Guilty Verdict in Topeka Crash That Killed Teacher Ashleigh Boyd
Todd W. Armstrong, 55, was found guilty of vehicular homicide in the 11 April 2024 head-on collision that killed 24-year-old Topeka teacher Ashleigh Leeann Boyd. Judge Andrew Holmes returned the verdict after a one-day bench trial in which Armstrong had pleaded not guilty. The Guardian
A bench trial works differently from a jury trial. There is no jury, so Holmes alone decided the facts and applied the law.
The outcome was confirmed to the Guardian by Boyd's father, Brian Hinck. Sentencing was tentatively scheduled for November. Armstrong is a Topeka man.
The crash occurred in south-west Topeka. Boyd was driving a sedan with her infant daughter, Eleanor, as a passenger. A pickup truck driven by Armstrong struck her car head-on from the wrong side of the road. The Shawnee County Sheriff's Office said Armstrong crossed the center line. Boyd was pronounced dead at the scene. Eleanor was injured.
Boyd taught second grade at Lowman Hill Elementary School in Topeka. She was the wife of Adan Manzano. Eleanor, now 3, is being raised by her grandparents, Brian Hinck and Nicole Hinck, after the deaths of her parents.
Armstrong was driving a Ford F-150 pickup at the time of the collision. WIBW He told authorities that a blown tire or mechanical failure caused him to cross into Boyd's lane. Investigators reported finding no obvious signs of tire or mechanical defects in his truck.
In addition to vehicular homicide, Armstrong was found guilty of speeding and driving on the wrong side in connection with the crash. Topeka Capital-Journal Court documents reported that his truck had been parked at a casino for hours before the deadly crash. KSNT He bonded out of jail after his arrest in the vehicular homicide case, posting money to remain free while awaiting court proceedings.
The broader context here is the legal framework that will shape what happens in November. Kansas treats vehicular homicide as a misdemeanor carrying a maximum of one year in prison. That classification limits the time in custody even where the facts involve a fatal head-on collision, a center-line crossing, and companion convictions for speeding and wrong-side driving. For readers used to felony homicide laws elsewhere, the Kansas structure explains why a guilty finding in a death case proceeds to a misdemeanor sentencing. It also focuses attention on how Holmes weighs the competing accounts of mechanical failure and driver fault, the reported absence of obvious defects, and the additional traffic findings within a narrow sentencing range.
