SC woman run over by Horry officer on beach let out ‘most powerful scream,’ suit says

The family of a Myrtle Beach woman who died after being run over by an Horry County Police beach patrol officer while sitting on the beach has filed a wrongful death lawsuit.

The suit, filed by Anthony Schultz on behalf of the estate of Sandra “Sandy” M. Schultz-Peters, names Horry County Police Department.

Mikalya Moskov, spokesperson for Horry County, said by text that the county doesn’t comment on pending litigation.

Schultz-Peters, 66, died after she was run over June 13, 2024, by a police vehicle being driven by Julian “Duke” Brown , beach safety director for Horry County Police, near the Nash Street Beach access outside Myrtle Beach. She was sitting on the beach reading before she was hit, according to witnesses.

No charges have been filed against Brown, and he has been placed on leave pending an investigation by the South Carolina Highway Patrol. Brown has more than 30 years with the department.

The suit claims that the safety and well-being of beachgoers should be the top priority of the Horry County Police Department. It noted that the department’s beach patrol operates full-sized motor vehicles on public beaches and the department “should know that nothing is more important than making sure the path of its full-sized motor vehicles is free from objects and beachgoers.”

The suit claims that Horry County Police Department beach patrol officers had run over beachgoers with its trucks prior to the incident involving Schultz-Peters. One of those times involved Brown, who allegedly ran over another beachgoer’s chair and personal items, the suit said.

Brown, as beach safety director, “should have been the most knowledgeable person within the Horry County Police Department as to best practices for safety on Horry County beaches,” the suit said.

The suit claims that Brown was distracted when he was driving the truck on the beach and did not ensure that the area was clear of objects and beachgoers. As a result, Schultz-Peters became trapped under the wheel of the full-sized vehicle he was driving. Schultz-Peters “let out what has been described as ‘the most powerful scream,’” the suit said. She lay trapped under the wheel of Brown’s vehicle for several minutes until other beachgoers were able to lift the truck off her, the suit said.

The suit points to a photo taken just minutes before Schultz-Peters was struck by the truck.

Schultz-Peters was able to assist onlookers in unlocking her phone in order to make a call to relatives. She died about 3:09 p.m. at a local hospital, the suit said.

The suit is asking for compensation, including an award of actual damages in an amount that greatly exceeds $100,000.