Samantha Beaudette (1989

website (www.samanthabeaudette.com) but neglected to update here.

Thursday March 12th 2009

We went before the court again today to hear Kellie's motion for home
confinement.
She was denied and withdrew the motion.
Judge Pfeiffer stood firm on his original sentence.
I am grateful we have had the same Judge from the start. He has been amazing.
He has always taken our family and our needs into consideration.
I am thankful for his being sympathetic and fair.
As I have said before, no amount of time given Kellie will bring Samantha back
but it does give us a sense of justice and allows us to begin the healing process
and move on, learning how to live without Samantha. To put the horrific
memories behind us and focus on those happy memories we have of Samantha.

Thank you Judge Pfeiffer.

This from a woman who somewhere around 3 months ago stood before the Judge reading her statement in which she (tearfully) said she would accept ANY punishment he saw fit.

I had hoped her statement was sincere but it is now clear to me she said what she thought the Judge wanted to hear in hopes of a lesser punishment.

My daughter is GONE! she lost the rest of her life! she was only 16! She had many wonderful years ahead of her which Kellie stole from her!

We go back to court on this matter on March 11th and I hope that any family and friends who can be present will be there and show their support for us.

We can not let this happen! Drunk drivers who kill already get off way too easy.

Our Legal battle is finally over. Kellie has been sentenced to 25 years. She'll serve 6 of those years and the remaining on probation.

I am satisfied with the Judges decision. This was never about revenge, it has always been about a crime that was committed and a punishment that would be fitting. No person can commit a crime and expect not to be held accountable.

I addressed Kellie directly in court and told her that one day I need to forgive her. Not for her, not for me...but for Samantha. Samantha would want that, it's just the kind of person Samantha was.

I also hope one day when Kellie and I are both ready that we can meet and perhaps even one day pair up as a team and speak publicly about our experience. I think our story needs to be heard and maybe, just maybe we can prevent it from happening to even one person.

I having had nearly 3 years to sort out all my feelings have decided to put my anger, hatred and rage behind me and focus that negative energy on something positive.

I did struggle with that a bit after reading some of the not so kind things Kellie and her Mother had to say about me but once I had time to process it I let their comments go knowing that they are untrue and again put my mind on the path of positive thinking.

I know some people will be conflicted about how I have decided to deal with all this...

Some will say "How can you even think of working with this woman who killed your child?"

All I can say is...Nothing will ever change what is. Sammy is gone and all the hate, anger and rage in the world will not give her back to me. And like it or not my family and Kellie's family are forever connected by this tragedy. So if together we can prevent even one parent from having to suffer the way I have, well then, I feel it's the absolute right thing to do.

When you see my strength, my courage, my forgiveness....it's not me...it is Samantha. I try to tackle each challenge in a way that would make her proud. I think to myself, "How would Sammy handle this? What would she do? What would she say?" and I do exactly that...

I want to thank everyone for your love, prayers, and kind words of encouragement. It really has meant so much to me and helped me through this trying time.

Driver gets six years in highway fatality

on 09-13-2008 05:25

By VINAYA SAKSENA

PROVIDENCE — A Cumberland woman has been sentenced to six years imprisonment for her role in an accident that killed her teenage passenger and left the defendant disfigured.

