Groom Files Lawsuit Against Folly Beach Bars Following Bride’s Death on Their Wedding Day

Following their wedding, on April 28, Aric Hutchinson and Sam Miller were traveling on Folly Beach in a golf cart when a Toyota slammed into them driving 45 miles over the speed limit, according to police reports. The crash left Miller dead and Hutchinson and other wedding attendees in the cart with injuries. The driver of the vehicle, Jamie Lee Komoroski, was arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence. Toxicology reports now say her blood alcohol level was 0.261, which is three times over the legal limit.

The heartbreaking story of a bride losing her life on her wedding night has garnered national attention.

On May 17, Hutchinson and the other injured parties from the evening filed a wrongful-death lawsuit again Komoroski and the Daniel Island and Folly Beach bars that allegedly served her alcohol.

These establishments include El Gallo Bar & Grill, Snapper Jack’s, the Drop In Bar & Deli, and the Crab Shack. According to the lawsuit, “[d]espite being noticeably and visibly intoxicated at each of these establishments, Jamie Komoroski continued to be served, provided, and/or allowed to consume additional and excessive amounts of alcohol at each of them.” Taco Boy is also named in the lawsuit as Komoroski’s employer at the time and alleges supervisors of “conducting functions/meetings with team members/employees under them at local bars in the immediate area, including, The Drop In, The Crab Shack and/or Snapper Jack’s.”

This is not the first time a bar or restaurant has been named in a wrongful-death lawsuit following a drunk driving accident. In 2012, popular Charleston restaurant Husk was named in a lawsuit alleging that one of its employees drank in excess at the establishment and was allowed to get behind the wheel, resulting in an accident and the death of another driver. Husk and its parent company settled the lawsuit for $1.1 million and changed its drinking policies for employees. At the time of the 2012 settlement, Post and Courier spoke to restaurateur Karalee Nielsen, who currently runs Taco Boy, about employee alcohol consumption in restaurants, and she is quoted as saying her establishments have a “no-tolerance policy for employee drinking.”