Los Angeles influencer Summer Wheaton, once celebrated for her “wellness advocate” persona, faces mounting backlash after pleading not guilty to gross vehicular manslaughter and DUI charges tied to a fatal July 4th crash that claimed the life of 44-year-old Martin Okeke.
The 33-year-old social media star, known to her 100,000 Instagram followers for promoting holistic living, now stands accused of driving recklessly while intoxicated after an exclusive Malibu party at Nobu restaurant last summer.
On the night of July 4, 2023, Wheaton allegedly collided with a ride-share vehicle carrying Okeke, a husband and father of one, and another passenger, who survived with injuries. Prosecutors charged her with gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated, driving under the influence, and causing great bodily injury. Despite the severity of the charges, Wheaton entered a not-guilty plea on Monday during her arraignment at LA Superior Court, where her attorney, Elon Berk, contested court-ordered alcohol monitoring, calling it unnecessary due to her lack of prior alcohol-related offenses.
Wheaton’s post-crash actions have drawn sharp criticism. After a brief social media hiatus, she returned to Instagram to hawk $35 “faith-based” planners under the guise of overcoming “hard times,” claiming “beautiful things can bloom out of despair.”
“You know that feeling when life feels like it’s falling apart, but somehow it’s the start of something really beautiful?’ she said over a video montage of her on hikes and at the beach,” Summer Wheaton noted in the clip, marketing her organizational planners.
“I went through moments where I truly did not know how I pulled through,’ she gushes in the video, which was captioned ‘Things are not always as they seem.”
Followers and critics alike condemned the move as exploitative, accusing her of capitalizing on a tragedy she allegedly caused. Her bio, still touting “wellness” advocacy, starkly contrasts with the charges she now faces.
Wheaton appeared in court Monday in a monochromatic gray ensemble and towering heels, her demeanor subdued as Commissioner Sarah Ellenberg mandated her enrollment in the SCRAM alcohol-monitoring program. The ankle device, which tests for alcohol via perspiration every 30 minutes, was ordered despite Berk’s objections. Ellenberg emphasized public safety concerns, citing the “very serious” charges. Wheaton must also abstain from non-prescription drugs while free on $230,000 bail ahead of an April 30 preliminary hearing.
The case has ignited debates about influencer accountability and the ethics of monetizing personal crises. Online outrage surged over Wheaton’s attempt to rebrand her legal troubles as a “transformative journey,” with one commenter noting, “Wellness isn’t a hashtag when lives are destroyed.”
Meanwhile, Okeke’s family opened a GoFundMe page, which has raised less than $9,000 of its $50,000 target.