Michael Healey, a spokesman for Attorney General Patrick Lynch, said that Kellie Woodbine was sentenced Friday to a total term of 25 years, with six years to serve and 19 years suspended with probation, by Judge Mark Pfeiffer. The sentence stems from a December 2005 crash that killed 16-year-old Samantha Beaudette.
“Broken down, Woodbine got 15 years, with six years to serve and nine years suspended with probation, on count one, DUI-death resulting; and 10 years suspended with probation on count two, driving to endanger-death resulting, but consecutive to count one,” Healey explained in an e-mail.
It is alleged that Beaudette was a passenger in a sport utility vehicle driven by Woodbine when Woodbine lost control of the vehicle in the area of the Pawtucket s-curves on I-95 north.
The accident reportedly occurred after the pair left a party so Woodbine could get cigarettes. According to Healey, medical reports following the crash put Woodbine’s blood alcohol count (BAC) at 0.246, three times higher than the legal limit of .08.
In December 2006, Woodbine was indicted on charges of DUI death resulting and driving to endanger, death resulting, according to judicial records. It has been alleged that the borrowed SUV she was driving had been traveling at nearly 100 mph.
Woodbine initially pleaded not guilty to the charges in January 2007. However, court records show that she changed her plea on both charges to no contest on June 25 of this year. The Associated Press reported that Woodbine indicated any punishment would be acceptable to her.
According to Healey, Woodbine was ordered by Judge Pfeiffer to perform 500 hours of community service upon release from prison. Her driver’s license will be revoked for five years after her release. He also ordered her to undergo treatment and counseling for alcohol abuse.
Samantha Beaudette’s mother, Sharon Acorn, has started a Web site in her daughter’s memory, at www.samanthabeaudette.com. She had previously started a Web log in which she remembered her daughter and discussed Woodbine’s trial, with the first entry posted in June 2006. Acorn has been particularly vocal on issues raised by her daughter’s death, including roadside memorials, for which she has been advocating for greater leniency by local governments.

Driver in fatal crash sentenced to 6 years

01:00 AM EDT on Saturday, September 13, 2008

By John Castellucci

Journal Staff Writer

Members of Samantha Beaudette’s family wear T-shirts in her honor yesterday in Superior Court.

The Providence Journal / John Freidah
PROVIDENCE –– The woman responsible for the fiery crash that caused the death of 16-year-old Samantha Beaudette was sentenced yesterday to six years in prison.

Kellie Woodbine — who pleaded no contest to drunken driving, death resulting, and reckless driving, death resulting — was sentenced after telling Superior Court Judge Mark A. Pfeiffer that she would accept any punishment in the hope that it would bring the victim’s mother, Sharon Achorn, peace of mind.

“I’m sorry. I never intended this to happen,” she said, turning to Achorn and addressing her directly in a courtroom packed with Beaudette’s family members.

“We became friends quick. We went for a simple ride to the store,” she said of herself and Samantha. “No one expected such a tragedy.”

Woodbine, 30, who was disfigured by the burns that she suffered in the crash, said that she continues to experience guilt and self-loathing. “The scars that you see on the outside –– the ones on the inside are worse.”

But Achorn, who spoke before Woodbine did, said Woodbine had to be punished, if only to “make things a little more right,” she told Pfeiffer.

“I don’t ask this out of hatred. I ask this out of justice for my child,” Achorn said, asking Pfeiffer to impose a sentence of eight years –– the maximum possible under the plea agreement.

“I need to be able to forgive you one day,” she said, addressing Woodbine. “Not for you, not for me but for Samantha, because it’s what she would have done.”

The Dec. 30, 2005, accident that caused Samantha’s death occurred between Exits 29 and 30 of Route 95 –– the notorious Pawtucket S-curve. Samantha was supposed to be staying overnight at a friend’s house. Instead, she and the friend –– who was dating the son of Woodbine’s boyfriend –– snuck off to a party in Woodbine’s apartment on Broadway in Pawtucket.

Shortly after midnight, Woodbine ran out of cigarettes. She borrowed her boyfriend’s sister’s Chevy Avalanche and got Beaudette to accompany her to the store.

She was traveling 96 mph on Route 95 north when she lost control of the borrowed SUV, struck a bridge abutment and landed on the shoulder, Assistant Attorney General Stephen A. Regine said.

“The entire vehicle was engulfed in flames. It rotated to the point where Samantha was trapped inside,” Regine said.

He said Woodbine, a functioning alcoholic who told her probation officer she woke up drunk every morning and drank herself to sleep every night, had a blood alcohol level of 0.246 percent –– three times the legal limit –– when the crash happened.

