Photo via Fox News

WATCH: Handcuffed inmate breaks free, punches deputy in wild courthouse escape attempt

Read the original at Fox News ↗
Cite

Sinkewicz, M. (2026, September 17). WATCH: Handcuffed inmate breaks free, punches deputy in wild courthouse escape attempt. Fox News. https://www.foxnews.com/us/handcuffed-inmate-breaks-free-punches-deputy-wild-courthouse-escape-attempt

Dated when The Aporia collected the article, usually within hours of publication. Check the original for its exact date and byline.

Fox News · collected 2026-09-17 · by Michael Sinkewicz

Quick Summary

Timothy J. Reaggle, a 20-year-old man sentenced to one year in prison for aggravated burglary and other offenses, attempted to escape from the Columbiana County Courthouse by breaking free of his handcuffs and punching two deputies. The incident occurred shortly after his sentencing on Monday; video footage shows Reaggle fleeing down hallways and stairs before being subdued with a Taser. Both deputies were injured, one suffering broken bones, but they have since been released from the hospital. Sheriff Brian McLaughlin stated that additional charges, including assault on a police officer and felony escape, are expected to be filed against Reaggle.
Written by AI on 2026-09-17, from this article's own text only (the story summary below draws on all the coverage).

AI analysis

Story summary

On Monday, Timothy J. Reaggle, a 20-year-old from Wellsville, attempted to escape from the Columbiana County Court in Ohio after being sentenced to spend one year in prison for a separate case. Video footage released by the sheriff’s office showed Reaggle breaking free of his handcuffs and punching a deputy before running down hallways and staircases. He attacked two deputies who were escorting him, causing one of them to suffer broken bones. The deputies eventually subdued Reaggle with a Taser. People in the courthouse rushed to assist the injured officers. Sheriff Brian McLaughlin stated that both deputies have since been released from the hospital.

Written for “Courthouse Escape Attempt” on 2026-11-01, grounded in this article and the 2 other(s) covering the same event.

Story

📰 Courthouse Escape Attempt
Crime & Law · 3 article(s) covering the same event. Compare every outlet's account →

Compared with similar articles

This article reads unscored and hedges 50% of its claims. Each row says how that neighbour differs.
New York Post
Hedges 3 of 10 claims Outlet record 66/100
ABC News (US)
Hedges 0 of 1 claims Outlet record 70/100
How this article was measured signals, leaning charts, publisher record, byline, topics and claims

Signals How these are calculated →

Claims extracted
12
sentences that state something as happening or true
Uncertain
50%
6 of 12 hedged ("reportedly", "may", "according to")
Leaning
not political
takes no side on a contested political question
Publisher signals
69/100
Fox News's corrections and hedging, across everything collected from it. Not a measure of accuracy.
Outlets on this story
3
Crime & Law
Same framing elsewhere
1
articles that frame the event the way this one does
Analyzed 2026-09-17 · how these are computed

How this is being covered How these are calculated →

Article leaning vs. publisher reliability
Source leaning vs. consistency

Publisher

Fox News · 6178 article(s) · 11 correction(s) detected
Running correction rate · 11 correction(s)

Who wrote this

Michael Sinkewicz
51 article(s) here · 1 carrying a prediction
🔮 NYRR also said its records show the woman had previously participated in its races but could not confirm whether she planned to run in Sunday's marathon.
🔮 Suisun City Mayor Alma Hernandez, whose city neighbors Fairfield, also responded to the shooting, expressing concern for the victims and their families.
🔮 The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is investigating a potentially massive data breach that may have exposed the identities and contact information of tens of thousands of employees, sources told Fox News.
🔮 However, the disqualification will not take effect immediately, giving the Justice Department time to seek a stay pending appeal. "We respectfully disagree with the court's order," Essayli said in a statement provided to Fox News.
🔮 Rubio told reporters that while the U.S. has "the capacity to act unilaterally," it would rather work with its allies because that is "the most effective way to do it."
🔮 Milne initially acknowledged texting someone aboard the flight but said he could not remember the messages.
🔮 Rapper Nicki Minaj doubled down on her support for President Donald Trump during a Republican campaign rally in Michigan on Sunday, telling the president she would back him again if he ever sought another term.
🔮 A fight over cuts to autism therapy for Georgia foster children is escalating at the state Capitol, with a Republican lawmaker and families now calling for the 30% reimbursement reduction to be reversed as advocates warn children could lose hard-earned progress.
🔮 Tallahassee Mayor John Dailey expressed condolences following the shooting.
🔮 The memo also states that intelligence officials will work to downgrade the classification of certain intelligence so it can be disseminated and shared with State Department personnel.
Also by Michael Sinkewicz
Nothing else under this byline is closely related to this article, so these are simply their most recent.
All 51 articles by Michael Sinkewicz →

