Mitch Lucker’s Wife: “He was an Alcoholic, and it’s been a Big Battle.”

A 20-minute montage of friends, family members and fans giving speeches at last night’s candlelight vigil for Mitch Lucker has made its way online via BandsOnTourTV.

A speech by Mitch’s wife Jolie confirms what some Los Angeles news outlets reported last night, which is that Mitch had been drinking prior to the accident that killed him. Starting around the 2:00 mark in the below video, Jolie says:

He was an alcoholic, and it’s been a big battle. I tried to stop him. I was in front of him begging him not to leave the house. Begging him. Like,”Just seriously, for us, don’t leave.” And he did. And this is what happened. It’s a wake up call. He was an amazing man, a wonderful father, and a great husband. And now he’s gonna miss out on watching Kenadee grow because he decided to drink and drive. Just don’t, just think before you guys do something stupid, please learn from it. Please.

If there’s any silver lining here — and it’s very hard to find one amidst all the sadness — it’s that hopefully Jerry’s untimely death can be used to spread awareness about the dangers of drinking and driving.

In case you missed it, check out a gallery of twenty select photos taken from Mitch’s Instagram account over the final two months of his life.

The death of a friend stirs up incredibly crazy emotions — often at unexpected times — and really forces soul-searching, philosophizing and confronting one’s own mortality. Once again, all the best to Mitch’s family, bandmates, and friends on behalf of everyone at MetalSucks. Mitch will certainly be missed.