The devastated husband of a bride who was struck and killed by an alleged drunk driver on their wedding night has broken his silence to reveal how the best day of his life suddenly turned into the worst.
Aric Hutchinson told ABC’s Good Morning America that he is still struggling to “wrap my head around” what happened as he became widowed just hours after marrying the love of his life Samantha Miller.
“I’m still trying to wrap my head around it. That night, going from an all-time high to an all-time low, it’s pretty rough to comprehend,” he said.
On 28 April, Mr Hutchinson, 36, and Miller, 34, got married in a wedding ceremony at Folly Beach, South Carolina, surrounded by their families and friends.
That night, they were travelling with two others on a golf cart, heading back to their Airbnb when horror struck.
Jamie Komoroski, 25, was allegedly driving three times over the legal alcohol limit and speeding at 65mph in a 25mph zone when she ploughed into the back of the buggy in her car.
Miller was killed while Mr Hutchinson and the two other passengers were rushed to hospital with critical injuries.
Ms Komoroski has now been charged with three counts of felony driving under the influence resulting in great bodily harm or death and one count of reckless homicide.
Choking back tears, Mr Hutchinson told GMA that he doesn’t remember the crash but can’t forget his new wife’s final words.
“The do remember the last thing I remember her saying is she wanted the night to never end,” he said.
He said “I wish I did” recall the crash itself but just remembers waking up in hospital.
“I remember waking up foggy and out of sorts and you could see my Mom’s face and you could tell that something was wrong,” he said.
“I asked her ‘where’s Sam?’ and then that’s when she told me ‘there’s an incident and that Sam didn’t make it.’”
He described how happy Miller and him had been just moments earlier as they celebrated their nuptials.
“She was so happy. I mean, planning a wedding, as most people know, is extremely stressful. And she just had a weird, like, calmness that night,” he said.
“Sam’s just got that glow. She’s the type to walk in the room and you’d just notice. We had family friends from all over the country everywhere there and everyone was just so happy she was so happy.
“It was one of the best nights of my life.”
When asked if he had a message for the woman accused of causing his new bride’s death, he said no.
“I can’t right now.... he stole something,” he said.
“She stole an amazing human being that should not have been taken.”
Mr Hutchinson is now back at the home he shared with Miller after suffering two broken legs and brain bleeds in the crash.
A toxicology report revealed that Ms Komoroski had a blood alcohol level of 0.261 – over three times the legal limit – when she was taken into custody on the scene of the crash.
On Wednesday, Mr Hutchinson filed a wrongful death lawsuit against Ms Komoroski and the bars where she allegedly bar-hopped that night before getting behind the wheel of her car.
In the suit, seeking unspecified damages, Mr Hutchinson claims that she “slurred and staggered her way through” El Gallo Bar & Grill near Daniel Island then travelled to Folly Beach where she bar-hopped between Snapper Jacks, the Drop In Bar & Dali and the Crab Shack.
Each of the bars continued to serve her alcohol after she was clearly drunk, the suit claims.
The suit also accuses Taco Boy, where Ms Komoroski had recently started working, of negligence and recklessness for allegedly coercing its new server into drinking “a dangerous amount of alcohol” at a work event. In a statement, Taco Boy denied the allegation.
