South-Carolina
DUI driver admits to crash that killed South Carolina bride on wedding night year after tragedy
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.
FAMILY OF SOUTH CAROLINA BRIDE KILLED ON HER WEDDING NIGHT AWARDED $1.3M SETTLEMENT
Jame Lee Komoroski pleaded guilty to the DUI crash that killed bride Samantha Miller and seriously injured groom Aric Hutchinson on the couple’s wedding night. The couple is shown leaving their South Carolina wedding reception under a canopy of sparklers minutes before the collision. (Charleston County Sheriff’s Office/GoFundMe)
“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.
GRIEVING SOUTH CAROLINA GROOM WHOSE BRIDE KILLED HOURS AFTER WEDDING BATTLES MOTHER-IN-LAW OVER ESTATE: REPORT
Jamie Komoroski, left, admitted to the fatal crash that killed Samantha Miller on her wedding night. (Folly beach Public Safety, Jamie Komoroski/Instagram, SC 9th Judicial Circuit)
“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.
HARD-PARTYING SC WOMAN CHARGED WITH KILLING BRIDE ON WEDDING NIGHT ADMITTED TO ALCOHOLISM: JAILHOUSE CALLS
Aric Hutchinson and Samantha Miller’s wedding on Folly Beach, South Carolina. (Facebook)
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.
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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.
New details have emerged in an officer-involved shooting that left one dead and a deputy injured in Anderson County on Monday.
A deputy with the Anderson County Sheriff’s Office (ACSO) initiated a traffic stop outside of Townville, SC, on I-85 Northbound near Mile Marker 11 for a traffic violation, according to a release from the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division (SLED).
The deputy requested back-up and spoke to 32-year-old Austin Derrell Robertson, of Pennsylvania, in his patrol vehicle. Once the other deputy arrived, Robertson got out of the vehicle and “a physical altercation involving him and the two deputies” occured, according to SLED.
SC deputy critically injured after shooting during traffic stop, suspect killed
While deputies attempted to tase Robertson, officials said he grabbed a firearm from his vehicle and shot one of the deputies.
Both deputies then shot back at Roberston, and he was pronounced dead at the scene.
SLED said the deputy was airlifted to the hospital and remains there for treatment at this time.
The incident remains under investigation by SLED, as requested by the ACSO.
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COLUMBIA, S.C. (WIS) – Former South Carolina Lt. Gov. André Bauer has been nominated for a position in foreign diplomacy.
The White House on Tuesday listed Bauer as a nominee to be the next U.S. Ambassador to Belize, a Central American country bordering Guatemala.
It’s unclear when a confirmation hearing will take place. WIS has reached out to the Senate Foreign Affairs Committee for more information.
Bauer was South Carolina’s lieutenant governor from 2003-2011, serving under then-Gov. Mark Sanford. Before that, he served terms in the South Carolina House of Representatives and the South Carolina Senate.
More recently, Bauer entered the race for U.S. Senate in July 2025, looking to unseat Sen. Lindsey Graham in the Republican primary. He ended his campaign the following month.
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CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCIV) — Six Republican candidates vying to become South Carolina’s next governor met in downtown Charleston for a wide-ranging debate that put abortion, infrastructure and the future of data centers at the center of the race.
The forum was held at the Sottile Theatre, where Lt. Gov. Pamela Evette, state Sen. Josh Kimbrell, U.S. Rep. Nancy Mace, U.S. Rep. Ralph Norman, Lowcountry businessman Rom Reddy and Attorney General Alan Wilson took the stage.
Questions included whether they would support a state hate crime law, how they would address concerns about growth and infrastructure, how to navigate collaboration, abortion and the future of data centers in the state.
One issue that drew near-unanimous opposition was state Senate Bill 1095, a proposed total abortion ban that passed out of committee earlier in the day. All of the candidates opposed the bill, but they differed on what they would do if it reached the governor’s desk.
READ MORE | South Carolina governor candidates tout infrastructure, growth at business forum
Norman said he would sign it.
“You know, this is an emotional issue, but I will tell you if this bill came to my desk as governor. If it passed the House and the Senate, I would sign it,” Norman said.
All of the other candidates on stage said they would veto the bill if it came across their desk as governor, with Reddy arguing the question should be decided by voters.
“The Supreme Court did not say the loudest voice in the ruling class prevails. It said it’s up to the people in the state, so let’s put it to a referendum,” Reddy said.
On infrastructure, candidates discussed reforming the South Carolina Department of Transportation and allowing private-sector involvement to help pay for improvements.
Wilson outlined ideas that included leasing interstate easements and expanding private express lanes.
“We privatized that grass between the interstates. We turn it into private express lanes that can be told we leased the easements on the sides of interstates to telecommunication companies and energy companies, and charge them for natural gas line and fiber optic fiber optic cables,” Wilson said.
Evette also pointed to public-private partnerships and the possibility of fast-pass lanes.
READ MORE | South Carolina governor candidates tout infrastructure, growth at business forum
“We want to make sure that we’re innovative public private partnerships coming in and creating fast pass lanes to allow people that are in a hurry to be able to utilize that,” Evette said.
The final question focused on data centers, with candidates agreeing corporations should “pay their way.”
“They should pay for their water. They should pay for their infrastructure, any roads around it, and we should look at what Governor Ron DeSantis has done in Florida with the large data centers that are coming to Florida. That should be the model in South Carolina and everywhere,” Mace said.
Kimbrell said the state should set limits to protect natural resources and guard against higher power costs for residents.
“Put parameters around data centers to ensure that the water consumption does not impact places like the ACE Basin,” Kimbrell said. “Ensuring that the Public Service Commission makes absolutely sure nobody’s power rate goes up and we try to get behind the meter energy grids in place so they can be self-sufficient.”
Two more debates are planned ahead of the primaries on June 9.
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