Cup Of Justice

Cups Up to Season Four in 2026!  Between stretches of absolutely nothing in West Texas and questionable taquito choices, ⁠Mandy Matney⁠⁠ celebrates LUNASHARK’s new travel podcast "Wherever It Leads…"—because apparently investigating corruption wasn't enough of an adventure. Stay tuned for details on the premiere. Then Mandy, ⁠⁠Liz Farrell⁠⁠ and Eric Bland dive into serious updates: Russell Laffitt...

As 2025 draws to a close, the LUNASHARK team takes a moment to look back at the year's most powerful conversations from Cup of Justice. Join digital librarian Kate Thomas as she revisits twelve unforgettable clips, one from each month, featuring the voices that moved us, challenged us, and reminded us why this work matters. From detectives connecting the dots to families walking dark roads seeking...

In this holiday edition, investigative journalists ⁠Mandy Matney⁠⁠ and⁠ ⁠Liz Farrell⁠⁠ talk with attorney⁠ Eric Bland about their Festivus grievances and the ongoing legal harassment they face in the Beach v. Parker civil conspiracy case. Eric explains how unlimited budgets enable clients to weaponize discovery processes, while Mandy and Liz discuss their decision to speak publicly about Greg Park...

Investigative journalists⁠ ⁠Mandy Matney⁠⁠ and⁠ ⁠Liz Farrell⁠⁠ talk with attorney⁠ Eric Bland about South Carolina's deeply flawed judicial selection process as former House Speaker Jay Lucas—at 69 years old with no judicial experience—positions himself for John Kittredge's Supreme Court chief justice seat against experienced appellate judge John Few. The team exposes how the legislature's selecti...

Investigative journalists⁠ ⁠Mandy Matney⁠⁠ and⁠ ⁠Liz Farrell⁠⁠ talk with attorney⁠ Eric Bland about the coordinated harassment they're facing in the the Beach v. Parker litigation—and why it represents everything broken about South Carolina's legal accountability system. Briefly touching on former Colleton County Clerk Becky Hill pleading guilty without prison time, the conversation shifts to a mo...

Investigative journalists⁠ ⁠Mandy Matney⁠⁠ and⁠ ⁠Liz Farrell⁠⁠ open up to attorney⁠ Eric Bland about being targeted in the ongoing Beach v. Parker civil conspiracy litigation, where Greg Parker's legal team has made them collateral damage through aggressive subpoenas and invasive depositions. Liz describes enduring eight hours of what she calls "harassment disguised as a deposition," where Parker’...

In 2009, attorney ⁠Jonny McCoy asked a simple question: "Why are you arresting him?" That question led to his own arrest, fabricated charges, a suicide witnessed in jail, four years of malicious prosecution, and a complete mental breakdown that nearly cost him his life. Now, after years of intensive trauma treatment and a move to Denver to rebuild his mind, Jonny is back practicing law in South Ca...

Investigative journalists ⁠Mandy Matney⁠ and ⁠Liz Farrell⁠ and attorney ⁠Eric Bland⁠ dive into three major developments shaking the South Carolina legal landscape…  First, we're breaking down renewed public scrutiny of attorney Dick Harpootlian, reacting to his recent media comments, his portrayal in Murdaugh: Death in the Family, and long-standing grievances about his courtroom behavior and treat...

Investigative journalists Mandy Matney and Liz Farrell and attorney Eric Bland talk about how Liz’s deposition went in the Mallory Beach civil conspiracy case where she faced down attorney Mark “Yo-Money” Moore. Moore is gas station owner Greg Parker’s attorney and also the criminal defense attorney for Alex Murdaugh’s co-conspirator bankster friend Russell Laffitte. Also, Alex Murdaugh’s attorney...

Investigative journalists Mandy Matney and Liz Farrell and attorney Eric Bland dress up for Huluween on this jam-packed episode - and you can see the video version of COJ Cinema on your LUNASHARK Premium dashboard later this week.  We unpack a wild week of contradictions in South Carolina’s justice system — from the Murdaugh: Death in the Family series’ chilling portrayal of Alex Murdaugh’s unrave...

Investigative journalists Mandy Matney and Liz Farrell have a long list of questions for South Carolina’s 1st Circuit Solicitor David Pascoe and they aren’t afraid to ask them.  Pascoe, who is running to replace state attorney general Alan Wilson in next year’s election has a well-known history of being the only top law enforcement officer in the state who is calling out corruption and seeking acc...

Investigative journalists Mandy Matney and Liz Farrell and attorney Eric Bland tackle one of the most absurd phrases creeping into South Carolina’s justice system — ‘Murdaugh fatigue.’ After years of uncovering corruption, financial crimes, and systemic failures, many in power and some running for office want to move on… leaving victims behind… AGAIN.  Mandy, Liz, and Eric break down the latest in...

