The alleged drunk driver who fatally slammed into the golf cart carrying a bride and groom from their South Carolina wedding reception last month “slurred and staggered” through multiple bars in the hours before the smash-up, a wrongful death suit alleges.
Newlywed Samantha Miller Hutchinson, 34, died in Folly Beach on April 28 when Jamie Lee Komoroski allegedly rear-ended her and her husband, Aric Hutchinson, with her Toyota Camry. Records later showed that Komoroski, who remains in custody in Charleston County, was driving while three times over the legal blood-alcohol limit.
Aric Hutchinson, 36, was severely injured in the crash. He filed a wrongful death suit last week against Komoroski and the Low Country watering holes that allegedly served her “copious amounts” of booze.
Komoroski, 25, spent the hours before the deadly collision on a “booze-fueled day of bar-hopping” through at least four local hangouts, the documents obtained last week by WYFF claim.
The filing describes how the Coastal Carolina University graduate reportedly started her escapades at El Gallo Bar & Grill near Daniel’s Island before she “slurred and staggered” through The Drop In, The Crab Shack and Snapper Jack’s on Folly Beach’s Center Street.
“Despite being noticeably and visibly intoxicated…Jamie Komoroski continued to be served, provided, and/or allowed to consume additional and excessive amounts of alcohol,” the suit states.
By the time she drove her Toyota into Miller and Hutchinson’s golf cart at 65 mph, 40 miles over the speed limit, the New Jersey native was allegedly “barely conscious” behind the wheel, according to the documents.
In addition to Komoroski and the four bars, the lawsuit also cites the waitress’s employer, the Taco Boy eatery, and her unnamed boss as plaintiffs.
The documents allege that the restaurant’s culture encouraged workers to socialize through heavy drinking, often at outings on Center Street.
Both Taco Boy and Komoroski’s supervisor are accused of “inviting, encouraging, pressuring, and ultimately coercing [Komoroski] to drink alcohol beyond the point of visible intoxication” despite her reported history of substance abuse.
Taco Boy issued a statement one day after the lawsuit was filed, and insisted with “absolute certainty” that Komoroski did not set foot in the restaurant nor did any of its employees serve her alcohol there on the day of the fatal crash, WCBD reported.
“We have confirmed this by watching 16 hours of video footage from multiple cameras, staff interviews with everyone working that day, and by reviewing all sales receipts,” the statement read.
The restaurant also said that Komoroski passed a background check without any “red flags” and was trained on-site for two days before the accident.
“She has since been terminated,” the eatery confirmed.
“Our hearts are with the family and friends impacted by this tragedy. Beyond the many visitors we receive, Folly Beach is a close-knit community of locals and businesses, and we share in the heartbreak of this senseless loss.”
In addition to Hutchinson, two of the couple’s male relatives, including a minor, sustained “life-changing” injuries in the accident, the suit states.
Police who responded to the scene previously stated that Komoroski smelled of alcohol but refused a field sobriety test. She has since been charged with three felony DUIs resulting in great bodily injury or harm and one count of reckless homicide.
In a recorded jailhouse conversation with her father that was printed earlier this week, Komoroski whined that her “whole life is going to be over.”
After her father chided her to “suck it up” and “get tough,” she replied, “I can’t. I want it to be over.”
