Bluffton woman sues after teen allegedly stole her Jeep, totaled car in police chase
A Bluffton woman is suing the family of an teenager who allegedly stole her Jeep and totaled it in a police chase earlier this year.
Filed Aug. 1 in Beaufort County civil court, the lawsuit claims negligence on the part of two Bluffton-area parents — Sean and Mary Barbina — and their underage boy, who was detained on a slew of charges stemming from the alleged car theft and high-speed pursuit.
Police said the 36-year-old plaintiff Emily Whitton left her keys in her 2014 Jeep Cherokee on March 10 while at home in the Villages at Lake Linden neighborhood east of Bluffton. The next morning, the SUV was gone — and less than 72 hours later, it was wrecked during the after-midnight police chase.
The wreck happened in the early morning hours of March 14 at an intersection south of U.S. 278 (Fording Island Road) in east Bluffton. The accused car thief, whose name and age were not disclosed by officials, neared speeds of 80 mph as he raced away from police on the highway and surrounding areas before colliding with a concrete pole on a nearby side street.
The lawsuit comes during a string of police chases ending in traffic accidents within Beaufort County, some resulting in injuries and hospitalizations. In many cases, like the March 14 pursuit in Bluffton, the occupants of a vehicle will run on foot from officers after crashing their getaway car.
Whitton is asking for $5,000 in compensation for her wrecked Jeep SUV as well as unspecified amounts in other types of damages. Reached via email, her Hilton Head-based attorney said he would not comment on the pending litigation.
‘Blacking out’ during police chase
Beaufort County and Bluffton police began chasing the white Jeep around 12:45 a.m. March 14 after the car was flagged as stolen by an officer patrolling near Simmonsville Road.
The suspect sped through the nearby Westbury Park neighborhood and briefly veered onto U.S. 278 before returning to the adjacent side streets, according to an incident report from the Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office.
That’s where the Jeep traveled into the wrong lane and “blacked out” by turning off his headlights and taillights, a common evasion tactic that sometimes leads to elevated charges like reckless driving.
Shortly after, the Jeep crashed into a concrete pole at the intersection of Sheridan Park Circle and Pennington Drive, the report says. The teen fled on foot from the wreckage and ran across U.S. 278 before being detained by a deputy holding a taser.
The young driver was charged in Family Court with reckless driving, possession of a stolen vehicle, failure to stop for blue lights and evading police. Because criminal cases involving minors are not public record in South Carolina, it was unknown as of Tuesday if his charges had been adjudicated.
This story was originally published August 12, 2025 at 2:50 PM.
