A pregnant mother and her son were killed by a suspected drunken driver — just hours after the woman had accepted her longtime boyfriend’s marriage proposal.
Shelly Mulkey, 19, and fiancé Ryan McCollum Sr. were driving home from a Christmas Eve party with their 7-month-old son in Loranger, La., on Sunday when a woman slammed into their car, the Advocate reported.
“She was an awesome mama and an awesome friend,” McCollum said of his bride-to-be. “I just want to hold them both in my arms again so bad.”
Louisiana police said the driver, Jillian Pamela Ramsey, 36, was fleeing an earlier crash when she rear-ended the couple’s 2005 Dodge Stratus — causing its gas tank to rupture and igniting both cars.
Witnesses pulled the mom and dad from the car and performed CPR on Mulkey. The baby, Ryan McCollum Jr., remained inside the auto, state police said.
McCollum Sr., 24, said he and his 19-year-old fiancée had been dating for four years. His Christmas present to her was the proposal.
“I got a ring out and asked her to marry me. I got on one knee,” he said.
The sweethearts had also just learned over the weekend that Mulkey was pregnant with their second child, he said.
Mulkey’s Facebook profile featured many pictures of the couple and their son. Her bio read, “live life to the fullest, tomorrow is never promised.”
Mulkey’s father, Billy, said the driver should be prosecuted to the fullest, according to the Advocate.
“That’s three lives she took from me,” he told the news organization.
The driver was booked on two counts of vehicular homicide, as well as hit-and-run and careless operation charges.