In The News 24 July 2026

Mahoning County man indicted in 2025 crash that killed state trooper

Ohio Attorney General

YOUNGSTOWN — A Canfield man has been indicted in connection with the October 2025 crash that killed Ohio State Highway Patrol Trooper Nicholas Cayton and seriously injured another driver, Attorney General Andy Wilson announced today.
 
Ryan Rach, 36, is charged with aggravated vehicular homicide, a third-degree felony, and vehicular assault, a fourth-degree felony. Because a law enforcement officer died in the crash, Rach faces a mandatory five-year sentence specification on the aggravated vehicular homicide charge if convicted. Authorities arrested Rach this morning.
 
The crash occurred on Oct. 16, after Cayton responded to a disabled tractor-trailer stopped in the right lane of Route 11 in Canfield, about 10 miles southwest of Youngstown.

The trooper was in his parked patrol cruiser with its overhead lights flashing when a Mack truck driven by Rach struck the cruiser from behind, pushing it into the tractor-trailer. The 40-year-old trooper, who had served with the State Highway Patrol since 2012, died at the scene. The driver of the disabled tractor-trailer was transported to a local hospital; he survived his injuries.   
 
A Highway Patrol investigation determined that Rach was allegedly distracted and using his cell phone before the crash. 
 
The attorney general’s Special Prosecutions Section is prosecuting the case in Mahoning County Common Pleas Court.
 
Indictments are criminal allegations. Defendants are presumed innocent unless proved guilty in a court of law.
 

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