LICKING COUNTY, Ohio — Jacob McDonald, the truck driver convicted in a fiery Interstate 70 crash that killed six people in November 2023, walked out of the Licking County Justice Center on January 17 after serving an 18-month jail sentence.
The crash on November 14, 2023, ripped through a convoy of vehicles on a chilly morning in western Licking County, starting a chain reaction that left a charter bus engulfed in flames. The bus was carrying students and chaperones from Tuscarawas Valley Local Schools on their way to a performance in Columbus.
Investigators said McDonald was driving a semi-truck on Interstate 70 when traffic slowed ahead. He did not slow down in time, hitting an SUV that was then pushed into the back of the bus. Three teenage students – John “JD” Mosley, 18; Jeffery Worrell, 18; and Katelyn Owens, 15 – died in the crash alongside teacher Dave Kennat, 56, and chaperones Kristy Gaynor, 39, and Shannon Wigfield, 45.
At his 2025 trial, McDonald faced 26 counts, including aggravated vehicular homicide and vehicular assault. A judge found him guilty on six misdemeanor counts of negligent vehicular homicide but not guilty on the more serious felony charges because prosecutors could not prove recklessness beyond a reasonable doubt.
In June 2025, the judge gave McDonald the maximum sentence for the misdemeanor convictions — 18 months in jail — and credited him for 323 days already served before sentencing. A five-year suspension of his commercial driver’s license was also imposed.
Families of the victims spoke out after the crash and during court proceedings, describing deep grief and a sense that justice was limited by the misdemeanor verdict. The community continues to mourn the students and adults whose lives were cut short that day.
Emergency crews from several agencies responded to the scene, where at least 18 others were injured and taken to hospitals. Traffic on the busy highway was shut down for hours as investigators documented the wreckage.
McDonald’s release marks the end of his sentence but not the end of the wound this crash left on families and the Tusky Valley community. He remains subject to his license suspension and other court-ordered conditions.
