A South Carolina woman who was charged with killing a bride on her wedding night in a DUI crash last April pleaded guilty as her trial was set to begin on Monday.
Jury selection was set to begin in the trial of Jamie Komoroski, 27, who police said was more than three times the legal limit when she crashed into a golf cart carrying newlyweds Samantha Miller, 34, and her groom, Aric Hutchinson, 36, on their wedding night, killing Miller.
A judge sentenced Komoroski to 25 years in prison after she pleaded guilty to one count of felony DUI, two counts of DUI causing great bodily injury or death and one count of reckless homicide, WCSC reported.
When questioned about her decision to plead guilty to the charges, Komoroski told the court she was guilty, was not persuaded into entering the guilty pleas and was waiving a jury trial.
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“I feel like the punishment fit the crime,” Hutchinson told WCSC after the sentencing. “I do think she’s sorry. However, that doesn’t change the fact that Sam’s not here, my wife’s not here, the family we planned, all of our injuries. So that’ll take some time for sure.”
Investigators say that on April 28, 2023, Komoroski was going 65 mph in a 25 mph zone when she slammed her rental car into Miller and her husband while they were leaving their reception in Folly Beach, South Carolina.
Miller died from her injuries, while Hutchinson suffered two broken legs, multiple broken bones in his face and brain injuries.
Hutchinson, along with Miller’s family, spoke before the court on Monday about the void that Komoroski left them with.
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“Do you know what it’s like to vow to protect your wife, do nothing for her and then lose her hours later?” Hutchinson asked Komoroski.
“She told me she didn’t want the night to end, and I kissed her on the forehead, and then the next thing I remember is waking up in the hospital,” Hutchinson recalled.
Lisa Miller, the mother of the deceased bride, described to the court the pain she suffered and relived the last time she hugged her daughter, which was during a dance at the wedding reception just hours before the fatal crash.
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Komoroski addressed the Miller and Hutchinson families and said she was ready to receive whatever punishment the judge saw fit for her choices.
“I am truly and deeply sorry. I take full responsibility for my actions,” Komoroski said. “For the rest of my life I will carry this guilt and take full responsibility.”
Back in June, a South Carolina judge signed off on a $1.3 million partial settlement to the victims’ families stemming from a wrongful death lawsuit Hutchinson filed against Komoroski.
The lawsuit alleges Komoroski had a “booze-filled day of bar hopping” and the establishments she visited that day had an obligation to “exercise due care” in serving alcoholic beverages.
The bars that served Komoroski prior to the crash and the rental car company she used will be on the hook for the seven-figure award.
Several of the businesses named in the lawsuit have settled with Hutchinson, which would net the parties involved $863,000 after fees, WCSC reported.
Hutchinson’s lawyer, Danny Dalton, said the amount was less than anticipated due to an ongoing estate dispute between Hutchinson and the slain bride’s mother, who has challenged whether the pair were legally married.
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