Topics

Columbiana County Ohio Sheriff's Office WFMJ Wellsville

Subjects

Reaggle PERSON · 7× WFMJ ORG · 3× Columbiana County GPE · 2× McLaughlin PERSON · 2× Brian McLaughlin PERSON · 1× Ohio GPE · 1× Sheriff's Office ORG · 1× Timothy J. Reaggle PERSON · 1× WKBN ORG · 1× Wellsville GPE · 1×

Narrative

Wild courthouse video appears to show a newly sentenced Ohio man slipping out of his handcuffs, punching a bailiff and making a desperate run for the exit before deputies stopped his escape.
framing: mixed · carried by 1 article(s) · first seen 2026-09-17
🔮 Timothy J. Reaggle, 20, of Wellsville, allegedly attacked two Columbiana County Sheriff's Office deputies Monday shortly after learning he would spend a year in prison in a separate case, according to local reports. Columbiana County Sheriff Brian McLaughlin told WFMJ that both deputies suffered broken bones but have since been released from the hospital. Video released by the sheriff's office shows a deputy escorting Reaggle down a hallway after his sentencing.

Claims (12 extracted, 6 hedged)

Wild courthouse video appears to show a newly sentenced Ohio man slipping out of his handcuffs, punching a bailiff and making a desperate run for the exit before deputies stopped his escape. asserted
deputies → appear → escape
Timothy J. Reaggle, 20, of Wellsville, allegedly attacked two Columbiana County Sheriff's Office deputies Monday shortly after learning he would spend a year in prison in a separate case, according to local reports. Columbiana County Sheriff Brian McLaughlin told WFMJ that both deputies suffered broken bones but have since been released from the hospital. Video released by the sheriff's office shows a deputy escorting Reaggle down a hallway after his sentencing. uncertain
deputy → attack → sentencing
Reaggle then suddenly breaks free of his handcuffs and allegedly punches the deputy before sprinting away. uncertain
Reaggle → break → deputy
As he runs down the hallway, Reaggle is seen crashing into another deputy, knocking him to the ground. asserted
Reaggle → run → ground
Reaggle then allegedly headed toward the courthouse exit, where video shows him sliding down the steps and racing toward the front doors before he was subdued with a Taser and taken into custody. uncertain
he → head → custody
The video also shows people rushing to assist the injured deputies. asserted
people → show → deputies
One deputy was later seen lying on the floor, bleeding from the head and holding a paper towel against his face, according to WFMJ. uncertain
deputy → see → WFMJ
Reaggle had just been sentenced to one year in prison in a case dating to Feb. 14, 2025, according to WKBN. uncertain
Reaggle → sentence → WKBN
He pleaded guilty in July to charges including aggravated burglary, aggravated assault, aggravated menacing, failure to comply and two misdemeanor counts of assault. asserted
He → plead → assault
McLaughlin said Reaggle is being held at the Columbiana County Jail and will eventually be transported to state prison. asserted
Reaggle → say → prison
Reaggle is also awaiting potential new charges stemming from the courthouse incident. asserted
Reaggle → await → incident
According to WFMJ, McLaughlin said those charges are expected to include assault on a police officer and felony escape. uncertain
charges → accord → officer
💬Give feedback
🕘History 🎫Support