Bluffton City Council calls for legal action against city over false arrest, SC DMV apologizes for mistake

BLUFFTON, SC (WTOC) – A Lowcountry council member is now seeking $2 million from the city of Bluffton, according to a letter from the council member’s attorney to City Manager Stephen Steese.

The lawsuit comes just months after Ms. Bridgette Frazier, a Bluffton city councilor, was stopped for speeding on March 9, 2024, when police officers discovered that her driver’s license was allegedly suspended.

It was later discovered that this was a mistake and the South Carolina Department of Motor Vehicles (SCDMV) apologized to Frazier for the error.

Bluffton Police dropped charges against Ms. Frazier after receiving written confirmation from the SCDMV that Frazier’s license was indeed incorrectly listed as suspended at the time of her arrest.

Frazier’s attorney, Tiffany Spann-Wilder, wrote in the letter to City Manager Steese that Frazier was not read a Miranda warning. The letter also claims that the Bluffton Police Department committed unlawful acts and that the City of Bluffton is liable for “negligence, negligent supervision, false arrest and false imprisonment.”

After the charges were dismissed, the city announced that all records related to the crime would be deleted.

In a statement released to WTOC on Wednesday, Mayor Larry Toomer said:

“We respect the legal process. This circumstance is rare by any standard. The Bluffton police officer acted based on the data provided to the Bluffton Police Department. The Department of Motor Vehicles apologized for their error and a judge ordered the expungement of all records related to the case.

“As a community, we must continue to respect the legal process until this matter is resolved. We are committed to being transparent about this situation while ensuring that we do not interfere in the ongoing legal process.”

Below you can see previous coverage of this story: