Man Lines Its Streets as More Than 140 Vehicles Bring Deputy Caden Mullins Home

Folks in Man have always known how to show up for their own. On Monday evening, they proved it again, standing shoulder to shoulder along the streets of their little Logan County town as Logan County Sheriff's Office Deputy Caden R. Mullins came home one last time.

Deputy Mullins, 24, was killed Saturday, Oct. 24, in a crash involving a coal truck on Route 10 at Rum Creek Road, south of Logan. Sheriff P.D. Clemens has described the death as "duty-related." According to the Sheriff's Office, Mullins had just left a Trunk-or-Treat event in Man and was on his way to a call for service in another part of the county when the crash happened. A passenger in his vehicle was also hurt.

The West Virginia State Police is handling the crash, and Chief Deputy Michael LaFauci said Tuesday morning that it remains under investigation.

A Long Line of Lights

The procession left Charleston on Monday and wound its way south for about an hour, rolling into Man shortly after 6 p.m. More than 140 vehicles made the trip. Cruisers from the West Virginia State Police, the Kanawha County Sheriff's Office, Charleston police and Mullins' own Logan County Sheriff's Office were joined by units from Putnam and Raleigh counties, and even from across the state line in Harlan County, Kentucky.

As the lights came down the road, residents were waiting. Families, neighbors and friends lined the streets, some holding thin blue line flags, many simply standing quiet with their heads bowed as the long line of cruisers passed by.

"It's just what we do. We come together at a time like this," Man Mayor John Fekete said. "It's what our community does."

Officers from the many agencies gathered outside Krantz-McNeely Funeral Home in Man after the procession arrived, and the evening closed with a moment of silence and a prayer.

A Hometown Kid Who Came Back to Serve

Mullins was born and raised in Logan County and graduated from Man High School with the class of 2022. He started his law enforcement career with the Charleston Police Department before joining the Logan County Sheriff's Office in August 2025, a move that brought him closer to family. He also served as a part-time officer with the Man Police Department, looking after the same streets where neighbors stood for him on Monday night.

Service runs in the family. His brother, Deputy Jason "Gage" Mullins, also wears the Logan County Sheriff's Office badge. Sheriff Clemens offered his condolences to the Mullins family, and especially to Gage, and said he is working to guide the department through the loss and make sure Caden's contributions to his community "do not go unnoticed."

Here in the coalfields, that won't be a hard promise to keep. For a young man who chose to come home and protect the people who raised him, Man answered the only way it knows how: by turning out, standing tall and bringing one of its own back home.

Our hearts are with the Mullins family, the Logan County Sheriff's Office and everyone in Man who is grieving this week.