Ashley Nichole/Nicole “Nikki” GEDDINGS^[1]

1990 - 2009  (19 years)

• Name	Ashley Nichole/Nicole “Nikki” GEDDINGS  [2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8]
  Birth	1990	Sumter, Sumter County, South Carolina
  Gender	Female
  Education	she attended Lakewood High School, Sumter County, South Carolina
  Education	she attended Lakewood High School, Sumter County, South Carolina
  HIST	Shaughn Cockerill is her baby’s father. Date Published: August 25, 2009 ASHLEY N. GEDDINGS Ashley Nichole "Nikki" Geddings, age 19, beloved daughter of Richard "Ricky" Allen Geddings and Melissa Ann "Missy" McCoy Geddings, died Aug. 22, 2009, at Palmetto Health Richland, from injuries sustained in an automobile accident. She was born in Sumter and attended Lakewood High School. She loved her family, friends, music and fishing. She was a loving mother, daughter, sister and granddaughter. She attended Green Acres Assembly of God Church. Surviving in addition to her parents are a daughter, Kaydence Allyssa Ann Geddings of Manning; a brother, Richard Allen "Little Rick" Geddings of Manning; a sister, Candice Leigh Geddings of Manning; grandparents, Jimmy and Rosalee McCoy and Mae Geddings, all of Sumter; and a special friend, Anthony Nelson. She was preceded in death by a brother, Brandon Allen Geddings; and her paternal grandfather, Richard Huey Geddings. A funeral service will be held at 11 a.m. Thursday at Green Acres Assembly of God Church with the Rev. Donnie Collins, the Rev. Sammie Geddings and the Rev. Kenny Griffin officiating. Burial will follow in the church cemetery. Pallbearers will be Anthony Nelson, Lance Hodge, William Disher, Keith Griffin, Kevin Ardis and Jimmy Benehaley. The family will receive friends from 6 to 8 p.m. Wednesday at Bullock Funeral Home. Online memorial messages may be sent to the family at www.bullockfuneralhome.com. The family has chosen Bullock Funeral Home of Sumter for the arrangement. Date Published: August 25, 2009 Woman dies; baby saved 19-year-old killed from injuries after 2-car wreck Geddings By ANNABELLE ROBERTSON Item Staff Writer arobertson@theitem.com A 19-year-old pregnant woman died this past weekend after being injured in a car wreck in southern Sumter County — but not before her unborn baby was rescued via Caesarean section. Nikki Geddings of Manning was reportedly riding in a sport utility vehicle at about 10:50 p.m. Thursday with her sister Candace Geddings, 18; her friend Kyle Atkinson, 19; and Atkinson's father, 43-year-old Charles Atkinson, who was driving. They had just left Captain D's restaurant in Sumter and were on their way to the Geddings' home. According to Candace Geddings, Charles Atkinson turned onto Old Stone Road and accelerated. He lost control of the vehicle, which collided with an SUV that was parked on Old Stone Road, 12 miles south of Sumter, just off U.S. 15. "He was acting like he was going to hit the other car – like he was going to go over to her lane and then came back into our lane," she said. "He was going way too fast. Everyone told him to slow down. He was running off the road before he even hit the other vehicle." Kristen Phillips, a close friend of Nikki Geddings and who was the driver of the second car, had just returned home and was reaching into her mailbox when, she said, she saw the SUV barrelling toward her. "I saw someone turn on the road," Phillips recalled. "They kept on going. He swerved off the road before he even got to me. He was going really fast." The car, she said, went airborne before it hit her car, sending glass flying. "It flipped and hit a tree, and the back tire came inside my driver's window," she said. Neither Phillips nor her 1-year-old baby, who was strapped into the car seat behind her, was injured. Phillips' husband, who witnessed the wreck from the couple's front yard, rushed over and helped extract Nikki Geddings. Phillips helped Candace Geddings out of the car. "I woke up unconscious. I was upside down, and all I could see was my sister," Candace Geddings said. "Her head was lodged between the cracks of the two seats. (The driver) was going, 'Oh, my back! My back!' and pushing back on his seat. I screamed, 'Fat Cat! (Charles Atkinson's nickname) Get up! My sister's hurt! You're going to kill her.' I could hardly move, but I jumped in the back seat. I took her in my arms and she said, 'Help me.' I got my cousin ... to get her out of the car and he laid her on the ground. She was opening her mouth, gasping for air." Nikki Geddings and Kyle Atkinson were airlifted to Palmetto Health Richland in Columbia, where the family was informed that Geddings was brain dead, family members said. Doctors performed a C-section and were able to rescue Geddings' baby. On Saturday, Geddings was taken off life support. According to her MySpace page, the baby, who was named Kaydence Alyssa Ann, after her sister and mother, was due on Nov. 18. "My Name's Nikki Geddings," she wrote, above a graph showing the baby's progress. "I'm 18 Years Old. Shaughn Cockerill Has My Heart. We Are Expecting A Little BabyGirl November 18,2009." "She looks just like her mama," Candace Geddings said with a sob, referring to the newborn. "They put her on a breathing tube, but she's breathing on her own now, thank the Lord. She's a miracle baby. She weighed 1.5 pounds and is 13 inches long." Nikki Geddings, who was in the 28th week of her pregnancy, also posted pictures of her pregnant belly on her MySpace page. Her last entry was at 8:22 p.m. Thursday. She wrote that she was in an "... amazing" mood, posted her cell phone number and told friends to call her. Four hours later, she was at the hospital. Cousin Tamara Brown, 21, was inconsolable at the news of Geddings' death. "We were inseparable," she said from the lobby of Bullock Funeral Home on Monday. "She was always there. I really love her and miss her. She would have been a great mama." Phillips, still tramatized by the wreck, said she and Geddings were very close. "She was my best friend. She was always there with me, my sidekick," she said between sobs. "She was shy, but she was feisty, too. And tender-hearted." Shaughn Cockerill, who said he was the baby's father, spoke to Geddings only minutes before the wreck. "I talked to her while she was in the car, right before she had the wreck," he said quietly. "She said she loved me and that she wanted to work things out. She told me to come over to the house to talk about it. We were going to try and work things out. She said she was on her way home and that she'd call me when she got there. But she never got home." According to Cockerill, the two had been dating for almost five years. "She was a very good person," he said. "She'd do anything for anybody. This is really bad; I can't believe it. All of a sudden, she's gone. I loved that girl." Anthony Nelson, a friend, agreed. "She was what you would call the perfect person," he said. "She was beautiful and smart and real caring. She was real big-hearted and just loved everybody. And she couldn't wait to be a mama." Lance Cpl. Josef Robinson of the South Carolina Highway Patrol said Monday that the incident is still under investigation, and no charges have been filed. Date Published: August 27, 2009 10 lives saved 19-year-old's organs a godsend Photo Provided Ashley and her parents, Richard "Ricky" Allen Geddings and Melissa Ann "Missy" McCoy Geddings, pose for a family portrait in 1990. By ANNABELLE ROBERTSON Item Staff Writer arobertson@theitem.com When Ashley Nichole "Nikki" Geddings climbed into Charles Atkinson's car last Thursday, she had no idea that she was about to die. She had no idea that she had eaten her last meal. She had no idea that her unborn child was about to be taken from her womb, in a last-ditch effort to save that baby's life. She had no idea. Earlier in the evening, the air conditioning at Captain D's, along with the sweet tea, was a welcome respite from the heat and humidity for Geddings, who sat laughing and joking with her sister Candice, 18; friend Kyle Atkinson, 19; and Atkinson's father, Charles, who had taken them to dinner. The trio had been friends since their days at Lakewood High School, where Nikki Geddings had the reputation of being a sensitive, caring young woman — one who was always there for people, always willing to lend a hand, or listen. She loved helping people and could always tell when something was wrong. "That child had a lot of friends, and she would do anything for anybody," said Nikki Geddings' mother, Missy Geddings. "She had the best heart in the world, and all she wanted was to be a mama." Nikki Geddings spoke often of her baby and even posted charts on her MySpace page showing the baby's growth. When she learned the sex — a girl — she posted that, too, and congratulations began pouring in. She even named the baby after her sister and mother. That morning, she had been to the obstetrician for her monthly appointment, and she was in high spirits. The baby was doing great. That night, after dining on fried fish, hush puppies and french fries, the four walked back to the car. It was just before 10 p.m. Candice Geddings rode shotgun, in the front seat. Kyle Atkinson sat beside Nikki Geddings in the back seat. As the SUV made its way down U.S. 15 toward Manning, where the Geddings sisters lived, everyone was in a great mood. They joked. They listened to music. They texted a few friends. Nikki Geddings made several calls on her cell phone. The last person she spoke to was her brother, "Little Rick," 12. She told him that they were turning onto Old Stone Road. She would be home in a few minutes, she said. She had no idea that she was prophesying her future. Seconds later, when the car went airborne, a metal toolbox came flying from the rear. It hit Geddings in the head with a blow that doctors would later call "unsurvivable." Geddings After smashing into another car that was idling in the road, Atkinson's SUV landed in the brush. Timmy Phillips, a neighbor, witnessed the crash and rushed over to check on his wife, Kristen Phillips, who was driving the second vehicle, and baby son, who was strapped into the car seat behind her. They were shaken and covered in shards of glass, but uninjured. Timmy Phillips rushed to the SUV and opened the door, where he saw Geddings pinned between the two front seats. He removed the toolbox, which was blocking her head, and pulled her from the wreckage. Kristen Phillips pulled out Candice Geddings. Kyle and Charles Atkinson crawled out of the car on their own. Nikki Geddings was airlifted to Palmetto Health Richland. Soon after, Geddings' parents, Missy and Ricky Geddings, were told that she was brain dead. "We couldn't rest," said her father. "We couldn't think straight. We couldn't dress. We couldn't sleep. We still can't. Just this morning, we laid in bed and watched the sun come up together. I don't know what to do, and I don't know how to explain it. Sometimes I think it's more than I can take." Candice Geddings and Kyle Atkinson were taken to Tuomey Regional Medical Center. Both were released. Charles Atkinson survived the wreck with scrapes and bruises. A fourth passenger also survived the wreck. At just 28 weeks of gestation, Kaydence Allyssa Ann's organs and body were fully developed, but the unborn baby needed more time — another eight to 10 weeks, ideally — to be ready for birth. Kaydence never got that chance. Doctors gave her an 80 percent chance for survival. They tried to wait, but Nikki Geddings had already failed one test for brain activity. Before the second could be administered, after another 24 hours, her vital signs began dipping. Doctors raced Geddings into the operating room and performed an emergency Caesarean section. Kaydence, born Saturday, weighed 1.5 pounds and measured 13 inches long. Missy Geddings said she can't help but wonder if, somehow, her daughter knew something might happen. With her due date still 10 weeks away, the 19-year-old had decorated her baby's nursery. With help from her parents, she had filled the room with baby furniture: a crib, a dresser, a rocking chair. She had selected the bedding: pink and brown, with polka dots. She had bought dresses and hung them in the closet. She had folded onesies into drawers. She had stacked diapers. She also told her mother that if anything ever happened to her, she wanted her to take care of her baby. She made her mother promise. "Nikki was our baby, and her baby is a part of us," said Missy Geddings. "I can't let nobody take her from me. I can't. I promised her I'd take care of her baby, and if it's the last thing I do on this earth, I'm going to do everything in my power to do that." Two months before her death, Nikki Geddings did one more thing. She went online and registered to be an organ donor. So when doctors asked her parents, who had the final say about organ donation, as next of kin, they didn't hesitate. They donated all of their daughter's organs, including her eyes and skin. During a 30-hour surgery, doctors removed Nikki's kidneys, lungs, pancreas and liver, among others. Then they dispatched them around the country, where 10 people were anxiously