KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The Kansas City, Missouri, Police Department conducted a media briefing Tuesday to explain the accident investigation process.
Police decided to explain the process following last week's crash involving Chiefs assistant coach Britt Reid, which critically injured a little girl and injured another child.
No specific discussion of the crash involving Reid, who is the son of Chiefs coach Andy Reid, took place, because the accident remains under investigation. But KCPD thought it could be helpful to provide insight into why such crashes take time to investigate.
KCPD spokesperson Capt. David Jackson and Sgt. Bill Mahoney with the Accident Investigation Unit explained the investigation process and answered questions.
Accident Investigation officers are called to investigate any crash that results in death or life-threatening injury, according to Mahoney.
Those investigators collect evidence to create a forensic map of the crash scene, which can be used to determine things like the speed of the vehicles involved. Mahoney said that is the most labor-intensive part of the process and has to be done right before the scene is cleared.
After that, the accident reconstruction can take between 30 and 60 days to be complete, Mahoney said.
If the investigation also includes toxicology results, which is the case for Reid's accident after he admitted to drinking before the crash, according to a search warrant application, those lab results can often take the longest to receive.
Officers examine the vehicles involved at the tow lot after the crash and download any available data from the car's system.
They also interview any witnesses, complete a case file and obtain any court orders needed, based on the circumstance.
Investigators normally handle one crash at a time.
Mahoney said he is not the investigator for the Reid crash.
Jackson said no police report has been released in that crash, only court documents involving a search warrant.
The child severely injured in the crash, a 5-year-old girl named Ariel, remains in critical condition with a brain injury.
A GoFundMe to help the family with her medical bills has raised nearly $400,000 from more than 10,100 donors.
