1 week Ago
CHARLESTON — Smoke from a charcoal grill wafted through the air and sunlight twinkled off the Stono River as Frank Zito crouched near the river's edge to teach Alexis and Audrey Gamber how to go crabbing. The Zito and Gamber families waded into the murky water and played in the mud as they caught and released crabs together on April 27. The group was in high spirits and kids' joyful shrieks and hearty rounds of laughter overlapped with upbeat music as the families enjoyed the toasty Lowcountry day.
But the mood turned somber as Zito changed the soundtrack to Bob Carlisle's "Butterfly Kisses," and the group of two dozen lined a bridge just before 1:30 p.m. Nicole Gamber helped hand out butterflies to each of the participants to release in honor of the two people who were missing from the outing.
Marjorie Sandoval Zito reacts to butterflies flying from a box for a release at the anniversary of her daughter Lizzy Zito and Arianna Gamber’s deaths, Sunday, April 27, 2025, in Charleston. The families had gathered to honor Arianna Gamber and Lizzy Zito , 20-year-old friends from Simpsonville who were run over by two drivers while walking in the bicycle lane alongside Morrison Drive on April 28, 2024. “That was a little bit hard, knowing that they have flown away from us,” mother Nicole Gamber said, voice cracking.
“We don’t want to let them go.” Several people said getting through the grief is a day by day challenge. Some days, father Frank Zito feels strong.
Other days, he cries alone and wishes he could crawl under a rock like the crabs do. Here's what has happened in the year since their deaths. Girls weekend cut short April 26, 2024: 20-year-olds Arianna Gamber and Lizzy Zito traveled to Charleston with two close friends during the last weekend of April.
Arianna Gamber (left) and Lizzy Zito pose for a picture in Charleston on April 26, 2024. The two 20-year-old women died later that weekend. They soaked up sun at Folly Beach, sipped coffee at cafes along the peninsula and danced around together while getting ready.
The pair was inseparable , and happier than they had been in months. They wanted to stay another weekend. They never got the chance.
April 28, 2024: As Arianna and Lizzy walked north along Morrison Drive, the sidewalk ended as it curved into the pedestrian entrance to the Arthur Ravenel Jr. Bridge. To get to their destination of 930 NoMo, an apartment complex about a half-mile up the road, they stepped into the bike lane and walked a few steps alongside the four-lane road.
At 1:12 a.m., a Chevrolet truck veered off the roadway and struck the women before fleeing the scene without stopping or rendering aid.
PEDESTRIANS KILLED IN AUTO COLLISION: Two were killed on Morrison Drive near the entrance to the Arthur Ravenel Jr. Bridge. (Source: Esri) About a half hour later, a Acura sedan jumped the curb in the same location, again running the women over.
The driver fled the scene before parking in the nearby Morrison Yard apartment complex and brushing twigs and leaves from the outside of his vehicle. Video footage shows he asked himself “What am I supposed to do?” before spending the night at a friend’s apartment. He did not contact the police.
A pedestrian called 911 just before 8:30 a.m., after finding their mangled bodies lying in the brush next to the road.
Lizzy died from blunt trauma to the head, neck and torso. Arianna died from total body blunt trauma, according to the coroner's reports. Neither was drunk.
Lizzy's Blood Alcohol Content was zero. Their deaths were deemed an accident. Police make arrests May 1, 2024: Charleston police arrested the driver of the Acura sedan in connection with the collision.
Max Gentilin , now 26, was charged with two counts of hit and run involving death. His vehicle had damage consistent with debris found at the scene. Blood and hair were found along its underbody.
Gentilin, who worked at Hall's Chophouse on King Street, has no prior criminal record. His only prior driving infraction in the tri-county area included one speeding ticket from February 2024 and a stop sign violation from 2016. Gentilin later posted a $300,000 bond and was released from jail on May 2.
Butterflies land in the hair of Kendall Dumit during a butterfly release with the Zito and Gamber families around the one year anniversary of the deaths of Lizzy Zito and Arianna Gamber, Sunday, April 27, 2025, in Charleston. May 3, 2024: Advocates said the stretch along Morrison Drive where Gamber and Zito died “ desperately needs improvement .” While a crosswalk stands south of the pedestrian entrance to the bridge, there isn’t another opportunity to cross the thoroughfare for another half-mile north.
The S.C. Department of Transportation, which owns Morrison Drive, told The Post and Courier it had no immediate plans to add anything to that stretch of road.
May 6, 2024: Charleston police arrested the driver of the Chevrolet truck in connection with the collision. Seth Carlson, now 33, was charged with two counts of hit and run involving death and two counts of reckless homicide. Footage showed Carlson hit the women as they were walking and continued driving for another 10 minutes after the collision, despite having a busted headlight and flat tire.
He then crashed into a ditch in West Ashley and fled on foot. A witness told police Carlson "smelled of alcohol and was clearly intoxicated." He was the music director at Ashley Ridge Church.
He had no prior record. A judge granted Carlson a $600,000 bond . He posted it and was released from jail on May 24.
Family members and loved ones of the Zito and Gamber families grieve at the memorial for Lizzy Zito and Arianna Gamber one year after the girls were killed while walking up the bike lane of Morrison Drive, Sunday, April 27, 2025, in Charleston. Crackdown on drunk driving May 8, 2024: Charleston Mayor William Cogswell announced a citywide crackdown on drunk driving , asserting that’s what led to the deaths of Gamber and Zito. He said the initiative was in response to their “tragic and ultimately preventable deaths.
” In July, a Charleston police investigator alleged during a hearing that both Carlson and Gentilin spent the night drinking in Charleston bars before getting behind the wheel. Carlson allegedly drank several alcoholic beverages at the now-defunct Sweet Grass Vodka lounge while he was performing in a band for a private event. Gentilin allegedly went to several establishments and was recorded drinking alcoholic beverages he held in both hands.
But neither were charged with a DUI. May 11: The College of Charleston honored Lizzy on what would’ve been her graduation day . Mia Sullivan walked across the stage in honor of her friend.
She carried Lizzy's French Bulldog, Lola, in her left hand while accepting the diploma with her right. Lizzy was living at home, not in Charleston, during her final semester. She was just weeks away from graduating with a psychology degree when she died.
Arianna was about to finish her first year in the Greenville Technical College's dental hygienist program. Nicole Gamber strokes her daughter Audrey’s, 9, hair while she and Mya Moses, 11, release butterflies at a cookout and butterfly release around the anniversary of Lizzy Zito and Ariana Amber’s deaths, Sunday, April 27, 2025, in Charleston. May 15, 2024: The developers of Morrison Yard said the S.
C. DOT is the “ only barrier ” left to making proposed pedestrian safety plans reality. DOT said it has no current plans to add a traffic light, but will install additional speed limit signs in the area.
June 13, 2024: Both public and private groups looked at making pedestrian safety changes to Morrison Drive. The DOT launched a traffic safety audit in a direct response to Gamber and Zito’s deaths. It assessed the infrastructure and determine how to “enhance the corridor” if needed.
A cyclist rides by the memorial site for Lizzy Zito and Arianna Gamber as police block off a lane of road for the family of Zito to pay their respects and add to the memorial on May 11, 2024, in Charleston. The state and nearby developers are working to make the road safer for pedestrians after the two 20-year-olds were run over by not one, but two vehicles while walking alongside Morrison Drive. Separately and simultaneously, the Morrison Yard developers studied the road for a third time in an attempt to add a traffic light.
Vehicle trips have to reach a certain threshold before a signal can be added, according to a 2019 agreement between the developer at the DOT. With more tenants in the apartment and office space, developers expected the OK. July 22, 2024: The DOT announced pedestrian safety enhancements to Morrison Drive.
A new traffic light at Johnson Street, a crosswalk with flashing beacons at the Sanders-Clyde Elementary School near Jackson Street and a landscaped and raised median were approved. The median will run from Cooper to Johnson streets and make traffic entering Morrison Drive from Grace Bridge Street, Harris Street and Jackson Street right turn only. The state will also improve pavement markings and signage and clear vegetation and debris from the bicycle lanes.
The changes were expected to cost about $1 million. Morrison Yard developers will also add a second pedestrian entrance to the bridge, which will give people access via a stairway behind the apartment complex. Nov.
3, 2024: The Post and Courier published an investigation into why Charleston is one of the deadliest places in the country for pedestrians . It found that most people died on the same five roads. Images of Lizzy Zito and Arianna Gamber cover a remembrance table decorated to honor their lives at the 2024 Walk Like MADD held at Hampton Park Saturday, Nov.
16, 2024, in Charleston. Dec. 19, 2024: The families sued Carlson and Gentilin for wrongful death.
The civil lawsuit seeks a jury trial to recover damages for the victims and to award punitive damages against the drivers. One year later The families returned to the memorial site on Morrison Drive a year after Arianna and Lizzy's deaths. They watered the flowers, prayed together and protested in favor of stricter DUI laws.
They also rallied against a proposed bill that would effectively limit attorneys' ability to sue establishments that overserved patrons who then drove under the influence. Alexis and Audrey Gamber, 9, hold signs at the intersection of Morrison Drive and Cooper Street at a protest for stricter DUI laws in South Carolina, Sunday, April 27, 2025, in Charleston. They were disappointed to see that the proposed pedestrian improvements to Morrison Drive still have not materialized.
The developers of Morrison Yard said they are almost done installing a second pedestrian entrance to the Arthur Ravenel Jr. Bridge. The stairs will provide an additional bridge access point that is set back and away from the road.
Their plan was to begin construction on the approved traffic light and crosswalk after the stairs were installed. That's "still a work in progress with the city," developer Mike Schwarz told The Post and Courier on April 23. The criminal charges and civil lawsuit against Carlson and Gentilin also remain pending.
It's impossible to determine when resolution could come, prosecutor Chad Simpson said. As they hope for justice, the families work to hold their memories of Lizzy and Arianna close. Frank Zito and his wife Marjorie Sandoval Zito visit their daughter's grave site each night.
They buried some of Arianna's ashes under Lizzy's grave stone so the friends can remain together. The couple gazes at a photo of the women and tells them how much they love them. And then they promise to return again the next day.
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