waiting for the donation. And the respirator was removed. "Me and her (Missy) talked and said, whatever happens is in God's hand," Ricky Geddings. "We want to keep her, but if he decides it's time for her to go, we are not going to question him. We already got one miracle there in the nursery." "I've been to a lot of funerals where people have lost their children," said Missy Geddings. "People say they're sorry and is there anything I can do to help you. And all that is very appreciated. But nothing will ever, ever be able to take that pain from us. The only one that's going to be able to help us is the good Lord. He's the only one. And all we can do is drop to our knees when we have bad days and ask him to help us make it through the day." It is often said that people die as they live. Nikki Geddings certainly did. She died helping others. Date Published: October 3, 2009 Charge filed in wreck that killed pregnant woman By ANNABELLE ROBERTSON Item Staff Writer arobertson@theitem.com The driver of a vehicle involved in a wreck that left a pregnant 19-year-old Manning woman dead will face no charges, officials said. Instead, Kristen Phillips, the driver of the vehicle that was struck by that car, is being held responsible, said Lance Cpl. Josef Robinson of the South Carolina Highway Patrol. According to Robinson, Charles Atkinson was not at fault for the Aug. 20 motor vehicle wreck that killed Nikki Geddings. Phillips was charged Thursday with “improper standing, stopping or parking in the roadway.” “I was shocked,” she said upon learning the news. “Devastated. That was my best friend. And now I have to live with this the rest of my life.” According to officials, Phillips’ SUV was parked on the wrong side of Old Stone Road facing oncoming traffic, when it was struck by Atkinson’s car. Atkinson reportedly swerved to miss Phillips, landed in a ditch and hit Phillips’ car. The crash occurred about 12 miles south of Sumter, just off U.S. 15, in southern Sumter County. “We had just returned from the lake and I was checking my mail,” said Phillips. “I saw someone turn on the road. They kept on going down. He swerved off the road before he even got to me. He was going really fast. The investigator told my husband that he estimated he was going about 85 miles (mph).” Atkinson’s car, she said, flipped over her car and hit a tree. One of the tires shattered Phillips’ window on the driver’s side as she was reaching for her infant son, who was strapped in the back seat. Phillips, who was uninjured, jumped out of the car and pulled Geddings’ 18-year-old sister, Candace, from the wreck. Phillips’ husband, Timothy, then dragged Nikki Geddings from the car. Nikki Geddings, who was 28 weeks pregnant, was airlifted to a hospital in Columbia and later pronounced dead. Doctors were able to save the child, who was delivered via Caesarean section. She underwent brain surgery on Tuesday, however, for a torn membrane, which family members say was probably sustained in the wreck. Kristen Phillips reacted strongly to the news that Atkinson would not face charges. “I know I was not at fault, and everyone knows it. Candace knows it,” she said. “(Candace) was telling him to slow down, and she still says she was, but the investigators told her she was lying. I don’t understand why they are trying to cover his tail. There is something funny about this whole situation.” In addition to being only partially on the road, Phillips said, she also had both her headlights and her hazard lights on, when Atkinson came barreling down the road about 10:50 p.m. Aug. 20. “If he was going only 49 mph, why didn’t he see me and slow down?” she added. “What if I had been on foot? I would have been hit. I was just an innocent bystander, and I am going to fight this in court.” The Geddings family expressed similar shock at the decision. “That was really, really, a low blow,” said Ricky Geddings, father of Nikki and Candace Geddings. “We were shocked. And we were hurt. We heard last night from a friend that Atkinson bragged to her that he got off scot-free. She told my wife last night that he was grinning when he said it, too. He don’t have no remorse.” Missy Geddings, Nikki and Candace Geddings’ mother, said she was devastated at the decision of the highway patrol, adding that the family will explore legal remedies. “I want justice to be done,” she said. “This baby has to grow up without her mama, and I want to tell her that justice has been served.” Phillips will face a Sumter judge for the charge on Nov. 3. Robinson said that because the case is pending, the highway patrol is unable to comment further on the matter. Contact Staff Writer Annabelle Robertson at arobertson@theitem.com or (803) 774-1250. Date Published: November 6, 2009 Highway patrol offers explanation to Geddings family Joe Perry / The Item The Geddings family met with the South Carolina Highway Patrol in Blythewood on Thursday. By ANNABELLE ROBERTSON Item Staff Writer arobertson@theitem.com BLYTHEWOOD — After more than two months of silence, the South Carolina Highway Patrol has explained its final decisions in a wreck that took the life of a pregnant teenager. Col. F.K. Lancaster Jr., commander of the highway patrol, along with two of the investigating officers, met with members of the Geddings family on Thursday to explain the reasons that Charles "Fat Cat" Atkinson was not charged in the Aug. 20 crash that killed Nikki Geddings, 19. The emotionally charged meeting took place at the Blythewood office of the state Department of Public Safety. At one point, Missy and Ricky Geddings, Nikki Geddings' parents, stormed out. Kristen Phillips, who was found responsible for the wreck, was also present, along with Candace Geddings, Nikki Geddings' sister who survived the wreck. Both women cried throughout the meeting, as did Missy Geddings. Phillips, who was charged with "improper standing, stopping or parking in the roadway," had been checking her mail from the driver's window that night when she was struck. Her headlights were on. Lancaster stated that such meetings were not standard protocol for the highway patrol, but because of the many questions surrounding the decision, he wanted to review the highway patrol's findings and give the family the opportunity to ask questions. "We're here today to show you the facts," he said. "It's a tragedy, but I can't go back. I know you have concerns about drug use and alcohol use. But we can't go back to something that happened two months or even two days before the wreck. I'm looking at what took place on the road that night. We