Ashley Stolley, the bridesmaid who punched the bride-to-be on the Ocean City Boardwalk and gave her a bloody nose, pled guilty to second degree assault and will now serve 10 days behind bars.
Back in September, a pretty remarkable story came across our desk. During a bachelorette party, one of the bridesmaids was arrested for punching the bride and giving her a bloody nose on the Ocean City Boardwalk. We published the story and it went viral, being viewed, commented on, and shared tens of thousands of times. Well, it has finally been resolved. Early on the morning of Saturday, September 9, a police officer on boardwalk patrol ended up getting roped into some pretty crazy wedding drama. Two women were seen having a shouting match in front of a boardwalk bar and their argument was starting to get pretty heated. The two were out as part of a bachelorette party. One woman wore a shirt indicating that she was the bride-to-be and another woman – who police identified as 30-year-old Pennsylvania resident Ashley Stolley – was wearing a bridesmaid shirt. The whole bridal party was celebrating inside the boardwalk bar. The patrol officer approached both women and asked if everything was alright. The bride-to-be admitted that they were having an argument, but told the officer that everything was going to be okay. She told the cop that they were just trying to gather up the rest of their party so they could go back to their hotel. Satisfied by the response, the officer turned around and returned to their police cruiser.
According to the police report, the two women re-emerged from the bar not long after and rekindled their fight. Stolley began taunting the bride-to-be, calling her every name in the book, and telling her that she hated her. The officer was forced to return when punches started flying. Stolley threw a haymaker, putting her whole weight behind the wide punch, and connected with the bridge of the bride’s nose. The bride was knocked to the ground.
Ashley Stolley didn't even resist when she saw the police officer approaching. She turned around and put her hands behind her back so she could be handcuffed. Meanwhile, the bride was still laying on the ground, clutching her nose as blood rushed down her face. Area employees rushed to try to help the woman stop the bleeding. While she was being taken into custody, Stolley kept hurling insults at the bloody bride. She admitted to police officers that she probably wouldn't be allowed to participate in the wedding since she likely broke the bride-to-be's nose.
Well, Ashley Stolley finally got her day in court in December. Charged with second degree assault, a misdemeanor in Maryland, Stolley pled guilty to the charge. While a lot of criminals have been getting off the hook lately with suspended sentences, Stolley didn't. Though, while a second degree assault conviction can carry a penalty of up to 10 years behind bars, the judge didn't go that hard on her. Ashley Stolley was sentenced to serve ten days behind bars for punching the bride-to-be.
Hopefully this case serves as a warning to future Ocean City wedding parties to cool it on the drinking and save the pushing and shoving for behind closed doors. But more importantly, when you're picking your bridal parties, think long and hard. Bridal parties are supposed to be made up of family members and close friends who are genuinely happy for the couple. If you have any concern -- any at all -- that someone in your bridal party is going to punch the bride or groom, you should probably keep them off the list.
