POLK COUNTY, Fla. — A family in Polk County is grieving the loss of a five-year-old girl whose life was tragically cut short after a suspected deadly DUI crash.
It’s the phone call no one would ever want to get, and one where David Nichols’ life would never be the same.
“I started crying because I knew my Maddie was gone,” said Nichols. “And I’ve been crying ever since because it’s just, it’s senseless.”
Just after midnight Friday morning, first responders were dispatched to a crash on 42nd Street NW in Auburndale. When they got there, a 5-year-old, identified as Madeline Nichols, was found dead.
She was riding in a Dodge caravan with her mom, 32-year-old Jacqueline Nichols, and 33-year-old Justin Jones.
The Polk County Sheriff’s Office said the driver who caused the crash, 24-year-old Robert Harrison, was treated and released from the hospital, then arrested, now facing charges including DUI manslaughter.
“He was northbound, and as he was traveling north on 42nd Street, he crossed over a double yellow line into the southbound lanes and struck a black caravan head-on,” said Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd.
“She was my little buddy,” said Nichols. “Every week, I would have her for at least one or two nights, and we’d go out and play in the parks, we’d get ice cream, would do whatever she wanted to do.”
David Nichols, Madeline’s grandfather, said she was his whole world.
Often pictured with an ice cream cone in hand, he said Maddie was looking forward to starting school.
“Kindergarten roundup was next week. That would’ve been the first time she’d ever been to school, so she never even got the chance to even go one day to school,” said Nichols.
The Sheriff’s Office said her mom had head trauma and internal bleeding, while Jones had head trauma and multiple spinal fractures. Nichols said Maddie’s mom is expected to be okay while Jones waits for surgery.
All he would ask the driver is why.
“Why did you do this?” he said. “Why did you drive drunk when there’s Ubers and taxis and tow trucks that will take you wherever you want to go? You know, just why?”
Still, family will remember the little girl whose short life made a big impact.
"We had a lot of fun together, and now, I don’t know what I’m going to do,” said Nichols. “My world just ended.”
There’s a GoFundMe set up to help the family. For more information, click here.
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