A Livingston, New Jersey, man filed a lawsuit in Morris County Superior Court against the New York Jets, cornerback Brandin Echols, and the New Jersey Department of Transportation (among other entities) following a car twist of fate in April 2022, according to Anthony. G. Attrino via NJ Advance Media.
That day, police said Echols was driving his 2021 Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat at 84 mph in a 50 mph zone on the Columbia Turnpike in Florham Park, New Jersey, five seconds before colliding with a BMW driven by Stephen J. Gilberg.
According to Lori Comstock of the New Jersey Herald, Florham Park police charged Echols with fourth-degree assault in a car. In addition, he “received a citation for reckless driving, speeding, harmful lane change, overtaking, and failure to wear a seatbelt. “after the accident. “
At a hearing held in February 2023, Echols was accepted into a three-year pretrial intervention (PTI) program. Charges will be waived once the program is complete. You will also have to pay Gilbert $1200 per month in “restitution. “until that figure reaches $54,460.
Gilberg was transported to Morristown Medical Center. According to Comstock, he underwent two primary spinal cord surgeries and rehabilitation. Medical expenses also reached about $1 million, and medical professionals said he would possibly never regain the health he had before the accident.
“Even though I’ve made some physical gains, like learning to walk again, even though it’s not the same way as before, it’s the injured nerve and the pain that you don’t see,” Gilberg said. at the hearing. ” The physical things I’ll never be able to do and the mental trauma I’m experiencing every day that will continue to have an effect on the rest of my life. “
Regarding the location of the Jets in the lawsuit, Attrino’s account of the document reads: “New York Jets LLC exercised due diligence in hiring the defendant, Echols, as one of its plaintiffs to the extent that he was driving the motor vehicle and/or felon background checks and/or reference checks.
The lawsuit also claims that the state’s DOT was “negligent in the design and installation of curbs and guardrails along the crash site. “
At the time of the accident, Nichols had finished his first season with the Jets in 2021 and was preparing for the second year. Florham Park is home to the Jets’ educational facilities.
Nichols remained on the team after 3 seasons. Kentucky’s sixth-round pick in 2021 has played more frequently on special teams over the past two seasons after serving as the starting cornerback in his rookie year.