Bride Not Liable for Teen Guest’s Drunk Driving
A Sonoma County, Calif., judge has ruled that a bride will not be held liable for the car crash caused by a teenager who drank at her wedding.
In 2006, 20-year-old Joshua Apodaca and 19-year-old Sean Bradley attended Jennifer Tharp’s wedding. Bradley was served alcohol by Paradise Ridge Winery employees.
He later crashed, leaving Apodaca with permanent injuries.
Apodaca’s family sued the winery, Bradley and the owners of a store where the two bought more drinks, reaching a $3.6 million settlement. The winery sought reimbursement from the bride.
The judge cleared Tharp of responsibility, saying the contract she signed with the winery agreeing to not let minors drink was voided when the winery knowingly served intoxicated minors.
Copyright 2026 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Popular Today
- Goldman Sachs Ensnared in EY Data Breach Earlier This Year
- Don’t Sweat the Heatwave, El Niño Is Cooking up Some Raucous Weather for California
- Recovery Starts Before the Loss: What Claims Professionals Know About Severe Weather Preparedness
- TikTok Accused by NY of Running Secret Safety Tests on Teens
Popular This Month
- Florida Bans Flock Cameras, License Plate Readers From State Roads
- Torrential Rain Brings Deadly Floods Back to East Coast of Spain
- New Corgi, Liberate, VERVE Claims Tech. Do We Need New Acronyms?
- The Nation’s Insurance Laboratory: What Liability Trends in California Mean for the Rest of the Country