Tyler Beauclaire was sentenced to 11 years in prison for the drunken driving crash that killed a Wichita teacher, his teenage son and his nephew on U.S. Highway 400 in June 2025.
Judge Charles Hart sentenced Beauclaire, 25, on Thursday, Oct. 22, in Butler County District Court, according to the Wichita Eagle. Beauclaire also faces three years of post-release supervision.
The sentence closes a case that devastated two Wichita families and the USD 259 community. Britton Eichbauer, a social studies teacher at Curtis Middle School who had spent nearly 20 years with the district, was killed along with his 19-year-old son, Arlo Eichbauer, and 16-year-old nephew, Silas Eichbauer.
All three died at the scene on June 11, 2025, on Highway 400 between Leon and Beaumont. They were miles from home after a road trip that took them scuba diving in Florida, dining in New Orleans and kayaking in Tennessee.
Beauclaire's pickup truck crossed the center line and hit Eichbauer's Toyota Tacoma head-on, KWCH reported. A probable cause affidavit cited by KSN said Beauclaire had been swerving in his lane before the collision. Two other people were injured in the crash and survived.
Assistant Butler County Attorney Brett Sweeney said Beauclaire was in Kansas for work at the time. At the time of the crash, Beauclaire held an active Louisiana law enforcement certification and had previously worked for three police departments, KSN reported.
"We want to acknowledge the families of the victims because they were forced to endure such incredible grief," Sweeney said, according to the Eagle.
Beauclaire pleaded guilty in March to three counts of involuntary manslaughter while driving under the influence and two counts of aggravated battery. The manslaughter charges were reduced from second-degree murder under a plea deal, KSN reported. KAKE reported the plea came during a pretrial conference four days before trial was set to begin.
Arlo Eichbauer was a 2024 Goddard High School graduate who had grown passionate about scuba diving with his father and hoped to land a diving internship in Florida, the Eagle reported in a June 2025 profile of the family. Silas Eichbauer had just finished his sophomore year at Wichita North High School. He had completed two aviation-industry internships and talked about working in that field.
Britton Eichbauer's sisters told the Eagle in that profile that he started each school year telling students, "Hey guys, I'm Mr. Eichbauer and I'm going to be your favorite teacher."
Beauclaire's 132-month sentence and three-year supervision term closes the case.
