In a significant legal victory, a South Carolina jury awarded $700 million to Dawn Conley, the mother of Brittanee Drexel, a young woman who was kidnapped, raped, and murdered in 2009. This decision comes 13 years after Drexel’s disappearance during a vacation in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. The jury from the Circuit Court of Georgetown County determined the award amount, including $200 million in compensatory damages and $500 million in punitive damages, recognizing the enduring emotional distress suffered by Conley. The perpetrator, Raymond Moody, was sentenced to life imprisonment for his crimes in 2022.
When asked about the size of the award, the plaintiff’s attorney remarked, “Nuclear? Hardly,” suggesting that while the award was exceptionally large, it wasn’t beyond expectations, although it probably stands as the largest jury verdict in South Carolina’s history.