Plymouth family sues restaurants that allegedly served underage driver before fatal South Shore crash

The family of a 20-year-old man is suing two Plymouth restaurants that allegedly served him alcohol while underage shortly before he died in a single-car crash.

Benjamin Ruley died in the crash Oct. 20 on Route 3 North in Kingston, less than half an hour after he left one of the restaurants the family is suing, according to the lawsuit. State Police found Ruley and his vehicle in the woods on the side of the road, noting that Ruley had suffered “multiple traumatic injuries to his head and neck.”

Ruley’s family is suing Proof 22 and Tavern on the Wharf, the two Plymouth restaurants he visited that night, for wrongful death, negligence, negligent supervision, training, and hiring, conscious pain and suffering, and gross negligence. Ruley’s mother, Jennifer Ruley, filed the lawsuit May 15 in Plymouth Superior Court, according to court documents.

The lawsuit alleges that bartenders at both restaurants neglected to ask Ruley for legal identification to confirm that he was of age. Despite their responsibility to check that Ruley was of age, they served him alcohol anyway and let him drive home, according to the lawsuit.

Over the course of four hours at Proof 22, Ruley allegedly racked up a $222.56 bill and purchased 18 drinks, the lawsuit said. Since Ruley was accompanied by friends, it’s not clear how many of those drinks he consumed.

Ruley left the bar at 11:57 p.m., and State Police responded to the crash at 12:26 a.m. Emergency responders pronounced him dead at the scene, according to the lawsuit.

In December, investigators from the Alcoholic Beverages Control Commission and State Police interviewed the bartender who served Ruley at Proof 22, who confirmed that she did not request identification from him, the lawsuit said.

Proof 22 declined to comment, and Tavern on the Wharf did not respond to a request for comment.

Ruley graduated from Plymouth South High School and worked highway construction for Bartlett Consolidated, according to his obituary.

“For those that knew our boy you’d know he was always the life of the party, quick with a comeback and even quicker to give you the shirt off his back,” the obituary said. “His gracious heart has touched the lives of many and we will hold onto that forever. This is not the end of his life, but the beginning of his legacy.”

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