Woman who lost boyfriend, unborn baby after DUI driver crashed into their SUV has leg amputated, womb removed
PHILADELPHIA, PENSYLVANNIA: A woman who was involved in a horrific car crash has spoken out a week after the accident which saw a suspected DUI driver slam into the vehicle she was riding in, killing her boyfriend and unborn child instantly. Authorities revealed how 42-year-old Charles Smith was high on PCP and under the influence of alcohol when he was speeding across the 4900 block of Whitaker Avenue around 10 pm on May 13, reaching over 100 mph on the odometer. The driver ultimately crashed into an SUV that was occupied by Kimberly Hartz, who was five months pregnant, and her boyfriend Tony O'Connor.
Police noted the crash claimed the lives of O'Connor as well as Hartz's unborn child. In a conversation with ABC 6 from her hospital bed, Hartz said she and Tony were high school sweethearts and had been together for four years. "He meant everything, he was my everything, you know when things got hard, he was always there for me," said Hartz, who had to have her leg amputated.
According to the report, O'Connor and their baby's funeral is slated for Thursday. But hospital staff has recommended Hartz is not well enough to attend the service. "I've been crying literally all day. I wanna be able to go say bye to my boyfriend, my baby's father, and my baby, and I can't," the embattled woman continued.
Van Newman, Hartz's father, added that his daughter has had to have a hysterectomy (surgical removal of the uterus) because of her injuries - after waiting till the age of 30 to have her first child. Speaking from his home in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, Newman noted how his beloved daughter had deliberately waited until she was older to have children in a bid to give them the best life possible. "She saw friends having teenage babies, her mom and I were teenagers, so she didn't want to do that to her kids, that's why she waited. And now she's never going to be able to," he said.
Newman himself is an Uber driver. He told ABC 6 that accidents like these are the reason he makes it a point to get up at 3 am each morning so people don't have to drive home while not in their senses. "It's not worth it if you kill someone, or ruin somebody's life for the rest of their lives," the devastated father bemoaned.
Despite her grave injuries, Hartz is hoping to somehow make it to the funerals on Thursday. "I'm hoping that I can get him cremated holding the baby so he and the baby can be in heaven together," she said.
Smith, the reckless driver behind the crash, was found to have been in and out of jail on drug charges since 1997. He is currently being held in custody without bail on charges of murder, homicide by vehicle while DUI, among other related offenses. Authorities revealed that Smith was with a female passenger at the time of the crash. Both escaped without injuries.