Official ISP Release Of Fatal Accident On SR 256

Indiana State Police photos

Keep the families in your thoughts

On January 9, 2020 at approximately 3:45 pm, a Madison Police Officer attempted to conduct a traffic stop on a 2005 Toyota passenger car in Madison, Indiana. The driver fled in the vehicle from the officer before crashing the vehicle west of Madison. Two passengers in the vehicle died as a result of the crash.

The initial investigation by Indiana State Police-Versailles Detectives indicated that the vehicle being driven by Blake S. Coombs, age 18, Madison, Indiana fled from the officer northbound on State Road 7 from Madison. The Indiana State Police and Jefferson County Sheriff’s Department assisted the Madison Police Department in pursuing the vehicle. The vehicle turned westbound on State Road 250, southbound on State Road 3, and then eastbound on State Road 256 back towards Madison, Indiana.

Coombs lost control of the vehicle on SR 256 at Thompson Road. The vehicle left the roadway, striking two utility poles on the northeast corner of the intersection. A front seat passenger in the vehicle, Tyler Cooley, age 18, Hanover, Indiana and a backseat passenger, Brooklyn James, age 19, Madison, Indiana sustained fatal injuries in the crash. They were both pronounced deceased at the scene by the Jefferson County Coroner’s Office. Coombs was airlifted from the scene to a Louisville area hospital where he is being treated for serious injuries.

Coombs, who also went by the name Blake Eisenhower, was unlicensed at the time of the crash.

Detectives from the Indiana State Police-Versailles Post assumed the lead role in the investigation. The ISP-Versailles Post Crash Reconstruction Team responded to investigate the crash. A crime scene investigator from the ISP-Sellersburg Post also assisted at the scene.

The investigation is ongoing. State Road 256 remained closed for approximately seven hours for the investigation and crash cleanup.

All of the families have been notified.