BEDFORD — An Indianapolis man with a previous drunk driving conviction was arrested Friday evening after allegedly causing a road rage-related collision while pulling a boat on State Road 37, according to court documents filed by the Lawrence County Sheriff’s Department.
Jacob E. Mathis, 31, was taken into custody on July 24, 2026, following a crash near Patton Hill Road. He faces preliminary charges of operating a motor vehicle while intoxicated with a prior conviction, OWI endangering a person, and OWI with an alcohol concentration equivalent (ACE) of .15% or greater.
Deputies were dispatched to a traffic accident on northbound State Road 37 just south of Patton Hill Road at approximately 6:08 p.m.
Upon arrival at 6:13 p.m., Deputy Michael Martin located a white Chevrolet Blazer towing a small boat parked on the shoulder, with Mathis standing beside it. Parked directly in front of the Blazer was a red 2014 Ford Mustang driven by Nathon Scott, 31.
The Mustang had visible damage to its rear driver’s side, while Mathis’s boat trailer showed front-end damage along with minor rear passenger-side damage to the Blazer. When questioned about the cause of the collision, Mathis told officers it was a road rage incident.
While speaking with Mathis, who stated he was returning from a fishing trip at Williams Dam, Deputy Martin immediately detected a strong odor of alcohol on his breath. Officers also observed an open Fireball container inside the towed boat.
When asked how much alcohol he had consumed that day, Mathis responded, “Not enough.”
Mathis declined to perform the full standardized field sobriety tests but agreed to a preliminary breath test and to allow Deputy Martin to examine his eyes. During the horizontal gaze nystagmus (HGN) test, Mathis was unable to follow instructions, began looking away from the stimulus, started crying, and stated he felt like he was having a panic attack. The test was discontinued, and Mathis declined on-scene medical treatment.
Mathis then submitted to a roadside breath test, which registered a blood alcohol content of .181%, more than double Indiana’s legal limit of .08%.
A male witness at the scene informed deputies that the crash appeared to stem from a road rage incident. The witness reported that he had been driving behind Mathis’s Blazer before the crash and observed erratic driving, noting that Mathis had trouble keeping the vehicle within its lane of travel.
After being read his Miranda rights and Indiana Implied Consent, Mathis consented to a chemical test. He was taken into custody and transported to IU Health Bedford Hospital, where two vials of blood were drawn for laboratory testing.
Mathis was subsequently transported to the Lawrence County Jail for booking.
According to the probable cause affidavit, a background check revealed Mathis was previously convicted of OWI endangering a person in Lawrence County in 2024.
All individuals are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. This article is based on the information provided in the probable cause affidavit and does not represent a final determination of guilt or innocence.
