The short version
- A Kansas judge found Todd W. Armstrong guilty of vehicular homicide for the fatal crash that killed teacher Ashleigh Boyd, a misdemeanor offense carrying a maximum one-year prison sentence.
- The verdict arrives just days after a Louisiana jury convicted Danette Colbert and Rickey White of negligent homicide and racketeering in the death of Boyd’s husband, journalist Adan Manzano.
- Brian Hinck, the father of both deceased parents, expressed deep disillusionment with the justice system while raising his three-year-old granddaughter alone following these consecutive tragedies.
A Kansas judge has delivered a guilty verdict in the death of a young school teacher, concluding a legal chapter that follows closely on the heels of another conviction involving her widower. Andrew Holmes, presiding over a one-day bench trial in Topeka, found Todd W. Armstrong guilty of vehicular homicide for his role in an April 2024 collision that killed Ashleigh Boyd. The ruling comes merely four days after a jury in Louisiana convicted two individuals in the separate but chronologically linked death of Boyd’s husband, Adan Manzano, a television reporter who was murdered while preparing to cover the Super Bowl.
The timing of these legal resolutions has compounded the grief for Brian Hinck, the father of both Boyd and Manzano. Hinck and his wife Nicole are now raising their three-year-old granddaughter, Eleanor, who survived the crash that killed her mother but suffered injuries at the scene. The proximity of the trials has forced the family to process two distinct judicial outcomes in rapid succession, each addressing a violent end to one half of a young couple whose lives were extinguished ten months apart.
In the Kansas case, Armstrong, 55, pleaded not guilty to charges stemming from the head-on collision with Boyd’s sedan. Court records indicate that investigators found Armstrong’s pickup truck had been parked at a casino in Kansas City for five hours prior to the incident. While Armstrong claimed mechanical failure or a blown tire caused him to drift into the wrong lane, investigators reported no obvious defects in the vehicle. The prosecution argued that his actions constituted vehicular homicide, a charge the judge ultimately upheld.
Legal proceedings in Topeka revealed complexities regarding evidence admissibility. Although court documents cited urine drug screens showing cocaine metabolites in Armstrong’s system, his attorney successfully moved to exclude this information from the trial record. Consequently, the judge’s decision rested on other factors presented during the brief hearing. Under Kansas law, vehicular homicide is classified as a misdemeanor, meaning Armstrong faces a maximum penalty of one year in prison if sentenced accordingly. Hinck had previously expressed dismay at the limited statutory punishment available for such offenses.
The second case unfolded in Louisiana, where Adan Manzano was found dead in his hotel room in Kenner, days before Super Bowl LIX. Investigators determined that Manzano, a native of Toluca, Mexico, had been targeted by a group operating in New Orleans’ French Quarter. These individuals reportedly drugged victims to render them unconscious before stealing phones and bank cards to drain financial accounts. An autopsy revealed Manzano died of asphyxiation after ingesting alcohol and Xanax, a pharmaceutical depressant.
A jury in suburban New Orleans convicted Danette Colbert, 49, and Rickey White, 35, of negligent homicide and racketeering following a four-day trial. A third defendant, Christian Anderson, testified against the pair after pleading guilty to lesser charges of simple robbery and fraud in exchange for a six-year sentence. The convictions carry significant potential penalties; negligent homicide can result in up to ten years imprisonment, while racketeering charges allow for sentences of up to fifty years.
Complicating the narrative of accountability is Colbert’s prior legal status. Before her trial in Manzano’s death concluded, Colbert had already received a 25-year prison sentence for violating probation on previous theft and fraud convictions, having been classified as a habitual offender. Hinck noted that learning Colbert was on probation at the time of the crime further eroded his faith in the criminal justice system’s ability to protect citizens or deliver proportional consequences.
Hinck has spoken publicly about the emotional toll of navigating these parallel legal battles while shielding Eleanor from the details of her parents’ deaths. He described a household where disappointment with judicial outcomes has reached a peak, citing both the misdemeanor classification of Boyd’s killer and the probation status of Manzano’s assailant as evidence of systemic failures. Sentencing for Armstrong is tentatively scheduled for November, while Colbert and White face sentencing on September 28.
The cases highlight divergent legal pathways for violent deaths occurring within a short timeframe. One involved a traffic collision adjudicated by a single judge under state misdemeanor statutes, while the other involved a coordinated criminal enterprise tried before a jury with felony charges. For Hinck, the distinction offers little comfort as he manages the immediate future of his granddaughter and the long-term implications of these verdicts on his family’s sense of security and justice.
As sentencing dates approach in both jurisdictions, the focus shifts from guilt to punishment. The Kansas case will test whether a misdemeanor conviction carries sufficient weight for a fatal crash, while the Louisiana case will determine how heavily judges weigh racketeering enhancements alongside negligent homicide. Until then, the Hinck family remains caught between the finality of verdicts and the uncertainty of sentences, navigating a legal landscape that has proven as unforgiving as the events it seeks to address.
Sources behind this briefing
Go to the original reporting
- The Guardian World↗Kansas judge reportedly convicts driver in death of teacher whose husband was killed months prior
