The lawyer for the family of a 5-year-old girl involved in a Devastating three car accident last month it is manifesting for the first time.
In an exclusive interview with “Good Morning America”, Tom Porto, the lawyer for the Young family – whose daughter, Ariel, 5, was injured after former Kansas City Chiefs technical assistant Britt Reid crashed the vehicle – describes the severity of the accident. of the shipwreck that almost killed the five-year-old girl.
Ariel is still fighting for his life in a hospital in Kansas City, Missouri, with a brain injury and unable to speak, according to Porto.
“This was not a fender bender,” Porto told “Good Morning America”. “This was a serious life-changing event.”
MORE: Britt Reid, Chiefs’ assistant coach and son of Andy Reid, involved in the accident with a seriously injured child
Early last month, Reid – who is also the son of Kansas City Chiefs head coach Andy Reid – ran over a car belonging to Ariel’s family. His mother, aunt and 4-year-old cousin stopped at the side of a highway to help a 19-year-old relative whose car ran out of gas. According to police, Reid was driving at highway speeds when his truck hit the first car.
Ariel, who was in the second car, suffered fatal injuries, while his 4-year-old cousin, who was also in the car, suffered non-fatal injuries. Both were transported to the hospital. The driver of the Reid car crashed first and the two adults in the second car suffered non-fatal injuries.
“She is awake, which is a big development,” said Porto about Ariel. “She probably has permanent brain damage that she will endure for the rest of her life. She is not walking – it is a sad, sad, sad story. “
In exclusive photos obtained by ABC News, Reid’s truck was destroyed and the two cars the police say he came across – including Ariel’s back seat, in which she was sitting in the second row of his vehicle – were flattened and unrecognizable.
“When you look at these pictures, you wonder how someone got out of that car alive,” said Porto.
According to a search warrant request obtained by ABC News, a police officer at the scene reported smelling “a moderate odor of alcoholic beverages emanating from [Reid]. ”Reid told the officer that he drank“ 2-3 drinks ”and was drinking“ Adderall ”.
He was injured in the wreckage and was taken to the hospital with undisclosed injuries and did not join the Chiefs in Tampa for the Super Bowl.
The investigation is ongoing and no charges have been filed in the case.
“We will defend the most serious charges and the most serious sentence Britt could ever receive,” said Porto. “We don’t have toxicology back, I don’t know what it will be. What I do know are the statements he made to the police that night. If you drink two or three drinks and then sit behind the wheel of a car, you’ve probably crossed the legal limit. “
This is not the first time that Reid has faced previous legal problems. In 2007, he pleaded guilty to pointing a gun at a driver and was sentenced to eight to 23 months in prison. And in 2008, Reid pleaded guilty to driving under the influence of a controlled substance.
After the car accident, Kansas City chiefs put Reid on administrative leave. And since the fall, Chiefs’ trainer Andy Reid addressed the incident in a statement.
MORE: Kansas City Chiefs puts assistant coach Britt Reid on administrative leave after car accident
“My heart is with that young woman, I am also a father, so I understand that. So, obviously, I have concerns on both sides, ”said Andy Reid. “Britt had surgery, but he is better now, but that little girl, my heart is with her.”
The Young family said they desperately want Ariel’s life to return to normal, but Porto said they are being led to believe that this may not happen, at least not anytime soon.
* Reid’s lawyer said he did not communicate with the family and did not comment at the time.
Family lawyer for girl injured in pre-Super Bowl accident speaks: ABC News exclusive originally appeared on goodmorningamerica.com