Investigative journalists Mandy Matney and Liz Farrell are joined by the distinguished attorney Mark Tinsley, a central figure in the pursuit of justice for the Beach family and a pivotal voice in the Murdaugh saga. Join us as we dive deep with Mark into his journey taking on one of the South’s most powerful families, his reflections on seeking truth amid chaos, and the personal motivations that f...

Investigative journalists Mandy Matney and Liz Farrell and attorney Eric Bland now have a fuller picture of the #SquiresGate case in Hilton Head Island after it went viral last week.  On today’s episode, the gang talks about what it took to get the Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office to fire off-duty deputy Master Sgt. Billy Squires after video emerged of him pointing his service weapon at four teena...

Investigative journalists Mandy Matney and Liz Farrell and attorney Eric Bland break down what happened Sunday night on Hilton Head Island, South Carolina, when an off-duty Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office deputy named Billy Squires held at least three teenagers at gunpoint. In a chilling video, the teen boys, who were reportedly walking in the deputy’s neighborhood, begged for their lives and cri...

Investigative journalists Mandy Matney and Liz Farrell and attorney Eric Bland thought they would never read anything quite as horrible as the descriptions of Child Sexual Assault Material contained in former South Carolina Rep. RJ May’s court records. But they were wrong.  On Monday, the United States Government filed a brief arguing that Charleston County Judge — and South Carolina’s latest elec...

Investigative journalists Mandy Matney and Liz Farrell are joined by Luna Shark Producer (and Mandy’s husband) the extraordinary David Moses — who is filling in for Eric Bland this week. First up on the show, Mandy, Liz and David talk about what it was like for them watching the trailer for “Murdaugh: Death In the Family” for the first time and the profound emotional impact it had on them. Mandy,...

Investigative journalists Mandy Matney and Liz Farrell sit down with Stephanie Tinsley to turn up the mic—and the spotlight—on Stephanie’s ‘Everything They Missed’, a new, true-crime podcast series that reopens a murder case that should’ve never been closed. Everything They Missed is a new series retracing the cold case of Danny Harris—a father, veteran, and Tennessean whose murder became a case s...

Investigative journalists Mandy Matney and Liz Farrell and attorney Eric Bland are examining how Cardi B. has been schooling the courtroom on authenticity, Russell Laffitte stalls his way through justice.  Cardi B’s testimony in California shows how authenticity and honesty can make a witness credible, even when the stakes are high. Contrast that with South Carolina’s Russell Laffitte, whose plea...

Investigative journalists Mandy Matney and Liz Farrell and attorney Eric Bland are back again … and the filters (as usual) are OFF.  Mandy shares the tea about what went on last week in a Columbia, South Carolina, courtroom where her attorney Meredith Bannon argued against Mandy sitting for a deposition in a case she isn’t a part of (David Voros and Alexandra Stasko v. Allison Dunnavant). The case...

If you find yourself involved in the civil justice system, you don’t have to go to trial. Alternatives like mediation or arbitration can offer faster, less adversarial paths to resolution without airing out all your business to the public. But, they’re not the best option for every case — like everything with our justice system, there’s a lot of nuance.  Kimberly Taylor, CEO of JAMS, sat down with...

Investigative journalists Mandy Matney and Liz Farrell and attorney Eric Bland have read the 182-page response filed Friday evening by the South Carolina Attorney General’s Office in Alex Murdaugh’s appellate case and it is BEYOND fiery. Prosecutors pulled no punches when deconstructing every single one of Team Murdaugh’s intellectually dishonest and time-wasting arguments in pursuit of getting hi...

Investigative journalists Mandy Matney and Liz Farrell welcome author Kate Moore to discuss her book "The Woman They Could Not Silence," which chronicles Elizabeth Packard's journey being held captive within an insane asylum in the 1860’s.   Inspired by the #MeToo movement, Moore aimed to explore the historical silencing of women labeled as "mad." She found Packard's story in a University of Wisco...

Investigative journalists⁠ ⁠Mandy  Matney⁠⁠ and⁠ ⁠Liz Farrell⁠⁠ — and attorney⁠ ⁠Eric Bland⁠⁠ — discuss the power of victim impact statements in the Bryan Kohberger case.  Kohberger was charged in 2022 shortly after the horrific killings of four Idaho college students, whom he stabbed to death while they slept. His victims’ loved ones used the power of their voices to let the court — and the publi...

Investigative journalists and True Sunlight Podcast co-hosts  Mandy  Matney and Liz Farrell — and attorney Eric Bland — (reluctantly) discuss the latest (and perhaps most pathetic and reaching) strategy from Dick Harpootlian in his quest to get Alex Murdaugh’s murder charge overturned. Cousin Eddie’s text messages to Alex! Messages that literally don’t help Alex’s case one bit.  Also on the show …...