The family of a five-year-old girl who suffered brain damaged after a car crash involving former Kansas City Chiefs’ assistant coach Britt Reid is calling for him to face charges.
An attorney for Ariel Young’s family spoke out about her extensive injuries on Tuesday after she woke up from nearly two weeks in a coma following the accident on February 4 in Kansas City, Missouri.
‘This wasn’t a fender bender,’ the attorney, Tom Porto, told Good Morning America. ‘This was a serious, life-altering event.’
Porto said he and the family will advocate for ‘the most serious charges and the most serious sentence that Britt could ever receive’.
Britt, a former linebackers coach for the Chiefs’ and son of head coach Andy Reid, allegedly admitted that he had been drinking before he struck two cars on the side of an entrance ramp to Interstate 435, near the team’s practice facility.
Porto said he is still waiting for details about Britt’s blood alcohol level at the time of the crash.
‘We don’t have the toxicology back, I don’t know what it is going to be,’ he said.
‘What I do know are the statements that he made to police that night. If you have two or three drinks, and then you get behind the wheel of a car, you are likely over the legal limit.’
The family of five-year-old Ariel Young (right), who suffered brain damaged after a car crash involving former Kansas City Chiefs’ assistant coach Britt Reid (left) on February 4, is calling for him to face charges
Tom Porto, an attorney for Ariel’s family, spoke out about her extensive injuries on Good Morning America on Tuesday (pictured). ‘This wasn’t a fender bender,’ Porto said. ‘This was a serious, life-altering event’
GMA ran a series of images of vehicles involved in the crash during Tuesday’s segment, including one of the crushed backseat where Ariel had been sitting (pictured). ‘When you look at those pictures, you wonder how anybody made it out of that car alive,’ Porto said
Porto said Ariel is still fighting for her life in a Kansas City hospital and is unable to speak due to swelling and bleeding in her brain.
‘I wish I could come baring good news about this horrible situation,’ Porto said in a statement to The Kansas City Star on Tuesday.
‘Unfortunately, I cannot. Baby Ariel is awake but that’s it. She is not talking or walking and will likely have permanent brain damage. It’s just a sad sad story.’
A GoFundMe campaign raising money for Ariel’s family said she woke up on February 16 after 11 days in a coma.
GMA ran a series of images of vehicles involved in the crash during Tuesday’s segment, including one of the crushed backseat where Ariel had been sitting.
‘When you look at those pictures, you wonder how anybody made it out of that car alive,’ Porto said.
Porto said Ariel (pictured) is still fighting for her life in a hospital in Kansas City, Missouri, and is unable to speak due to swelling and bleeding in her brain
A GoFundMe campaign raising money for Ariel’s family said she woke up on February 16 after 11 days in a coma (pictured)
The front of Britt’s SUV is seen smashed after he plowed into two vehicles
The crushed back end of the car Ariel was in is shown above in a photo provided to GMA
The photo above shows the wrecked interior of Ariel’s car after the crash
It was initially reported that Britt, 35, had been placed on administrative leave from the Chiefs’ after the crash, which took place three days before the team competed and lost in the Super Bowl.
ESPN’s Adam Schefter has since reported that Britt is ‘no longer an employee’ of the club he joined with his father in 2013.
Missouri police have said it will likely take at least a month for prosecutors to decide if they will bring charges against Britt.
‘Prosecutors typically would like a completed case file in order to file charges or decline, depending on what the evidence would indicate,’ a statement from police read.
‘In cases like this that may include toxicology, crash reconstruction, witness statements and a variety of other related pieces.
‘We cannot discuss this case specifically, as it is under investigation and we do not want to taint that in any way. We treat each case with respect regardless of who is involved.’
A heavily-redacted police report stated that Britt told police he was the one driving his Dodge Ram truck when it hit the Chevrolet Traverse Ariel was riding in at about 9pm on February 4.
The Traverse was stopped on the side of the highway ramp to assist a Chevrolet Impala that had run out of gas, according to reports.
Britt’s vehicle collided with the Impala first before striking the Traverse, injuring Ariel and a four-year-old child in the backseat with her.
Both children were transported to the hospital, Ariel with life-threatening injuries.
The police report said Britt’s eyes were bloodshot and an officer smelled ‘a moderate odor of alcoholic beverages’ on his breath.
According to the search warrant filed after the accident, Britt told the officer he had two to three drinks and that he also took the prescription ADHD medication Adderall prior to the crash.
Britt allegedly admitted that he had been drinking before he struck two cars on the side of an entrance ramp to Interstate 435 (pictured), near the team’s practice facility
Speaking out after the Super Bowl on February 7, Andy Reid said Britt, who was taken to the hospital with stomach pain after the crash, had undergone surgery but declined to comment further.
‘My heart goes out to those involved, the family of those little girls fighting for their lives,’ the head coach said in a statement.
‘From a human standpoint, my heart bleeds for them.’
The Chiefs’ also released a statement, saying: ‘We remain in the process of gathering information on the incident, and we will continue to assist local authorities as requested.
‘Our focus remains on Ariel Young and her family. We have reached out to the family to offer our support and resources to them during this difficult time, and we will continue to pray for her recovery.’
Speaking out after the Super Bowl on February 7, Andy Reid (pictured) said his son Britt, who was taken to the hospital with stomach pain after the crash, had undergone surgery but declined to comment further
This not the first time Britt has had trouble with the law.
In 2007, the then-22-year-old was sentenced to eight to 23 months in jail on gun and drug charges.
Britt (pictured) has had several brushes with the law in the past
It came after he pointed a handgun at another driver following a dispute, according to ESPN.
Britt pleaded guilty to carrying an unlicensed firearm, simple assault, possession of a controlled substance and possession of an instrument of crime in connection with the incident.
According to KSHB, Britt was arrested again seven months later and charged with DUI: controlled substance, possession of a controlled substance and possession of drug paraphernalia.
His bail was revoked from the first arrest and he again pleaded guilty, receiving a sentence of one to six months in February 2008.
Pennsylvania court records show that he was fined more than $10,000 for the two incidents and ordered to complete Drug Court, which he did in July 2012.
ESPN reported that as Britt and his brother Garrett Reid were sentenced following the first arrest in 2007, a judge likened their father’s home to a ‘drug emporium’ as he questioned whether the adult sons should live there.
At the time, Garrett, who was described as a drug addict and dealer, was sentenced to 23 months in jail after crashing into another car while high on heroin.