Ex-Chiefs assistant Britt Reid sentenced to three years in prison in drunk driving crash
Former Kansas City Chiefs assistant coach Britt Reid was sentenced on Tuesday to three years in prison for driving drunk, speeding and hitting two parked cars last year, leaving a 5-year-old girl with a serious brain injury.
Reid pleaded guilty in September to driving while intoxicated causing serious bodily injury. The charge carries a maximum penalty of seven years in prison, but prosecutors had agreed to ask for a maximum sentence of four years in prison. Reid sought probation.
Circuit Judge Charles H. McKenzie sentenced Reid on Tuesday and he was set to be taken into custody.
Prosecutors said Reid, the son of Chiefs coach Andy Reid, was intoxicated and driving about 84 mph in a 65 mph zone when his Dodge truck hit the cars on an entrance ramp to Interstate 435 near Arrowhead Stadium on Feb. 4, 2021.
A girl inside one of the cars, Ariel Young, suffered a traumatic brain injury. A total of six people, including Reid, were injured. One of the vehicles he hit had stalled because of a dead battery, and the second was owned by Ariel's mother, who had arrived to help.
Reid had a blood-alcohol level of 0.113% two hours after the crash, police said. The legal limit is 0.08%.
Before sentencing, a victim impact statement from Ariel's mother, Felicia Miller, was read into the record. She said the five victims of the crash were offended that Reid sought probation and they did not accept his apologies for his actions. The family opposed the plea deal.
Miller said her daughter, who was in court Tuesday, has improved but still drags one of her feet when she walks, has terrible balance and must wear thick eyeglasses.
"Ariel's life forever changed because of Britt Reid," Miller's statement said. "She will deal with this for the rest of her life."
Reid apologized before sentencing, turning to look at Ariel and her family as he spoke. He said he has a daughter the same age as Ariel and his family prays for her every night.
"I understand where Ms. Miller is coming from. I think I would feel the same way," he said.
Reid's attorney, J.R. Hobbs, asked in a sentencing memorandum that Reid be placed on probation, noting he had publicly apologized and was remorseful.
Reid underwent emergency surgery for a groin injury after the crash. The Chiefs placed him on administrative leave, and his job with the team ended after his contract was allowed to expire.
This is not the first legal issue for Reid, who graduated from a drug treatment program in Pennsylvania in 2009 after a series of run-ins with law enforcement. His father was coach of the Philadelphia Eagles at the time.
The Chiefs reached a confidential agreement with Ariel's family in November to pay for her ongoing medical treatment and other expenses.
