Raleigh: Judge keeps $2 million bond after ex-N.C. State sports medicine director's first court date

The former N.C. State University director of sports medicine made his first appearance before a Wake County judge on Friday, a day after he was brought back from Florida to face sexual-abuse charges.

Robert Murphy Jr. appeared on Friday, Oct. 9. District Court Judge Brian Ratledge set the next court date for Nov. 2, WRAL reported. After the hearing, WRAL, CBS 17, ABC11 and The News & Observer all reported the bond as $2 million. WRAL, citing jail records Friday evening, said he had not posted it.

A charge is an accusation. Being charged does not mean a person is guilty. Murphy is presumed innocent unless he is proven guilty in court. His lawyers have said they believe he will be cleared.

Friday in Wake County court

CBS 17 and ABC11 said Friday was the first time the criminal case was heard by a Wake County judge. The News & Observer reported that Murphy appeared by video from the Wake County Detention Center, and that the hearing was short.

ABC11 said he spoke briefly and that the appearance lasted less than four minutes. The station also said he agreed to surrender his passport. The N&O reported that Assistant District Attorney Melanie Shekita asked the judge to keep the existing bail and to require a passport surrender if he posts it, and that defense lawyer Seth Blum did not ask the judge to lower the bail.

WRAL said the university did not immediately respond to a request for comment about Friday's hearing. ABC11 published a UNC System statement that the health and safety of students is the system's highest priority, that it takes sexual-assault allegations seriously, and that it would not comment further because the matter is in court.

The bond, and why the figures differ

On Thursday evening, Oct. 8, Murphy was booked in Wake County and brought before a magistrate. A Conditions of Release order signed that day by Magistrate J. Fly set a total secured bond of $2.25 million, divided among 14 processes. The Associated Press, citing online court records, reported the same $2.25 million magistrate figure.

The magistrate wrote that Murphy had been extradited from Florida on the nine felony and 23 misdemeanor counts listed below. The order also bars contact with any alleged victim.

Friday's television and newspaper accounts described the bond as $2 million and said the judge kept it there. We have not seen Friday's written order, so we are reporting both figures: $2.25 million on the Thursday form, and $2 million in Friday's court coverage. The N&O also wrote that a magistrate had set $2 million. That line does not match the Thursday order.

Court papers name the defendant as Robert Michael Murphy and list an address in Ocala, Florida. We are not publishing the street number.

The charges

Jail records and the magistrate's order list 32 counts in all:

• Nine felony counts of sexual contact under the pretext of medical treatment
• 23 misdemeanor counts of sexual battery

A Wake County grand jury returned the charges on Sept. 14, ESPN, The Associated Press and WRAL reported. The indictments stayed sealed until after Murphy's arrest in Florida.

Prosecutors say the counts involve 14 alleged victims and cover dates from October 2016 through fall 2021, according to the unsealed indictments as described by WRAL, ESPN and the AP. WRAL, which reviewed the documents, said the listed offense dates run as late as September 2021. ESPN reported that the athletes were 18 to 22 years old at the time of the alleged incidents.

In a statement to the AP confirming the indictment, Wake County District Attorney Lorrin Freeman said the charges were linked to 14 people interviewed by law enforcement during a multiyear investigation. "This is a big step in a longer process committed to seeking justice on behalf of these victims," Freeman said. "We commend the hard work of law enforcement and the courage of the victims who have brought us to this point."

Under North Carolina law, sexual contact or penetration under the pretext of medical treatment is a Class C felony. Sexual battery is a Class A1 misdemeanor.

What Murphy's lawyers say

Raleigh lawyers Jared Hammett and Seth A. Blum, who have represented Murphy in civil cases, told WRAL and the AP they were disappointed prosecutors brought the case. They said law enforcement had not filed charges four years earlier and that they believe Murphy will be cleared when people hear the facts.

Murphy did not speak at Thursday's magistrate appearance, CBS 17 reported.

Background

Murphy directed sports medicine at N.C. State from January 2012 to June 2022, WRAL reported. The university suspended him in January 2022, and he resigned that June.

Allegations first became public in 2022, when former Wolfpack soccer player Benjamin Locke filed a federal civil lawsuit. Locke has spoken publicly about the case. The civil litigation later grew to include more than 30 former male athletes. WRAL has reported that Locke and former soccer player Parker Cross are the named plaintiffs and that the others are listed as John Doe.

A Wake County judge dismissed the athletes' civil lawsuit in June on procedural grounds, ESPN and WRAL reported, including that claims against the public university belong before the North Carolina Industrial Commission. ESPN reported that the dismissal is on appeal. ABC11, quoting lawyer Kerry Sutton, said a separate claim involving the university is pending before the Industrial Commission.

N.C. State said after the indictment that it was aware of the Wake County charges, that sexual misconduct of any kind is unacceptable and that it would cooperate with law enforcement. Chancellor Kevin Howell told WRAL the university does not condone sexual assault.

ESPN, citing redacted records it obtained, has reported that a 2022 N.C. State Title IX investigation found, by a preponderance of the evidence, that Murphy's conduct while treating Locke was unwelcome and of a sexual nature. That campus finding is not a criminal conviction.

Timeline

• January 2012: Murphy becomes N.C. State's director of sports medicine (WRAL).
• January 2022: The university suspends him (WRAL).
• June 2022: He resigns (WRAL).
• Monday, Sept. 14, 2026: A Wake County grand jury indicts him on 32 counts (ESPN, AP, WRAL).
• Wednesday night, Sept. 23: He is arrested in Marion County, Florida (WRAL, ESPN, AP; Marion County Sheriff's Office inmate listing, via AP / CBS News).
• Thursday, Sept. 24: He appears in a Marion County court and waives extradition. The Wake indictments are unsealed (ESPN, WRAL).
• Thursday evening, Oct. 8: He is extradited to Raleigh and booked. The magistrate's release order sets a $2.25 million total bond (WRAL; CBS 17; magistrate order).
• Friday, Oct. 9: He appears before Judge Ratledge. Coverage of that hearing reports a $2 million bond. The next date is Nov. 2 (WRAL, CBS 17, ABC11, N&O).

We are listing only dates that appear in those reports. Freeman told a Raleigh television station in September that people who waive extradition are often returned within 72 to 96 hours, ESPN reported. Murphy's return came about two weeks after the waiver.

What happens next

The next court date is Nov. 2, WRAL reported. A trial date has not been announced. How Murphy will plead has not been reported.

We will update this story when the courts or the Wake County District Attorney's Office release more.