Woman who lost arm in accident testifies
The young woman who lost her arm in a horrific boating accident nearly two years ago in Boston Harbor said the emotional and physical toll has been “unimaginable.”
In heart-wrenching testimony at Suffolk Superior Court, Nicole Berthiaume of Auburn yesterday described how on May 30, 2015, she landed at Massachusetts General Hospital unable to move or get out of bed after a boat propeller cut across her abdomen, knees, back and sliced off her right arm, leaving her with a prosthetic.
“I was a shell of a human being, a shell of who I was,” Berthiaume said. “The things that made me me were gone. My penmanship I took such pride in, going for a drive, going to the golf club, throwing a football, even taking a shower by myself. Although I had to work hard to regain my ability to do all these things again, it is not the same and it never will be.”
The tragic event occurred when Alexander Williams, then 24, and Benjamin Urbelis, then 33, both of Boston, and a dozen others, including Berthiaume, allegedly went out on the Naut Guilty boat for several hours, consuming alcohol.
At one point, Berthiaume and a few other passengers jumped into the harbor. Berthiaume was trying to retrieve a football while Urbelis, who owned the boat, jumped in to grab a bow mattress, according to court records. Williams tried to start the boat, officials said, but did not put it in neutral and ended up pulling the girl under the water.
“You will rarely hear me complain about the accident and you will almost never hear me complain about my disability but that doesn’t mean it doesn’t kill me every time I look in the mirror, drop something on the floor or accept help from someone,” Berthiaume said.
“I think back to the person I was before May 30, 2015. I was at the point in my life where everything seemed to be falling into place,” she added. “I was in the best shape of my life. I was working almost full time and was doing the best I ever did in school. I was truly proud of myself for the first time in my life. Today in all honesty I cannot say the same.”
Williams is charged with negligent operation of a boat, furnishing alcohol to minors and tampering with evidence. His co-defendant, Urbelis, now 35, is charged with negligent operation of a boat, operating a boat under the influence of alcohol and furnishing alcohol to minors.
Williams faces two years of probation and 200 hours of community service and attend an alcohol and drug awareness program. His lawyer, Robert Goldstein, says Williams has suffered acute anxiety since. Urbelis’ case is pending.
The case was continued until Thursday at 9 a.m. at Suffolk Superior Court when Williams is set to enter a final plea.