
Canada Rinaldi before and after she was attacked in Dallas (GoFundMe).
A bride-to-be’s bachelorette party was ruined after she was allegedly assaulted by a stranger while waiting for a ride outside a Texas nightclub.
Canada Rinaldi, a 27-year-old woman, experienced severe injuries including a concussion, a broken nose, three chipped teeth, and required eight stitches to her face during an attack that occurred on a Saturday night, just one month before her wedding, as stated on a GoFundMe page.
The attacker came from behind.
Rinaldi recounted, “So I remember walking towards the back of the car, and then I remember waking up in an ambulance,” in an interview with local Fox affiliate KDFW. She shared that these were the only memories she had of the incident.
Kirsten McDowell initiated the fundraising campaign to assist with covering the costs of Rinaldi’s hospital bills. McDowell was part of the group of friends who were gathered to celebrate Rinaldi’s upcoming nuptials.
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“Just 24 hours earlier, she had told us she was having ‘the best trip of her life,”” McDowell wrote. “That happiness was ripped away from her in an instant, turning it into the most terrifying and traumatizing night she’s ever experienced.”
Rinaldi, who lives in Oklahoma, racked up $10,000 in medical bills, McDowell said. She continues to recover and is hopeful her injuries will be cleared up by the time her wedding comes around.
“It’s just shocking,” she told Dallas ABC affiliate WFAA. “It’s hard to believe. I feel like a lot of my experiences were taken away from me.”
Meanwhile, the suspect remains at large. She told WFAA she didn’t know the man, nor did she understand why he attacked her. Her bridesmaid, Kelly Peralta, said in an interview with the TV station that she tried to intervene and ended up getting punched herself.
“It’s just so traumatic,” she said.
While Rinaldi is forging ahead and is back home in Oklahoma, the shine of her wedding has lost some of its luster.
“I feel like I’m not excited to plan my wedding anymore,” she said, fighting back tears.
Anyone with information is asked to call Dallas police.
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