At their wedding celebration in Folly Beach, North Carolina, Aric Hutchinson and Samantha Miller had just gotten married when a suspected drunk driver struck their golf cart.
Aric, Samantha, Benjamin, and Brogan Garrett were on the golf cart with them.
Samantha died as a result of her wounds, while Aric required reconstructive surgery after suffering fractured bones and a brain damage. Benjamin and Brogan were also injured.
Jamie Komoroski, the driver, has been charged with one count of reckless vehicular murder and three counts of felony driving under the influence (DUI) resulting in death and/or grievous bodily harm.
According to a police report of the accident, her blood alcohol level was three times the legal limit, and she was bewildered, adding that all of a sudden something hit her. She didn’t do anything wrong.
Jamie’s solicitors have urged individuals not to “rush to judgment” and have said that all details will come to light in court.
They cannot imagine what the families are going through and extend their heartfelt condolences, they stated in a statement.
All they ask is that there be no haste to judgment. The legal system is based on values of fairness and kindness, and it is there that all facts will be revealed.
People have donated nearly $720,000 (£574,000) to Aric’s family via a GoFundMe page put up by his mother Annette, and he is dealing with both his medical recuperation and the agony of preparing his wife’s burial at a time when they should have been beginning their lives together.
For the first time since the disaster, Aric has returned to the beach where he and Samantha wed and talked openly about his loss.
Aric talked about what his wife would have thought of the memorial when visiting the beach with family members who went into the water to toss flowers with ‘Sam’ engraved on the stems into the sea.
She would have loved it, he remarked. This is Sam. She is, after all, a beach girl through and through. They walk here virtually every morning, and this is undoubtedly her farewell. She’s definitely smiling up there.
He is doing well. He thinks his body is getting back to where it can handle things. It’s as good as he can feel about the scenario, although undoubtedly, today and the overwhelming amount of support were incredible. He is sure Sam would like it.
It’s a little overwhelming; but, he mean, they’re honest, genuinely good-hearted individuals who are just reaching out because they felt compelled to, or because Sam touched them in some way. It just means everything. She made an impression.
As he sat in a wheelchair, Aric watched as well-wishers paddled into the water and threw flowers with Samantha’s name from the coastline.
