Bond denied for woman accused of DUI crash that killed bride on wedding night
CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCBD) – A judge in South Carolina has denied bond for Jamie Komoroski, the woman accused of hitting and killing a new bride during a DUI crash back in April.
Komoroski is charged with reckless homicide resulting in death, as well as three counts of felony DUI, after police say she collided with a golf cart carrying newlywed Samantha Miller and three other passengers — including Miller's new husband — on April 28, 2023.
Komoroski had asked for a judge to grant her bail after spending months behind bars. During a hearing held Tuesday in Charleston, Judge Michael Nettles ultimately denied the bond.
Judge Nettles said, however, that if there is no trial by the spring of 2024, a bond of $150,000 will be set with house arrest requirements. Other various standards will also have to be met, according to the judge.
Samantha Miller's family, as well as those of Komoroski, spoke during Tuesday morning's hearing. Komoroski appeared via video call, wearing striped jail attire and getting emotional at times. She did not speak.
Members of Miller’s family appeared to fight through tears as they asked the judge to consider denying Komoroski bond.
“I spoke at the first bond hearing, 12 hours after the defendant killed my sister, and it’s just as hard to stand here today only three months later,” said Mandi Jenkins, Miller’s older sister.
Komoroski’s defense attorney, Christopher Gramiccioni, addressed Judge Nettles after Miller’s family finished their statements. He said the defendant has “zero criminal history" aside from three prior traffic convictions.
“She’s never even been disciplined at her college at Coastal Carolina or in high school. I mean, she has as clean of a record as you can imagine, as it pertains to purported danger to the community,” Gramiccioni added.
Komoroski’s parents and siblings spoke during the hearing, vowing to help with her sobriety if she was to be released from jail.
“I will take full responsibility and commit myself and dedicate myself to making sure that she will be following all of the rules put upon her,” Komoroski's mother, Traci Komoroski, said about her daughter.
Outside the courtroom after the hearing, Miller's mother said she was empathetic to the plight of Komoroski's family, but ultimately felt the defendant belonged behind bars.
“Why should she just get out and go about her merry way? I definitely don’t think she should go back to [New] Jersey or anywhere around here, I think she should stay in the community where it happened and feel it like I do every time I come down here,” Lisa Miller said after the hearing.
Miller and her new husband Ari Hutchinson had married only hours before the crash, at a venue in Folly Beach. Miller died at the scene. Hutchinson, along with the two other passengers in the golf cart, suffered serious injuries.
A toxicology report revealed that Komoroski’s blood alcohol level was three times the legal limit in South Carolina.
Hutchinson later filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the Komoroski, claiming she was “bar hopping” in the hours leading up to the deadly crash.
Komoroski has been housed at the Al Cannon Detention Center in Charleston County since her initial arrest. Her attorneys say she is an exceptional student with a tight-knit family bond. In a recent motion, they argued that Komoroski poses no danger to the community.