A woman who admitted to drinking and driving well over twice the speed limit when she smashed into a golf cart, killing a new bride at a South Carolina beach, was sentenced to the maximum 25 years in prison. Jamie Lee Komoroski pleaded guilty in Charleston to reckless homicide, felony DUI causing death and two counts of felony DUI causing great bodily injury, the Associated Press reports. Also hurt in the 2023 crash was the groom, Aric Hutchinson, who cried in court as he recalled the last moments he spent with Samantha Miller “On the golf cart, 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 said.
Police said Komoroski, 27, drank at several bars on April 28, 2023, and was driving 65 mph on a narrow road with a speed limit of 25 mph when the slammed into the golf court that was leaving the wedding. Her blood-alcohol level was 0.26%, more than three times the legal limit to drive. After pleading guilty, Komoroski said she realized now she was addicted to alcohol and selfishly didn’t care how her actions affected others. She promised to spend the rest of her life helping addicts and warning of the dangers of drinking and driving. Friends and family of both Miller and Komoroski spoke at the hearing, which lasted nearly three hours. Komoroski’s supporters asked the judge to be lenient because she is young, remorseful and can still do good.
Miller family members urged a harsh sentence, saying that the decisions Komoroski made that night were selfish and permanently scarred many lives.
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