Star cornerback for the New York Jets Brandin Echols was involved in a high-speed crash while driving his Dodge Charger Hellcat. The driver he hit is now claiming he’s partially paralyzed after his BMW X5 was launched over a guardrail by the NFL player, landing in a marsh. Now footage of the wreck has surfaced and it looks scary.
The drama surrounding Tom Brady’s ex-wife’s traffic stop has only increased.
Reportedly, Echols was traveling at 84 mph in a 50 mph zone when he collided with the Bimmer and ran it off the road. This was back on April 26, 2022. Now the other driver, 51-year-old Stephen Gilberg, is suing Echols as well as the Jets, or so says the New York Post.
Where the crash happened was on the Columbia Turnpike in the Morristown Airport area, not far from the NY Jets’ practice complex located in Florham Park, New Jersey. You can see in the footage, the Mopar muscle car suddenly veers right, likely from torque steer, hitting the X5 on the driver’s side.
The force of impact pushes the BMW against the guardrail and then over. What you don’t see too well is the crossover flipped onto its roof in a marsh. Gilberg reportedly was trapped in the vehicle for about an hour until first responders could extricate him.
Police reports state Gilberg suffered some broken ribs from the crash. More devastating, the man suffered “no feeling or movement in both hands and his right leg that required spinal surgery.” He apparently is still receiving medical treatments for the condition.
Gilberg’s attorney alleges the Hellcat’s data recorder says the muscle car was going up to 111 mph before the crash.
While a BMW X5 is not a lightweight vehicle, tipping the scale at a few hundred pounds or so versus a Dodge Charger Hellcat (depending on the configuration), there are other factors. For one, the Bimmer has a higher center of gravity, making it less stable in a collision like this.
Image via unlimited_ls/X
NEW: Newly surfaced video shows the moment that NY Jets cornerback loses control of his Dodge Charger Hellcat at 84 mph
— Unlimited L's (@unlimited_ls) May 5, 2024
Brandin Echols was charged with assault by auto charges but entered a three-year pretrial intervention program, potentially leading to charge dismissal… pic.twitter.com/uQiayBZ3oU