The husband of a bride who tragically lost her life in an alleged DUI crash on their wedding night is set to receive nearly $1 million in settlement, according to recent reports. The fatal incident occurred last year on a South Carolina beach road, claiming the life of the newlywed bride and leaving her husband, Aric Hutchinson, grieving the loss of his partner.
The settlement, which amounts to approximately $863,300, has been approved by Charleston County Circuit Court Judge Roger Young and involves multiple parties, including three Folly Beach bars, an auto insurance company, and a car rental service.
FOLLY BEACH, S.C. — The husband of a bride who was killed in a South Carolina beach road collision on her wedding night last year will receive nearly a million dollars in settlement connected to the crash, which a drunk driver allegedly caused.
The Post and Courier reported that Aric Hutchinson will receive about $863,300 from Folly Beach bars The Drop In Bar & Deli, the Crab Shack and Snapper Jacks; Progressive auto insurance; and Enterprise Rent-A-Car, according to a settlement approved earlier this week by Charleston County Circuit Court Judge Roger Young.
Hutchinson sued the businesses after driver Jamie Lee Komoroski crashed a rented vehicle into a golf cart carrying him and his new bride, 34-year-old Samantha Miller, away from their wedding reception on April 28, 2023.
The golf cart was thrown 100 yards (91.44 meters). Miller died at the scene, still wearing her wedding dress. Hutchinson survived with a brain injury and multiple broken bones. Komoroski was driving 65 mph on a 25 mph road, the newspaper reported.
Hutchinson charged in the wrongful death lawsuit that Komoroski “slurred and staggered” across several bars around Folly Beach before speeding in her Toyota Camry with a blood-alcohol concentration more than three times the legal limit.
The settlements amount to $1.3 million but will total less than that after attorney and legal fees are paid.
