A bride leaving her wedding reception was killed when an alleged drunk driver accused of going at more than twice the speed limit slammed into a golf cart carrying the newlywed couple.
Samantha Miller, 34, died just hours after exchanging vows with her husband Aric Hutchinson, South Carolina authorities said.
The bride, from North Carolina, died of blunt force injuries at the scene of the crash, according to the coroner’s office.
Mr Hutchinson remains in hospital in a critical condition with a brain injury and multiple broken bones.
The golf cart – which was decorated with a “just married” sign – was thrown 100 yards and flipped several times when a car crashed into the back of it on a South Carolina beach road.
Police say 25-year-old Jamie Lee Komoroski was at the wheel of the other vehicle.
Andrew Gilreath, public safety director for the Folly Beach area where the crash took place, said data retrieved from her rental car indicated she was driving at 65mph in a 25mph zone and only briefly hit the brakes before she hit the golf cart.
The groom’s mother created a Go Fund Me Page to pay for her daughter-in-law’s funeral and her son’s medical bills.
It included a photo of the newlyweds running under sparklers just moments before the crash.
She wrote: “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.
“Aric has lost the love of his life.”
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Two other people who were in the golf cart were also injured.
The golf cart had lights and was legal to drive at night on roads where the speed limit was 35mph or less, according to local authorities.
Komoroski has been charged with reckless vehicular homicide and three counts of driving under the influence causing great bodily harm.
