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A bridesmaid has spoken out after her best friend lost her life to an alleged drunk driver on the night of her wedding.
Aric and Samantha Hutchinson were celebrating becoming husband and wife in South Carolina on Friday (28 April) when the golf cart they were travelling in was hit by a car.
The beach road where the incident took place has a speed limit of 25 to 30 miles per hour, but Charleston police said the driver of the car was travelling more than double the speed limit, at 65 miles per hour, before the crash.
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Folly Beach Public Safety Department Director Andrew Gilreath assured the golf cart the bride and groom were driving had lights, and was legal to drive at night.
Aric and two attendees at the wedding were hospitalised as a result of the incident, but Samantha tragically passed away.
Samantha's maid of honour, Ashley Favret, later remembered the celebration as 'everything [Samantha] had dreamed for that day to be'.
Speaking to WBTV, Ashley explained that she'd been best friends with Samantha for 15 years before her life was cut short.
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“She brought light to pretty much everywhere,” Ashley said. “I miss her. I don’t know what I’m going to do without her.”
The driver of the car, identified as 25-year-old Jamie Komoroski, is now facing charges of reckless vehicular homicide and three counts of driving under the influence causing death.
Ashley expressed her fury at the events that unfolded on her best friend's wedding day, saying: “It makes me angry. A stupid decision because of alcohol cost her life."
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Aric's mother, Annette, has now set up a GoFundMe page in honour of the couple, saying her son is 'in [a] serious condition and has had one of two reconstruction surgeries, numerous broken bones, and a brain injury'.
"I was handed Aric’s wedding ring in a plastic bag at the hospital, five hours after Sam placed it on his finger and they read each other their vows," Annette wrote. "Aric has lost the love of his life."
The fundraiser is set to help cover the costs of Samantha's burial, as well as medical costs for Aric and the other two people injured in the incident. It quickly surpassed its goal of $100,000 (£79,000), and sits at more than $633,000 (£503,000) at the time of writing (4 May).
If convicted, Jamie Komoroski faces one to 25 years in prison on each DUI count.
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You can donate to the family's GoFundMe page here.
Emily Brown