take the case and we make the charges as appropriate." Their investigation, Lancaster said, revealed no evidence whatsoever that Atkinson was at fault, even though he had been exceeding the speed limit by a range of four to nine mph. "The driver was on the wrong side of the road and that started this chain of events, and that's why this wreck took place," he said. Cpl. C.M. Coates and Sgt. S.R. Breland, who participated in the investigation, were also on hand to answer questions. The officers showed the family a digitally animated recreation of the wreck and discussed numerous measurements taken by the highway patrol. They also explained the physics behind their conclusions. When Atkinson turned onto Old Stone Road from Pearson Road, they said, he drove approximately 1,400 feet before swerving onto the right shoulder to avoid Phillips' car, which was parked in his lane, facing him. The damage to the vehicle, the fact that Candace Geddings was not ejected from the front seat of the car, and "the math" led them to conclude that Atkinson was traveling between 49 and 54 mph in the 45 mph zone. He had approximately two seconds to react from the time he saw the hazard to the time he had to react to the hazard, they said. By swerving to the right, they concluded, Atkinson acted appropriately and legally. The officers downplayed the fact that Atkinson was exceeding the speed limit. When The Item asked whether Atkinson was, in fact, speeding, since officers had estimated he was traveling between 49 and 54 mph in a 45 mph zone, Capt. R.I. Lee grimaced and said, "Technically." They also denied that Atkinson should have been charged with "driving too fast for conditions," despite the excessive speed and the darkness. The bottom line, Lancaster said, is that Phillips caused the wreck. "Had she not been on the wrong side of the road, the crash would not have happened," Lee said. "You cannot check your mail while driving your vehicle on the wrong side of the road. You cannot check the mail on the wrong side of the road at night. You just can't; it's illegal." Lancaster and his subordinates also dismissed the argument that common sense would have dictated that Atkinson swerve to the left and stay on the pavement, to miss Phillips' stopped car, instead of the right. Had he done that, The Item pointed out, he would have avoided the unpaved shoulder and the culvert — a ditch that caused the car to go airborne and hit Phillips's car before slamming against a tree. "The law says that drivers must swerve to the right to avoid a hazard," they said. The most shocking revelation for the Geddings family, however, was the admission that the highway patrol had not administered any field sobriety tests to Atkinson or required blood tests from him that night. "I've listened to the video of the scene, listened to him talking," he said. "No one at the scene thought he was impaired. His speech wasn't slurred. His actions (didn't indicate any) impairment. His motor skills were functioning as he would (normally)." Atkinson was transported to Tuomey Regional Medical Center, however, where he was blood tested and examined by several doctors, Lancaster said. The tests revealed no alcohol and no drug levels. The statement caused Missy Geddings to burst into tears. "He killed my young'n! And my daughter will tell you that he was taking pills!" she cried. Prior to the meeting, Candace Geddings had told The Item on several occasions that Atkinson handed out prescription drugs to everyone in his car, throughout the evening of the wreck. Officers confirmed that she had told them the same thing but said that their conclusions were otherwise. Dickie Jones, attorney for the Geddings, showed the officers photos of the floorboards of Atkinson's vehicle, which were strewn with large white pills. Jones, who retrieved one of the pills from the car, said that it was stamped with the words and numbers "Watson 357." According to www.drugs.com, the "Watson 357" markings indicate a combination of Acetaminophin and 10 milligrams of Hydrocodone, the generic drug for Vicodin, a narcotic painkiller. Lancaster responded that they had requested and reviewed the results from Tuomey, which revealed no alcohol or drugs in Atkinson's system. The medical findings, he said, confirmed the highway patrol officer's decision to not test Atkinson that night. Coates and Breland said several times that they had concluded, based on multiple interviews with several people — especially Atkinson and his son, Kyle Atkinson, who was also in the vehicle that night — that both Candace Geddings and Phillips had lied. For example, the digital recreation showed that Phillips was moving toward the mailbox when she was struck — a finding that she immediately denied. "My mail was on the seat beside me!" she said. Both officers indicated that they did not believe her. "Well, give me a lie detector test!," she retorted. Her objections were quickly dismissed. "I can't even explain how I feel about this," said Ricky Geddings, after the meeting. "I have so much frustration and anger. I lost it. They were just flat out rude to us. And that's how they treated us at the first meeting." "What they said was that all the other witnesses were liars and that Fat Cat was telling the truth?" he said. "I jumped up out of my seat and I said, 'My daughter is in the Lord's arms, and y'all are calling my other young'n a liar? Her sister is dead! What does she have to do with lying? Why would she lie? And if you think Fat Cat is such a role model, then I hope each and every one of y'all's children grow up to be just like him." He regretted the outburst, Geddings said, and had "asked the Lord to forgive me." However, Geddings said he remains astonished that the officers accepted Atkinson's word over that of their daughter, Candace — an eyewitness to crash who, unlike Geddings, had no motive whatsoever for lying, he said.  [2, 3, 4, 5, 7]
