Karlie Tomica, 'Party Princess' Of South Beach, Begins House Arrest In Stefano Riccioletti DUI Manslaughter Case
Karlie Tomica is doing anything but celebrating after being released from jail Monday in Miami and starting house arrest on DUI manslaughter charges.
Tomica, 20, is accused of killing South Beach chef Stefano Riccioletti, 49, in a hit-and-run accident Jan. 28, ABC News reported.
She was released on bond Monday morning and outfitted with an ankle monitor, according to CBS Miami.
The college student and bartender, who dubbed herself the “Party Princess” on Twitter, allegedly had a blood-alcohol content that was three times the legal limit when she slammed into Riccioletti as the chef was walking to work at Terraza at the Shore Club. Tomica had just left her job as a bartender at South Beach club Nikki Beach when the accident occurred.
“Ms. Tomica and her entire family are heartbroken over this tragic accident. Their thoughts and prayers are with the Riccioletti family,” Mark Shapiro, Tomica’s attorney, said in a statement.
Shapiro described his client as “just a regular person who finds herself in this horrible situation.”
Tomica is facing up to 30 years in prison if convicted on charges of DUI manslaughter and leaving the scene of an accident.
Riccioletti’s widow, Patrizia Pesce, filed lawsuits against Tomica, her employer Nikki Beach Hotels & Resorts and other parties following the hit-and-run accident, CBS Miami reported.
Pesce was distraught over her husband’s death. "How am I going to tell them that they have lost their dad?" she said, referring to her children.
The South Beach chef’s oldest son has also filed a lawsuit claiming the bartender’s employer let her drink on the job despite being under 21.
Jose Baez, the Riccioletti family’s attorney, explained why the lawsuits were filed.
"Stefano is not here, and it doesn't matter if it is a car or a gun -- he was killed,” he said, according to ABC News. “And the persons or person responsible for that need to be held accountable."
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