21-Year-Old Actor Reiss Jarvis Dies in Car Crash

By Daniel S. Levine

British actor Reiss Jarvis died after suffering "unsurvivable" injuries in a car crash in a village in England last year, an inquest heard on May 10. The 21-year-old Jarvis was a passenger in a Mazda 3 driven by his friend, Karl Young, 34, who also died. Jarvis starred in the 2017 BBC drama Murdered For Being Different, which was based on the 2007 murder of Sophie Lancaster.

Young and Jarvis were returning to Dolph, Oldham after visiting a fish shop in Marsden, West Yorkshire the night of the Nov. 10, 2021 crash, authorities said, reports the Manchester Evening News. The Mazda crashed into a tree, then down an embankment where the two men were trapped in the vehicle. A witness called emergency medical services. They pulled Young from the vehicle and took him to a nearby hospital. Reiss was declared dead at the scene.

During the May 10 hearing, Police Sergeant Neil Pennington of GMP's Serious Collision Investigation Unit said the car was speeding at over 110mph just seconds before the crash. That was more than double the speed limit. When the car hit the tree, it was traveling at 58mph, Pennington said.

Investigators found no "significant defects" in the car that could have contributed to the crash. There were also no other vehicles involved, Pennington said. "At the speed, they were driving at, if anything did happen or a loss of control were to occur, it would be very hard for them to regain control of that vehicle," the investigator said.

The autopsy found Jarvis died of "multiple fatal injuries as a result of a road traffic collision." A toxicology report showed Young was not under the influence of alcohol or drugs. Jarvis and Young were friends who worked at a nearby restaurant in Oldham. Young owned the restaurant and Jarvis managed the bar.

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Jarvis only appeared in the 2017 BBC drama Murdered For Being Different. His father, Darryl Jarvis, told the inquest his son auditioned for other parts and trained as a barber. He described his son as "the life and soul of the party" in a statement. Jarvis' death has taken a "terrible toll" on his health and he recently suffered a stroke, Darryl said.

"This case highlights again the dangers of excessive speed on the roads," assistant coroner Michael Salt said. "On this occasion, a very talented and loyal young man has lost his life and the only explanation we have is one of loss of control of the vehicle through excessive speed." 

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