Parker’s Kitchens has settled a lawsuit stemming from the death of Mallory Beach for $15 million, according to multiple media reports.
Beach’s family had sued the company, as well as President and CEO Greg Parker and others, after Mallory Beach died in a boating accident in South Carolina in 2019. The accident allegedly happened as a result of Paul Murdaugh — the since-deceased son of convicted murderer Alex Murdaugh — driving the boat while intoxicated after buying alcohol at a Parker’s Kitchen c-store with an ID that wasn’t his, according to court documents.
The complaint alleged that the clerk was poorly trained and should have noticed the ID was not Paul Murdaugh’s. Parker’s defense centered on the fact that there was no indication the store’s clerk knew they were selling alcohol to someone underaged and that there was no citation issued by the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division.
Parker’s and Alex Murdaugh were both named as defendants in the lawsuit, and under a "joint and several award," if both parties were found guilty, Parker’s could have been on the hook for any judgment against Murdaugh as well if he was unable to pay.
Parker’s request for summary judgment in the case was denied in May, and the case was scheduled to go to trial in August. After a motion to separate the defendants and move the venue failed last week, news about the settlement came out over the weekend.
The added threat of the joint and several award led to the eventual settlement, according to a statement Parker's Attorney PK Shere released to WJCL and other outlets. “The unfairness of that caused Parker’s insurance carriers to resolve these suits to avoid paying the likely award intended to punish Alex Murdaugh,” Shere said.
Savannah, Georgia-based Parker’s, which was founded in 1976, has more than 70 Parker’s and Parker’s Kitchens locations in Georgia and South Carolina.