Beaudette died in Rhode Island Hospital of the injuries she suffered. Her aunt, Linda Baez, said she was so severely burned, it was impossible to find a healthy part of her body to touch.

Another aunt, Patricia Maynard, who was unable to go to the hospital, said that other family members told her afterward she was lucky: She has the benefit of remembering what Samantha, a pretty Darlington Braves cheerleader, looked like before she was burned.

“It’s hard to recall a case as horrible as this,” Judge Pfeiffer said, before pronouncing sentence.

Pfeiffer said he believed Woodbine’s remorse is genuine: “I do believe you that if you could trade places, you would.”

He said he wasn’t sure whether imposing stiff sentences in cases of drunken driving, death resulting, does in fact deter others from getting behind the wheel of a car while under the influence of alcohol or drugs.

But he has a responsibility to take the deterrent effect into consideration, Pfeiffer said, and to give Samantha’s family a sense of closure.

So he denied defense lawyer Steven D. DiLibero’s request for a continuance or a stay of execution. (DiLiberio wanted Woodbine, who has already undergone multiple skin graft surgeries, to remain under house arrest until after she has another operation on Oct. 3.)

Pfeiffer also disregarded DiLibero’s request for a three-year sentence. He sentenced Woodbine to 15 years in state custody, with nine of the years on probation and the other six behind bars.

Outside court, Beaudette’s mother was asked whether the sentence had brought her peace of mind, as Woodbine hoped.

“Nothing’s going to bring peace to me. My daughter’s gone,” Achorn answered.

The sentence was fair, Achorn said, and she was satisfied with it.

“But there will never be peace. Never,” she said.

Samantha now has her own Domain. Please stop by and have a look.

www.samanthabeaudette.com

If you are from Rhode Island, Please take a moment to sign the petition I have started to get the state to offer permanent roadside memorial markers for those who have lost their lives on the roadways in Rhode Island.
Many States offer this service, we are one of the States who do not. I feel it's the least they can do to honor the memory of those lost.
Rhode Island Roadside Memorial Petition

Thank you!
Sharon Achorn
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
October 15th 2006
Happy 17th Birthday BabyGirl
I love and miss you always

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
To everyone who knows Kellie, the woman who killed my child.
I know you mean well by writing me, signing Sammy's guest books,
leaving condolences and lighting candles for her.
But please, I prefer you not.
I don't care how wonderful you think Kellie is,
or what an amazing woman she is for pulling through this.
I don't care that she is grateful to be alive for her children.
She did this! She did it to herself, she did it to my little girl!
My little girl would have been grateful to be alive too! She would have
been grateful to one day marry and have children of her own!
My little girl loved life, loved her friends, and loved her family.
Kellie has stripped my Daughter of all her rights.
If you expect me to forgive her, that will never happen.
How do you forgive someone for taking your childs life?
Samantha had so many wonderful things to experience ahead of her.
She had so much life to live ahead of her.
Samantha was and always will be an amazing little girl.
All you have to do is speak with her friends, or read the many comments
left for her to know that.
She was always there when someone needed to talk. She was always
there for a friend in trouble.
There is nothing she wouldn't do for a person in need out of the goodness of her heart.
Kellie took the life of a wonderful girl that night.
No, my Sammy was not perfect, she was sixteen and was good at it. But she was loving.
No one is to blame here except for Kellie.
I have no desire to know about her, speak to her or have people tell me how amazing she is.
If you have to kill a child to be amazing then you can count me out!
Please just leave me and my family be, we have suffered enough.

