Mother mourns 5-year-old daughter killed by alleged drunk driver

LAKELAND, Fla. – Madeline Nichols of Lake Wales was looking forward to starting kindergarten in the fall.

Her mother, Jacqueline Nichols, said that at just five years old, she was touching the lives of those around her.

She loved eating ice cream with her grandfather and made friends wherever she went. She was described as the happiest child ever, smart and cheeky. Her mother said she dreamed of becoming a veterinarian one day.

“That was the only thing she ever talked about,” her mother remembers.

Those dreams were shattered just after midnight Friday when a driver who was over the legal blood-alcohol level collided head-on with Jacqueline Nichols’ car, according to the Polk County Sheriff’s Office.

Madeline was killed on impact, officials said.

RELATED: Deputies: Man arrested for drunk driving after crash that left one child dead and 2 seriously injured

“I just hope she knows how much she was loved and cared for, and that we will miss her very much,” said Jacqueline.I wish I could hug her and hold her and bring her home, but it is not possible, because of someone’s bad decision.”

Speaking to 10 Tampa Bay just minutes after her release from Lakeland Regional Health, Jacqueline Nichols said she wanted to share her daughter’s story to keep her memory alive.

She said she could not remember the accident. It was only when she woke up in the hospital the next day that she learned that her daughter had died.

“I will come home and see all her things everywhere, and I don’t know what to do,” she said.

Also in Jacqueline Nichols’ Dodge trailer was Madeline’s father, Justin Jones. He is still recovering in the hospital and is expected to undergo spinal surgery.

Jacqueline Nichols, who has bruises all over her body, said Madeline also leaves behind her two older siblings, both of whom are struggling to cope and understand why this happened.

“They are 13 and 10. They never looked into it. That shouldn’t be necessary,” she said.

Officers said they arrested 24-year-old Robert Harrison after he crashed his Ford F-350 into Jacqueline Nichols’ Dodge Caravan on 42nd Street NW in Auburndale. He faces several drunken driving charges, including manslaughter.

Sheriff Grady Judd commented on the fatal accident last week, adding that Madeline was properly wearing a seat belt.

“This baby’s life was snuffed out and that is completely unacceptable,” Judd said.

Jacqueline Nichols said the family had just left Taco Bell, one of Madeline’s favorite places, after picking up Jones.

Now she hopes others will remember to take precautions before driving drunk, like calling an Uber or Lyft.

“Nobody’s life has to end like hers,” she said.

Her family has started a GoFundMe campaign to help with funeral and medical expenses.