Erie County, OH — August 31, 2025, Dantrail Reese was killed and another person was injured in a truck accident at about 6:40 a.m. on Interstate 90/Ohio Turnpike.
Authorities said an eastbound International 4300 box truck drifted off the road just east of Frailey Road and crashed into a tow truck that was parked on the shoulder with its emergency lights on.
A passenger in the truck, 32-year-old Indianapolis resident Dantrail Reese, died in the crash, while the driver, another Indianapolis man, suffered non-life-threatening injuries, according to authorities.
The tow truck driver, who was outside of his truck at the time of the crash, was not hurt, authorities said.
Authorities have not released any additional information about the crash east of Berlin Heights at this time.
Commentary by Attorney Michael Grossman
When people read about a box truck drifting off the highway and slamming into a parked tow truck, the first question that comes to mind is usually, “How could that even happen?” That’s not just a reasonable question. It’s the right one. Anytime a commercial vehicle leaves the roadway and hits something on the shoulder, there’s a serious breakdown somewhere, either with the driver, the vehicle or the company behind both.
At the moment, we don’t know why this box truck veered off Interstate 90. Was the driver distracted? Fatigued? Was there a mechanical failure? These are exactly the kinds of questions that can only be answered by digging into the truck’s engine control module (ECM) data, looking at in-cab camera footage and reviewing the driver’s cell phone records.
The fact that the tow truck had its emergency lights on, and that its driver was standing outside and unhurt, suggests that the truck was clearly visible. That makes the box truck’s failure to stay on the road even more alarming. Something clearly went wrong, and it wasn’t subtle.
From my experience, investigating a crash like this means going beyond just what’s in the police report. It involves asking whether the company that owned the truck had proper hiring and training policies. Did they check the driver’s background? Did they make sure he was fit to be behind the wheel? I’ve seen cases where a trucking company’s decisions, not just the driver’s momentary lapse, played the bigger role in what happened. In one case I handled, the company put a driver on the road who had been fired from multiple jobs and barely tested his ability to operate a commercial vehicle. When something went wrong, it wasn’t a surprise to anyone who looked closely.
That’s why it’s so important to get the full picture. Not just to figure out who made a mistake, but to make sure it doesn’t happen again. And that process starts with evidence, not assumptions.
Key Takeaways:
- It’s not yet clear why the box truck left the roadway and struck the parked tow truck.
- Critical evidence may include black box data, cell phone records and in-cab video footage.
- The tow truck was reportedly parked with emergency lights on, raising questions about visibility and driver attention.
- A thorough investigation should include the trucking company’s hiring, training and supervision practices.
- Getting accountability requires more than pointing fingers. It requires finding out who knew what, when, and what they did about it.
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