  HIST	Shaughn Cockerill is her baby’s father. Date Published: August 25, 2009 ASHLEY N. GEDDINGS Ashley Nichole "Nikki" Geddings, age 19, beloved daughter of Richard "Ricky" Allen Geddings and Melissa Ann "Missy" McCoy Geddings, died Aug. 22, 2009, at Palmetto Health Richland, from injuries sustained in an automobile accident. She was born in Sumter and attended Lakewood High School. She loved her family, friends, music and fishing. She was a loving mother, daughter, sister and granddaughter. She attended Green Acres Assembly of God Church. Surviving in addition to her parents are a daughter, Kaydence Allyssa Ann Geddings of Manning; a brother, Richard Allen "Little Rick" Geddings of Manning; a sister, Candice Leigh Geddings of Manning; grandparents, Jimmy and Rosalee McCoy and Mae Geddings, all of Sumter; and a special friend, Anthony Nelson. She was preceded in death by a brother, Brandon Allen Geddings; and her paternal grandfather, Richard Huey Geddings. A funeral service will be held at 11 a.m. Thursday at Green Acres Assembly of God Church with the Rev. Donnie Collins, the Rev. Sammie Geddings and the Rev. Kenny Griffin officiating. Burial will follow in the church cemetery. Pallbearers will be Anthony Nelson, Lance Hodge, William Disher, Keith Griffin, Kevin Ardis and Jimmy Benehaley. The family will receive friends from 6 to 8 p.m. Wednesday at Bullock Funeral Home. Online memorial messages may be sent to the family at www.bullockfuneralhome.com. The family has chosen Bullock Funeral Home of Sumter for the arrangement. Date Published: August 25, 2009 Woman dies; baby saved 19-year-old killed from injuries after 2-car wreck Geddings By ANNABELLE ROBERTSON Item Staff Writer arobertson@theitem.com A 19-year-old pregnant woman died this past weekend after being injured in a car wreck in southern Sumter County — but not before her unborn baby was rescued via Caesarean section. Nikki Geddings of Manning was reportedly riding in a sport utility vehicle at about 10:50 p.m. Thursday with her sister Candace Geddings, 18; her friend Kyle Atkinson, 19; and Atkinson's father, 43-year-old Charles Atkinson, who was driving. They had just left Captain D's restaurant in Sumter and were on their way to the Geddings' home. According to Candace Geddings, Charles Atkinson turned onto Old Stone Road and accelerated. He lost control of the vehicle, which collided with an SUV that was parked on Old Stone Road, 12 miles south of Sumter, just off U.S. 15. "He was acting like he was going to hit the other car – like he was going to go over to her lane and then came back into our lane," she said. "He was going way too fast. Everyone told him to slow down. He was running off the road before he even hit the other vehicle." Kristen Phillips, a close friend of Nikki Geddings and who was the driver of the second car, had just returned home and was reaching into her mailbox when, she said, she saw the SUV barrelling toward her. "I saw someone turn on the road," Phillips recalled. "They kept on going. He swerved off the road before he even got to me. He was going really fast." The car, she said, went airborne before it hit her car, sending glass flying. "It flipped and hit a tree, and the back tire came inside my driver's window," she said. Neither Phillips nor her 1-year-old baby, who was strapped into the car seat behind her, was injured. Phillips' husband, who witnessed the wreck from the couple's front yard, rushed over and helped extract Nikki Geddings. Phillips helped Candace Geddings out of the car. "I woke up unconscious. I was upside down, and all I could see was my sister," Candace Geddings said. "Her head was lodged between the cracks of the two seats. (The driver) was going, 'Oh, my back! My back!' and pushing back on his seat. I screamed, 'Fat Cat! (Charles Atkinson's nickname) Get up! My sister's hurt! You're going to kill her.' I could hardly move, but I jumped in the back seat. I took her in my arms and she said, 'Help me.' I got my cousin ... to get her out of the car and he laid her on the ground. She was opening her mouth, gasping for air." Nikki Geddings and Kyle Atkinson were airlifted to Palmetto Health Richland in Columbia, where the family was informed that Geddings was brain dead, family members said. Doctors performed a C-section and were able to rescue Geddings' baby. On Saturday, Geddings was taken off life support. According to her MySpace page, the baby, who was named Kaydence Alyssa Ann, after her sister and mother, was due on Nov. 18. "My Name's Nikki Geddings," she wrote, above a graph showing the baby's progress. "I'm 18 Years Old. Shaughn Cockerill Has My Heart. We Are Expecting A Little BabyGirl November 18,2009." "She looks just like her mama," Candace Geddings said with a sob, referring to the newborn. "They put her on a breathing tube, but she's breathing on her own now, thank the Lord. She's a miracle baby. She weighed 1.5 pounds and is 13 inches long." Nikki Geddings, who was in the 28th week of her pregnancy, also posted pictures of her pregnant belly on her MySpace page. Her last entry was at 8:22 p.m. Thursday. She wrote that she was in an "... amazing" mood, posted her cell phone number and told friends to call her. Four hours later, she was at the hospital. Cousin Tamara Brown, 21, was inconsolable at the news of Geddings' death. "We were inseparable," she said from the lobby of Bullock Funeral Home on Monday. "She was always there. I really love her and miss her. She would have been a great mama." Phillips, still tramatized by the wreck, said she and Geddings were very close. "She was my best friend. She was always there with me, my sidekick," she said between sobs. "She was shy, but she was feisty, too. And tender-hearted." Shaughn Cockerill, who said he was the baby's father, spoke to Geddings only minutes before the wreck. "I talked to her while she was in the car, right before she had the wreck," he said quietly. "She said she loved me and that she wanted to work things out. She told me to come over to the house to talk about it. We were going to try and work things out. She said she was on her way home and that she'd call me when she got there. But she never got home." According to Cockerill, the two had been dating for almost five years. "She was a very good person," he said. "She'd do anything for anybody. This is really bad; I can't believe it. All of a sudden, she's gone. I loved that girl." Anthony Nelson, a friend, agreed. "She was what you would call the perfect person," he said. "She was beautiful and smart and real caring. She was real big-hearted and just loved everybody. And she couldn't wait to be a mama." Lance Cpl. Josef Robinson of the South Carolina Highway Patrol said Monday that the incident is still under investigation, and no charges have been filed. Date Published: August 27, 2009 10 lives saved 19-year-old's organs a godsend Photo Provided Ashley and her parents, Richard "Ricky" Allen Geddings and Melissa Ann "Missy" McCoy Geddings, pose for a family portrait in 1990. By ANNABELLE ROBERTSON Item Staff Writer arobertson@theitem.com When Ashley Nichole "Nikki" Geddings climbed into Charles Atkinson's car last Thursday, she had no idea that she was about to die. She had