This memorial website was created in the memory of my Loving Daughter, Samantha Marie Beaudette who was born in Pawtucket, Rhode Island
on October 15, 1989, 9:10 PM and passed away in Providence, Rhode Island on January 01, 2006, 2:19 AM at the age of 16.
It was early morning on December 30th when I got the phone call that Samantha had been in an accident. She was the passenger. The driver lost control of the vehicle on the highway due to poor weather and road conditions. The vehicle exploded on impact. Samantha and the driver were rushed into the hospital. I was out of town when I got the call. Her father went to the hospital to be with her until I could get a flight home. It was the longest flight of my life...finally 9 hours after I got the call I was by Sammys side. She fought and held on for 36 more hours but the trauma her little body sustained was just to much for her. I am just so very thankful that I could be with my baby when she passed....It was important for me that I was with her and she not go through that alone.
We will remember and love her always.

***I would like to add this important note for parents***
The police were delayed in locating Me and my husband because Samantha had just gotten a new cellphone for Christmas and had not entered all her numbers into it yet, so Mom and Dad were not listed. The first thing rescue workers look for in a cellphone is ICE...this is an INCASE OF EMERGENCY number. I make sure all my children have this in their phone, my husband and I also have it in our phones. My husband is my ICE Number, I am his and my kids have my husband and I as ICE 1 and ICE 2. Had these important numbers been in her phone they would have found us and hour and a half to 2 hours sooner. Please, Please be sure you all and your children have ICE numbers in the cellphones.

Find A Grave.com

The women survived because a rescue wagon saw the accident while going on another call and because rescue workers reached through the flames to get the women free, officials said
Kellie Woodbine, 27, of Scott Road, Cumberland, and a 16-year-old from Pawtucket were taken to Rhode Island Hospital with serious burns after the 2003 Chevrolet truck Woodbine was driving swerved out of control, flipped on its side and skidded along the guardrail until it crashed into the bridge abutment just south of the Broadway exit.
"Our rescue was going to a call at Doyle Manor (on Broadway)," said Fire Chief Timothy McLaughlin. "They saw the accident and went right over. While they were going there, the truck burst into flames.
"They used their fire extinguisher to knock down the flames and our firefighters went right into the flames to get out the driver."
Lt. Robert Robbins and Firefighter James Joyce pulled Woodbine to safety but the truck flared before they could reach the passenger.
It was a 4-door pickup truck. The passenger was still in her seat but the seat broke free and was lodged in the back seat area, firefighters report.
Even before they pulled Woodbine from the truck, Robbins and Joyce had called out on the radio for help. Engine Two and Ladder One came from downtown, less than a quarter mile away.
"When they came around the corner, they say they thought it was a structure fire because of the flames and smoke," McLaughlin said. "They had to knock down the flames to get to the passenger. They had to pry her free of the vehicle.
"All of that happened in, probably, about two minutes. There was only a small lag between the time they got the driver out and they got the passenger out."
Both women were taken immediately to the trauma unit at Rhode Island Hospital. Both were listed in critical condition Friday afternoon.
Firefighter Joyce, who reached into the burning truck to rescue Woodbine, was taken to Memorial Hospital for treatment of burns to his hands and smoke inhalation. He was not seriously injured, McLaughlin said.
State Police investigators are examining the crash.
"Apparently speed is a factor here," said State Police Capt. Raymond White. "The operator lost control of her vehicle. The vehicle launched into the air and travelled on its side until it hit the bridge abutment and caught fire.
"It does not appear alcohol is involved."
No other vehicles were involved. Police diverted traffic off of the highway for a detour along Broadway until the accident was cleared.
White noted that the roadway was wet, making a dangerous stretch of Route 95 even worse.
"Through that S-curve, excess speed combined with poor road conditions greatly increases the danger," he said.
_________________________________________________________________

