2 area men indicted after pursuit ending in wrong-way crash on I-75
Jun. 14—Two men have been indicted after they were accused of fleeing from police and causing a multi-vehicle crash on Interstate 75.
James Robert Collins, 46, of Dayton and Thomas Russell Downey, 49, of Fairborn, were each indicted in Montgomery County Common Pleas Court on charges of failure to comply with the order or signal of a police officer and obstructing official business. Collis was also indicted for one county of vehicular assault.
According to the Montgomery County Prosecutor's Office, their charges stem from June 5, 2025.
That evening, Collins was driving a GMC Sierra with no visible registration when a Perry Twp. police officer tried to pull the pickup truck over at Wolf Creek Pike and Diamond Mill Road, according to an affidavit filed in Montgomery County Municipal Court Western Division.
Downey was riding in the truck bed, and there were two passengers in the truck, though the passengers are not facing charges.
The pickup fled, but was tracked by an Ohio State Highway Patrol helicopter.
During the pursuit, Downey started throwing lumber out of the bed of the truck, the affidavit said.
The prosecutor's office said that law enforcement successfully deployed stop stick tire deflation devices on Little Richmond Road near Ohio 49.
However, Collins managed to regain control while driving on rims, the affidavit said.
He drove the pickup truck on the wrong side of the road on U.S. 35 West and on I-75 North, followed by deputies with lights and sirens activated, according to the sheriff's office.
On I-75 at Dryden Road, the pickup truck crashed into another vehicle head-on, causing a crash that involved six vehicles.
All four people in the pickup fled on foot but were taken into custody, the sheriff's office said.
The prosecutor's office said that four people were injured and taken to the hospital, one of which was seriously hurt.
They added that Collins' driver's license was suspended at the time.
Collins and Downey are scheduled to be arraigned June 26.
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