it, I said, ‘Okay, bring it on,” Judge Newman said when asked how he felt when he was selected for the case.

Judge Newman said that he did not anticipate the attention the Mudraugh case would attract across the country. He added that since the individual on trial was a well-known lawyer, there was an added “notoriety” to the case on a national scale. However, the esteem he would receive from the trial was not his priority, to begin with:

“I wasn’t experiencing any of that,” Judge Newman said. “I was simply a judge, in a trial, doing my job, as I’ve done repeatedly over the years, and the interests and notoriety that was taking place all around had no effect on me because I was engaged in the process of what I had to do.”

Judge Newman has been particularly praised for his handling of the media throughout the trial. During the discussion, he emphasized the importance of proper planning from any presiding judge to preserve the integrity of a trial.

“Having dealt with other high-profile cases, I know that the media will not be satisfied unless they are able to have access to public information,” Judge Newman said. “But it took a lot of planning to ensure that the presence of the media did not have an impact on the proceedings.”

The discussion concluded with the judge sharing how he felt during the Murdaugh trial sentencing. He said that although he knew of Murdaugh as a fellow law practitioner, the familiarity did not affect his sentencing, tying back to his message of fairness in the courtroom.

The discussion was followed by an audience Q&A, largely consisting of questions from local law students about his experience in law school, as well as the lessons he learned from the Murdaugh trial.

Judge Newman shared details of his challenging experience as a law student. He said that the motto of CSU’S College of Law, “Learn law. Live justice,” is one he lives by every day. He added that one of the most important roles of a judge is to make the law make sense to the public through everyday language.

He also told the law students in the room that “opportunities will dictate the path of your legal career,” meaning what one aspires to be in law school won’t necessarily dictate what they become.

The judge concluded the Q&A with a lesson that the Murdaugh trial reinforced for him.

“Humanity is a difficult thing,” he said. “And with the mysteries of human life, it’s hard to predict what a human being can do, particularly when they are involved with drugs. That’s just a sad reality that we all have to deal with.”

Audience members who graduated alongside Judge Newman took the time to express their pride and awe for the recently esteemed judge, and the event ended in a standing ovation for the judge.

It was also announced at the end of the event that Judge Newman would return to Northeast Ohio on November 3 to be inducted into the CSU College of Law Hall of Fame.

Watch the live stream of the discussion and Q&A here