PAWTUCKET -- A Tolman High School freshman involved in a fiery accident on Interstate 95 Friday has died.
Samantha M. "Sammy" Beaudette, 16, of Webster Street, was pronounced dead Sunday at Rhode Island Hospital.
Beaudette was rushed to the emergency room early Friday morning, after a four-door Chevrolet truck she was riding in, rolled over on the I-95 S-curve, slammed into a concrete bridge abutment and burst into flames.
Pawtucket Rescue personnel, responding to another call at Doyle Manor, witnessed the accident and were able to pull both women from the burning wreckage. Using a fire extinguisher, Lt. Robert Robins and Firefighter James Joyce were able to extract the driver, Kellie Woodbine, 27, of Scott Road, Cumberland, almost immediately.
The intensity of the flames delayed Beaudette’s extraction by approximately two minutes, according to Pawtucket Fire Chief Timothy McLaughlin.
Both women were transported to the trauma unit of Rhode Island Hospital where they were listed in critical condition Friday afternoon.
By Monday, Woodbine had been downgraded to serious condition, according to hospital officials.
After the accident, State Police Capt. Raymond White said that speed, exacerbated by wet road conditions, was likely a factor.
"The operator lost control of her vehicle," White told The Times. "The vehicle launched into the air and traveled on its side until it hit the bridge abutment and caught fire."
If and when the Accident Reconstruction Team determines that the vehicle was traveling at an excessively high speed, said State Police Lt. John Lafreniere, Woodbine could face criminal charges.
Beaudette, a local high school freshman and clerk at the Orange Julius in the Emerald Square Mall, is survived by her parents, two brothers and one sister.
Her funeral is scheduled for 10 a.m. Friday at Manning-Heffern Funeral Home, 68 Broadway, Pawtucket.

Sammys friend Charissa recalled the following memory for me. It was quite comforting for me and my children and came to us when we needed it most.
Sammy and Charissa had just finished watching an episode of Charmed. At the end of the show the guy walked off with his love because he had just passed away and she passed years before him.
After the show Sammy commented on how pretty Patty looked and how
Sam looked (characters in the show) as they walked off together.
Sammy thought that in Heaven there was no pain or sadness, you'd be happier then you ever imagined you could be. Whatever your happiest moment in life was, that's what you feel when you enter Heaven.
The old no longer old, the sick no longer sick. They suffer no more.
Everyone would be happy and everything beautiful.
Sammy asked Charissa if she had ever thought about wanting to look out for her loved ones, to help or guide them.
Sammy then told Charissa that she feels we all get appointed looking over our loved ones to do that once you pass.
The only sad part (she thought) is she felt you can't always help. Sometimes you can only watch over your loved ones. She felt watching over them was helpful in someway, even if she couldn't give them a miracle to help them.
She then said to Charissa how she wondered about Heaven and what it would really be like, how she couldn't wait to see it and when she did she'd be so happy because she will be at peace and watching over all those that she loves making sure nothing terrible happens to them.

We are connected, my child and I,
by an invisible cord not seen by the eye.

Its not like the cord that connects us at birth,
This cord can't be seen by any on earth.

This cord does its work right from the start,
It binds us together, attached to my heart.

I know that it's there though no one can see,
This invisible cord, from my child to me.

The strength of this cord, It's hard to describe.
It can't be destroyed, It can't be denied.

It's stronger then any cord man could create.
It withstands the test, Can hold any weight.

And though you are gone and you're not here with me.
The cord is still there, but no one can see.

It pulls at my heart, I am bruised, I am sore.
But this cord is my lifeline, as never before.

I'm thankful that God connects us this way.
A mother and child... Death can't take it away!

People come into your life for a reason, a season or a lifetime.
When you know which one it is
you will know what to do for that person.

When someone is in your life for a REASON
it is usually to meet a need you have expressed.
They have come to assist you through a difficulty
to provide you with guidance and support
to aid you physically, emotionally or spiritually.
They may seem like a godsend and they are.
They are there for the reason you need them to be.
Then, without any wrong doing on your part
or at an inconvenient time, this person will say or do something
to bring the relationship to an end.
Sometimes they die. Sometimes they walk away.
Sometimes they act up and force you to take a stand.
What we must realize is that our need has been met
our desire fulfilled, their work is done.
The prayer you sent up has been answered and now
it is time to move on.

