Ed Coutts stood outside Children's Hospital of Philadelphia where his 15-year-old son Matt is recovering from surgery after a hit and run Friday night.
A broken shoulder, wrist, and leg, road rash, and brain swelling are among the Upper Moreland High School freshman's injuries. Ed's message to the driver: stop hiding.
"It's got to be bothering you," said Ed Coutts. "I hope its bothering you. Because I don't know how you could hit somebody and act like nothing's happened."
Matt was on his way back to a friend's house in Northeast Philadelphia around 9:30 Friday night. Investigators say a silver Honda Odyssey was traveling westbound on the 200 block of Tomlinson.
Police say first the minivan struck a bike ridden by another 15-year-old in the westbound lane. Then the minivan swerved, hitting Matt, who was on the eastbound side on his skateboard. Matt was thrown several feet into a parked car.
"He did have his helmet on, which saved his life," his father told Action News.
The teen on the bike was treated for minor injuries. Meanwhile, Matt's sister posted a Facebook page, "Stay strong, Matt Coutts." A $10,000 reward is being offered by the family, and a family friend is offering a $1,000 reward to car repair shops if they report the suspicious vehicle.
Through this entire ordeal Ed Coutts says he's so grateful for all the support, from the kind words and lasagnas dropped off by family and friends, to the hard work of the doctors and nurses at CHOP. The road to recovery could be a long one, but he's confident they'll get there.
"It's a good day today," said his father. "Friday night was bad because we didn't know what was going to happen to him. It's a big improvement from two days ago."
Matt loves to skateboard and even saved his own money to attend a skateboarding camp this summer. Those plans could be put on hold. The focus now is for him to get healthy.