no idea that she had eaten her last meal. She had no idea that her unborn child was about to be taken from her womb, in a last-ditch effort to save that baby's life. She had no idea. Earlier in the evening, the air conditioning at Captain D's, along with the sweet tea, was a welcome respite from the heat and humidity for Geddings, who sat laughing and joking with her sister Candice, 18; friend Kyle Atkinson, 19; and Atkinson's father, Charles, who had taken them to dinner. The trio had been friends since their days at Lakewood High School, where Nikki Geddings had the reputation of being a sensitive, caring young woman — one who was always there for people, always willing to lend a hand, or listen. She loved helping people and could always tell when something was wrong. "That child had a lot of friends, and she would do anything for anybody," said Nikki Geddings' mother, Missy Geddings. "She had the best heart in the world, and all she wanted was to be a mama." Nikki Geddings spoke often of her baby and even posted charts on her MySpace page showing the baby's growth. When she learned the sex — a girl — she posted that, too, and congratulations began pouring in. She even named the baby after her sister and mother. That morning, she had been to the obstetrician for her monthly appointment, and she was in high spirits. The baby was doing great. That night, after dining on fried fish, hush puppies and french fries, the four walked back to the car. It was just before 10 p.m. Candice Geddings rode shotgun, in the front seat. Kyle Atkinson sat beside Nikki Geddings in the back seat. As the SUV made its way down U.S. 15 toward Manning, where the Geddings sisters lived, everyone was in a great mood. They joked. They listened to music. They texted a few friends. Nikki Geddings made several calls on her cell phone. The last person she spoke to was her brother, "Little Rick," 12. She told him that they were turning onto Old Stone Road. She would be home in a few minutes, she said. She had no idea that she was prophesying her future. Seconds later, when the car went airborne, a metal toolbox came flying from the rear. It hit Geddings in the head with a blow that doctors would later call "unsurvivable." Geddings After smashing into another car that was idling in the road, Atkinson's SUV landed in the brush. Timmy Phillips, a neighbor, witnessed the crash and rushed over to check on his wife, Kristen Phillips, who was driving the second vehicle, and baby son, who was strapped into the car seat behind her. They were shaken and covered in shards of glass, but uninjured. Timmy Phillips rushed to the SUV and opened the door, where he saw Geddings pinned between the two front seats. He removed the toolbox, which was blocking her head, and pulled her from the wreckage. Kristen Phillips pulled out Candice Geddings. Kyle and Charles Atkinson crawled out of the car on their own. Nikki Geddings was airlifted to Palmetto Health Richland. Soon after, Geddings' parents, Missy and Ricky Geddings, were told that she was brain dead. "We couldn't rest," said her father. "We couldn't think straight. We couldn't dress. We couldn't sleep. We still can't. Just this morning, we laid in bed and watched the sun come up together. I don't know what to do, and I don't know how to explain it. Sometimes I think it's more than I can take." Candice Geddings and Kyle Atkinson were taken to Tuomey Regional Medical Center. Both were released. Charles Atkinson survived the wreck with scrapes and bruises. A fourth passenger also survived the wreck. At just 28 weeks of gestation, Kaydence Allyssa Ann's organs and body were fully developed, but the unborn baby needed more time — another eight to 10 weeks, ideally — to be ready for birth. Kaydence never got that chance. Doctors gave her an 80 percent chance for survival. They tried to wait, but Nikki Geddings had already failed one test for brain activity. Before the second could be administered, after another 24 hours, her vital signs began dipping. Doctors raced Geddings into the operating room and performed an emergency Caesarean section. Kaydence, born Saturday, weighed 1.5 pounds and measured 13 inches long. Missy Geddings said she can't help but wonder if, somehow, her daughter knew something might happen. With her due date still 10 weeks away, the 19-year-old had decorated her baby's nursery. With help from her parents, she had filled the room with baby furniture: a crib, a dresser, a rocking chair. She had selected the bedding: pink and brown, with polka dots. She had bought dresses and hung them in the closet. She had folded onesies into drawers. She had stacked diapers. She also told her mother that if anything ever happened to her, she wanted her to take care of her baby. She made her mother promise. "Nikki was our baby, and her baby is a part of us," said Missy Geddings. "I can't let nobody take her from me. I can't. I promised her I'd take care of her baby, and if it's the last thing I do on this earth, I'm going to do everything in my power to do that." Two months before her death, Nikki Geddings did one more thing. She went online and registered to be an organ donor. So when doctors asked her parents, who had the final say about organ donation, as next of kin, they didn't hesitate. They donated all of their daughter's organs, including her eyes and skin. During a 30-hour surgery, doctors removed Nikki's kidneys, lungs, pancreas and liver, among others. Then they dispatched them around the country, where 10 people were anxiously waiting for the donation. And the respirator was removed. "Me and her (Missy) talked and said, whatever happens is in God's hand," Ricky Geddings. "We want to keep her, but if he decides it's time for her to go, we are not going to question him. We already got one miracle there in the nursery." "I've been to a lot of funerals where people have lost their children," said Missy Geddings. "People say they're sorry and is there anything I can do to help you. And all that is very appreciated. But nothing will ever, ever be able to take that pain from us. The only one that's going to be able to help us is the good Lord. He's the only one. And all we can do is drop to our knees when we have bad days and ask him to help us make it through the day." It is often said that people die as they live. Nikki Geddings certainly did. She died helping others. Date Published: October 3, 2009 Charge filed in wreck that killed pregnant woman By ANNABELLE ROBERTSON Item Staff Writer arobertson@theitem.com The driver of a vehicle involved in a wreck that left