A Shawnee County judge sentenced 55-year-old Todd W. Armstrong of Auburn to one year in jail Friday for the 2024 crash that killed Topeka teacher Ashleigh Boyd, closing out a case that left her one-year-old daughter orphaned after her father died less than a year later. The 12-month term is the maximum penalty allowed under Kansas law for a vehicular homicide conviction.
According to KSNT 27 News, Shawnee County District Attorney Mike Kagay confirmed the sentence, and Armstrong was also ordered to pay $326 in fines and fees. Armstrong was convicted of misdemeanor vehicular homicide following a bench trial in September 2026, when a Shawnee County judge found him guilty after hearing the case without a jury.
The crash happened on April 11, 2024, in the 7800 block of Southwest 53rd Street. KSNT reported it occurred shortly before 7:45 a.m., while WIBW reported the collision happened around 7:42 a.m. Shawnee County Sheriff's Office deputies found a 2007 Nissan Versa and a 2018 Ford F-150 involved in a head-on collision, the station reported.
A Mother Killed, a Baby Hospitalized
Boyd, 24, was driving the Nissan and died at the scene. Her one-year-old daughter, Eleanor Manzano-Aguilar, who was also in the vehicle, was hospitalized after the crash, KSNT's reporting states.
Court documents cited by WIBW said Armstrong was driving 63 mph in a 45 mph zone at the time of the crash. The station also reported that the judge found Armstrong guilty of speeding and of driving on the right side of the roadway, in addition to vehicular homicide. The Guardian, however, reported that the judge, identified as Andrew Holmes, found Armstrong guilty of vehicular homicide, driving on the wrong side of the road and speeding — the two outlets' accounts of the roadway violation differ.
Armstrong told law enforcement that a mechanical problem or a blown tire may have contributed to the crash, per his account from 2024. But investigators found no obvious mechanical defects with his truck during the execution of a search warrant on April 15, 2024, according to court documents obtained by the station's earlier report.
Husband's Death Left Toddler Without Either Parent
Boyd's husband, Adan Manzano, raised their daughter alone after Boyd's death. Manzano, a television sports reporter for Telemundo Kansas City, died in 2025 while covering the Super Bowl in New Orleans, according to the same KSNT account. Eleanor lost both parents within less than a year.
Boyd's father, Brian Hinck, asked the judge on Nov. 13 to impose the maximum sentence of 12 months upon Armstrong, as reported by The Topeka Capital-Journal. Authorities arrested Armstrong in March 2025, nearly a year after the crash.
Letters Described Remorse and Medical Issues
Sentencing court records included letters from family members, friends and medical professionals describing Armstrong's lack of prior criminal history, according to the station's reporting. The same letters described his ongoing medical issues and expressions of remorse following the crash.
Kansas statute defines vehicular homicide as the killing of a human being through the operation of a motor vehicle in a manner that creates an unreasonable risk of injury to a person or property, according to the Kansas Office of Revisor of Statutes. The sentence handed down Friday represents the conclusion of the criminal case against Armstrong under that statute.
