The prosecution developed months after a Minnesota visitor suffered fatal injuries during a birthday trip with a longtime friend.
EDISTO BEACH, S.C. — Nearly a year after a Minnesota woman was critically injured outside an Edisto Island bar and later died, the bartender accused of pushing her down a staircase was back in jail facing a South Carolina manslaughter prosecution and a potential decades-long prison sentence if convicted.
Mary Lopez Hunt, 68, is charged with voluntary manslaughter and assault and battery of a high and aggravated nature in the death of Joyce Tomlinson, 62. Hunt had been granted bond after her arrest but later violated conditions of her release, according to WCSC. Her bond was revoked, returning her to the Colleton County Detention Center. The prosecution remains unresolved, and the charges represent allegations rather than findings that Hunt committed the crimes.
The legal stakes are unusually high for a confrontation that began during an ordinary night at a restaurant. South Carolina law provides a sentence of two to 30 years for a manslaughter conviction. The state statute describes manslaughter as an unlawful killing without express or implied malice, while South Carolina case law supplies the more specific common-law framework used for voluntary manslaughter. Exactly how prosecutors intend to establish the required elements in Hunt’s case will ultimately depend on the evidence presented in court rather than the charge alone.
The case traces back to Oct. 3, 2025. Tomlinson had traveled from Minnesota to visit Ruth Peterson, a friend she had known for approximately 50 years. The women were marking their 62nd birthdays and went to Coot’s Bar & Grill on Edisto Island during the trip. Peterson told WCSC that the restaurant became crowded, prompting them to leave later that evening. Tomlinson stayed to handle the bill while Peterson walked away to get their vehicle.
What happened during that brief separation became the basis of the criminal investigation. Peterson said she was near the bottom of the stairs when she turned and saw Tomlinson preparing to descend. According to Peterson, another woman moved quickly toward Tomlinson and shoved her from behind with both hands. Peterson said Tomlinson was propelled forward and did not simply tumble step by step. Tomlinson landed on concrete at the bottom, sustaining a catastrophic head injury.
Edisto Beach police responded and found Tomlinson breathing but unresponsive on the ground. Emergency personnel arranged for her to be flown to the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston. Doctors performed a craniotomy in an effort to reduce pressure associated with swelling in her brain. Her condition remained critical, and she died a little more than three weeks after the fall. That outcome placed the investigation on a different legal footing because authorities were then examining conduct alleged to have resulted in a death.
Investigators did not rely on a single description of the encounter. Another witness told police that Hunt had been yelling at Tomlinson before the fall, according to published accounts of the investigation. That person also alleged that Hunt grabbed Tomlinson around the throat and tried to pull her outside. The witness statement, like other allegations in the case, has not been tested through a completed trial. Its significance rests in its potential to help establish what occurred before Tomlinson reached the stairs.
Hunt disputed the accusation that she caused the fall. Her statement to authorities portrayed Tomlinson as belligerent and yelling at bartenders before being directed to leave. Hunt said Tomlinson then fell down the stairs. That account stands in direct conflict with Peterson’s statement that she saw a forceful push. Peterson also challenged Hunt’s characterization of Tomlinson, describing her friend publicly as quiet and nonconfrontational. A criminal proceeding will have to assess evidence rather than personality descriptions when determining whether the state can meet its burden of proof.
The choice of a voluntary manslaughter charge adds another layer to the prosecution. WCSC reported that fewer than 100 people had faced that charge since 2020 across Charleston, Colleton, Dorchester and Berkeley counties. The station’s examination of sentencing outcomes also showed that lengthy prison terms can follow convictions. Those regional figures do not establish anything about Hunt’s guilt or likely sentence, but they help illustrate why the case carries consequences far beyond the original disturbance at the bar.
The case’s path through the justice system has also included Hunt’s release and return to custody. She was initially granted a $100,000 bond on the manslaughter charge, according to reporting surrounding the case. Later coverage said she violated bond conditions and was again being held in Colleton County. The available reports did not specify the underlying conduct that led the court to revoke her release, making it important to distinguish the confirmed revocation from any speculation about why it occurred.
Separate reporting citing Colleton County court records identified assault and battery of a high and aggravated nature as an additional charge against Hunt. The presence of more than one charge reflects the prosecution’s allegations concerning both the confrontation and the death that followed. It does not mean a jury has accepted the state’s version of events. Hunt retains the presumption of innocence, and prosecutors bear the burden of proving any criminal charge beyond a reasonable doubt.
The long interval between the October 2025 incident and the renewed public attention in 2026 also illustrates how a serious criminal investigation can continue well after the night that triggered it. Police had statements from people at the scene, medical information concerning Tomlinson’s injuries and conflicting descriptions from those involved. Public reports do not disclose the entire investigative file, and they do not establish what additional evidence may have been gathered before the case reached its current posture.
Behind the procedural developments is the death of a visitor who had gone to South Carolina for a reunion rather than a legal dispute. Tomlinson and Peterson had maintained their friendship for about five decades. Their birthday trip placed them together at Coot’s that night, and Peterson became both the friend who watched Tomlinson’s medical crisis unfold and a central eyewitness in the investigation that followed. Her public statements have focused on the abrupt loss and her desire to see the case resolved.
The next decisive phase will occur in court, where prosecutors must prove their allegations and Hunt will have an opportunity to contest them. As of the latest reliable reporting reviewed for this article, no conviction or acquittal had been announced. Hunt remained charged in Tomlinson’s death after her bond was revoked, leaving a fatal fall from October 2025 at the center of an active South Carolina criminal case.
Author note: Last updated Nov. 9, 2026.