a pregnant 19-year-old Manning woman dead will face no charges, officials said. Instead, Kristen Phillips, the driver of the vehicle that was struck by that car, is being held responsible, said Lance Cpl. Josef Robinson of the South Carolina Highway Patrol. According to Robinson, Charles Atkinson was not at fault for the Aug. 20 motor vehicle wreck that killed Nikki Geddings. Phillips was charged Thursday with “improper standing, stopping or parking in the roadway.” “I was shocked,” she said upon learning the news. “Devastated. That was my best friend. And now I have to live with this the rest of my life.” According to officials, Phillips’ SUV was parked on the wrong side of Old Stone Road facing oncoming traffic, when it was struck by Atkinson’s car. Atkinson reportedly swerved to miss Phillips, landed in a ditch and hit Phillips’ car. The crash occurred about 12 miles south of Sumter, just off U.S. 15, in southern Sumter County. “We had just returned from the lake and I was checking my mail,” said Phillips. “I saw someone turn on the road. They kept on going down. He swerved off the road before he even got to me. He was going really fast. The investigator told my husband that he estimated he was going about 85 miles (mph).” Atkinson’s car, she said, flipped over her car and hit a tree. One of the tires shattered Phillips’ window on the driver’s side as she was reaching for her infant son, who was strapped in the back seat. Phillips, who was uninjured, jumped out of the car and pulled Geddings’ 18-year-old sister, Candace, from the wreck. Phillips’ husband, Timothy, then dragged Nikki Geddings from the car. Nikki Geddings, who was 28 weeks pregnant, was airlifted to a hospital in Columbia and later pronounced dead. Doctors were able to save the child, who was delivered via Caesarean section. She underwent brain surgery on Tuesday, however, for a torn membrane, which family members say was probably sustained in the wreck. Kristen Phillips reacted strongly to the news that Atkinson would not face charges. “I know I was not at fault, and everyone knows it. Candace knows it,” she said. “(Candace) was telling him to slow down, and she still says she was, but the investigators told her she was lying. I don’t understand why they are trying to cover his tail. There is something funny about this whole situation.” In addition to being only partially on the road, Phillips said, she also had both her headlights and her hazard lights on, when Atkinson came barreling down the road about 10:50 p.m. Aug. 20. “If he was going only 49 mph, why didn’t he see me and slow down?” she added. “What if I had been on foot? I would have been hit. I was just an innocent bystander, and I am going to fight this in court.” The Geddings family expressed similar shock at the decision. “That was really, really, a low blow,” said Ricky Geddings, father of Nikki and Candace Geddings. “We were shocked. And we were hurt. We heard last night from a friend that Atkinson bragged to her that he got off scot-free. She told my wife last night that he was grinning when he said it, too. He don’t have no remorse.” Missy Geddings, Nikki and Candace Geddings’ mother, said she was devastated at the decision of the highway patrol, adding that the family will explore legal remedies. “I want justice to be done,” she said. “This baby has to grow up without her mama, and I want to tell her that justice has been served.” Phillips will face a Sumter judge for the charge on Nov. 3. Robinson said that because the case is pending, the highway patrol is unable to comment further on the matter. Contact Staff Writer Annabelle Robertson at arobertson@theitem.com or (803) 774-1250. Date Published: November 6, 2009 Highway patrol offers explanation to Geddings family Joe Perry / The Item The Geddings family met with the South Carolina Highway Patrol in Blythewood on Thursday. By ANNABELLE ROBERTSON Item Staff Writer arobertson@theitem.com BLYTHEWOOD — After more than two months of silence, the South Carolina Highway Patrol has explained its final decisions in a wreck that took the life of a pregnant teenager. Col. F.K. Lancaster Jr., commander of the highway patrol, along with two of the investigating officers, met with members of the Geddings family on Thursday to explain the reasons that Charles "Fat Cat" Atkinson was not charged in the Aug. 20 crash that killed Nikki Geddings, 19. The emotionally charged meeting took place at the Blythewood office of the state Department of Public Safety. At one point, Missy and Ricky Geddings, Nikki Geddings' parents, stormed out. Kristen Phillips, who was found responsible for the wreck, was also present, along with Candace Geddings, Nikki Geddings' sister who survived the wreck. Both women cried throughout the meeting, as did Missy Geddings. Phillips, who was charged with "improper standing, stopping or parking in the roadway," had been checking her mail from the driver's window that night when she was struck. Her headlights were on. Lancaster stated that such meetings were not standard protocol for the highway patrol, but because of the many questions surrounding the decision, he wanted to review the highway patrol's findings and give the family the opportunity to ask questions. "We're here today to show you the facts," he said. "It's a tragedy, but I can't go back. I know you have concerns about drug use and alcohol use. But we can't go back to something that happened two months or even two days before the wreck. I'm looking at what took place on the road that night. We take the case and we make the charges as appropriate." Their investigation, Lancaster said, revealed no evidence whatsoever that Atkinson was at fault, even though he had been exceeding the speed limit by a range of four to nine mph. "The driver was on the wrong side of the road and that started this chain of events, and that's why this wreck took place," he said. Cpl. C.M. Coates and Sgt. S.R. Breland, who participated in the investigation, were also on hand to answer questions. The officers showed the family a digitally animated recreation of the wreck and discussed numerous measurements taken by the highway patrol. They also explained the physics behind their conclusions. When Atkinson turned onto Old Stone Road from Pearson Road, they said, he drove approximately 1,400 feet before swerving onto the right shoulder to avoid Phillips' car, which was parked in his lane, facing him. The damage to the vehicle, the fact that Candace Geddings was not ejected from the front seat of the car, and "the math" led them to conclude that