Some people come into your life for a SEASON,
because your turn has come to share, grow or learn.
They bring you an experience of peace or make you laugh.
They may teach you something you have never done.
They usually give you an unbelievable amount of joy.
Believe it, it is real. But only for a season.!

LIFETIME relationships teach you lifetime lessons
things you must build upon in order to have a
solid emotional foundation.
Your job is to accept the lesson, love the person
and put what you have learned to use in all other
relationships and areas of your life.
It is said that love is blind but friendship is clairvoyant.

Thank you Samantha for being a part of my life
whether you were a reason, a season or a lifetime.

Written For My Baby Girl Samantha. 1/28/06.

ONE BREATH AT A TIME

Since the moment I lost You,
My days have been filled
with nothing but sadness and tears...
I worry that I'll forget your laughter
or the sound of Your voice
as the months turn into years...

I'm told to take it one day at a time,
but that's to much for me to do...
The best I can do is one breath at a time,
each bringing me one breath closer to you...

Written For my Samantha. 1/28/06.

ONE WISH

If I could have just one wish,
I'd wish to go back in time...
The chance to make the world right again,
The chance to trade your life for mine...

I'm the one who has sinned,
I'm the one who has done wrong...
You were an Angel so loving and sweet,
It must be a mistake that you're gone...

I want so much just to hold you
and to hear your laughter fill the air...
If I could have Just one wish,
I'd wish that you were here...

The Broken Chain

We knew little that morning,
that God was going to call your name
In life we loved you dearly,
In death we do the same.

It broke our hearts to lose you,
You did not go alone;
For part of us went with you,
The day God called you home.

You left us special memories,
Your love is still our guide,
And though we cannot see you,
You are always at our side.

Our Family chain is broken,
And nothing seems the same;
But as God calls us one by one,
The chain will link again.

Dedicated in Memory of Sammy
by
Her Friend Lynn

I find an old photograph
and see your smile.
As I feel your presence anew,
I am filled with warmth
and my heart remembers love.

I read an old card
sent many years ago
during a time of turmoil and confusion.
The soothing words written then
still caress my spirit
and bring me peace.

I remember who you used to be
the laughter we shared
and wonder what you have become.
Where are you now,
Where did you go,
When the body is left behind
and the spirit is released to fly?

Perhaps you are the morning bird
singing joyfully at sunrise,
or the butterfly that dances
so carelessly on the breeze
or the rainbow of colors
that brightens a stormy sky
or the fingers of afternoon mist
delicately reaching over the mountains
or the final few rays of the setting sun
lighting up the skies
edging the clouds with a magical glow.

I miss your being
but I feel your presence,
In whatever form you choose to take,
however you now choose to be.

Your spirit has become for me
a guardian angel on high
guiding, advising, and watching over me.

I remember you.
You are with me
and I am not afraid.

Samantha
Written By Her Auntie Patti 5/16/06

You were only with us
for a short time here on earth
It was only 16 years ago
We celebrated your birth

A tiny little girl
So fragile and petite
Everyone loved you Samantha
So shy and sweet

I remember a few years ago
You called me for a ride
I was looking for a little girl
But a teenager came outside

Into a beautiful young lady
Our little Sammy had grown
I should have spent more time with you
If I had only known

There would be that fatal accident
And God would take you away
He must have needed one more Angel
in Heaven on that day

I'm overwhelmed with grief and despair
Over the loss of you
Because at that moment when you died
A piece of me died too

I think about you all the time
each and every day
I love you so much
more then words can ever say

Every night I lie in bed
I miss you and I cry
God, how could you take her away from us?
Please tell me why?

There were just so many things
you never got to do
I would give up everything
for one more day with you

I couldn't be there to say goodbye
even though I wanted to be
That's one regret for the rest of my life
I'll carry with me

I hope that you can see me
when I look up towards the sky
And shout up to Heaven
"I Love You Mantha Pie!"