Atkinson was traveling between 49 and 54 mph in the 45 mph zone. He had approximately two seconds to react from the time he saw the hazard to the time he had to react to the hazard, they said. By swerving to the right, they concluded, Atkinson acted appropriately and legally. The officers downplayed the fact that Atkinson was exceeding the speed limit. When The Item asked whether Atkinson was, in fact, speeding, since officers had estimated he was traveling between 49 and 54 mph in a 45 mph zone, Capt. R.I. Lee grimaced and said, "Technically." They also denied that Atkinson should have been charged with "driving too fast for conditions," despite the excessive speed and the darkness. The bottom line, Lancaster said, is that Phillips caused the wreck. "Had she not been on the wrong side of the road, the crash would not have happened," Lee said. "You cannot check your mail while driving your vehicle on the wrong side of the road. You cannot check the mail on the wrong side of the road at night. You just can't; it's illegal." Lancaster and his subordinates also dismissed the argument that common sense would have dictated that Atkinson swerve to the left and stay on the pavement, to miss Phillips' stopped car, instead of the right. Had he done that, The Item pointed out, he would have avoided the unpaved shoulder and the culvert — a ditch that caused the car to go airborne and hit Phillips's car before slamming against a tree. "The law says that drivers must swerve to the right to avoid a hazard," they said. The most shocking revelation for the Geddings family, however, was the admission that the highway patrol had not administered any field sobriety tests to Atkinson or required blood tests from him that night. "I've listened to the video of the scene, listened to him talking," he said. "No one at the scene thought he was impaired. His speech wasn't slurred. His actions (didn't indicate any) impairment. His motor skills were functioning as he would (normally)." Atkinson was transported to Tuomey Regional Medical Center, however, where he was blood tested and examined by several doctors, Lancaster said. The tests revealed no alcohol and no drug levels. The statement caused Missy Geddings to burst into tears. "He killed my young'n! And my daughter will tell you that he was taking pills!" she cried. Prior to the meeting, Candace Geddings had told The Item on several occasions that Atkinson handed out prescription drugs to everyone in his car, throughout the evening of the wreck. Officers confirmed that she had told them the same thing but said that their conclusions were otherwise. Dickie Jones, attorney for the Geddings, showed the officers photos of the floorboards of Atkinson's vehicle, which were strewn with large white pills. Jones, who retrieved one of the pills from the car, said that it was stamped with the words and numbers "Watson 357." According to www.drugs.com, the "Watson 357" markings indicate a combination of Acetaminophin and 10 milligrams of Hydrocodone, the generic drug for Vicodin, a narcotic painkiller. Lancaster responded that they had requested and reviewed the results from Tuomey, which revealed no alcohol or drugs in Atkinson's system. The medical findings, he said, confirmed the highway patrol officer's decision to not test Atkinson that night. Coates and Breland said several times that they had concluded, based on multiple interviews with several people — especially Atkinson and his son, Kyle Atkinson, who was also in the vehicle that night — that both Candace Geddings and Phillips had lied. For example, the digital recreation showed that Phillips was moving toward the mailbox when she was struck — a finding that she immediately denied. "My mail was on the seat beside me!" she said. Both officers indicated that they did not believe her. "Well, give me a lie detector test!," she retorted. Her objections were quickly dismissed. "I can't even explain how I feel about this," said Ricky Geddings, after the meeting. "I have so much frustration and anger. I lost it. They were just flat out rude to us. And that's how they treated us at the first meeting." "What they said was that all the other witnesses were liars and that Fat Cat was telling the truth?" he said. "I jumped up out of my seat and I said, 'My daughter is in the Lord's arms, and y'all are calling my other young'n a liar? Her sister is dead! What does she have to do with lying? Why would she lie? And if you think Fat Cat is such a role model, then I hope each and every one of y'all's children grow up to be just like him." He regretted the outburst, Geddings said, and had "asked the Lord to forgive me." However, Geddings said he remains astonished that the officers accepted Atkinson's word over that of their daughter, Candace — an eyewitness to crash who, unlike Geddings, had no motive whatsoever for lying, he said.
  Religion	she attended Green Acres Assembly of God Church, Lewis Road, Sumter, South Carolina  [2]
  Religion	she attended Green Acres Assembly of God Church, Lewis Road, Sumter, South Carolina  [2]
  _UID	4DC94A2C168B4739AC1E4B770EA8AD32CEAA
  _UID	4DC94A2C168B4739AC1E4B770EA8AD32CEAA
  Death	22 Aug 2009	from injuries sustained in an automobile accident, at Palmetto Health Richland, Columbia, Richland County, South Carolina
  Burial	27 Aug 2009	Green Acres Assembly of God Church Cemetery, 537 Lewis Road, Sumter, Sumter County, South Carolina   [2]
  	Bullock Funeral Home, Sumter, South Carolina Bullock Funeral Home, Sumter, South Carolina
  Person ID	I245351	Singleton and Related Families
  Last Modified	22 Jan 2023

  
  

  Father	Richard Allen “Ricky” GEDDINGS, Sr.
  Mother	Melissa Ann “Missy” McCOY
  _UID	86E4FCBA1DFE41E5BE64AAAB134667079FC5
  _UID	86E4FCBA1DFE41E5BE64AAAB134667079FC5
  Family ID	F156868	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

  
  

  Family
  _UID	29ECFC8DDDD24CE8A86B27251F688A08F977
  _UID	29ECFC8DDDD24CE8A86B27251F688A08F977
  Children	1. Living
  Family ID	F165681	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart
  Last Modified	23 Mar 2026

  
  

• Sources

  [S30565] Candace Leigh Hudson. [S12634] Ashley N. Geddings. [S12635] Woman dies; baby saved - 19-year-old killed from injuries after 2-car wreck. [S12648] 10 lives saved - 19-year-old’s organs a godsend. [S12796] Charge filed in wreck that killed pregnant woman. [S13075] Family of teen killed in wreck questions probe. [S13106] Highway patrol offers explanation to Geddings family. [S13109] Baby continues to fight for life - Infant born after deadly wreck still in neonatal intensive care.