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29-year-old shoots and kills mom, then shoots passing cars, killing 1, ME cops say

A 29-year-old is accused of shooting and killing his mother, then randomly shooting at cars on the road, Maine cops said.
A 29-year-old is accused of shooting and killing his mother, then randomly shooting at cars on the road, Maine cops said. Getty Images/iStockphoto

As he was sitting in the passenger seat of a car his mom was driving, a 29-year-old man pulled out a gun and fatally shot her, Maine police said.

Then, James Davis III shot at three more random cars passing by on the road, killing one other person and injuring two, Maine State Police said in an April 3 news release.

According to police, Davis and his mother, identified as 47-year-old Christine Smith, were driving on a road in Sabattus at about 4 p.m. April 2 when the shooting happened.

Davis shot his mother, police said, then the car sped across the road.

When it came to a stop, Davis got out and started shooting at passing cars, police said.

Katherine Williams, 53, was struck by a bullet, police said. She was taken to a hospital where she died.

Tyson Turner, 19, and David Wilson, 35, were also hit, according to police. They were taken to a hospital for their injuries.

Davis then died by suicide, police said.

According to authorities, family members said Davis started acting strange earlier that day, saying “things that didn’t make sense,” WBZ reported.

Investigators said he had multiple guns with him at the time, according to WBZ.

A motive was not revealed, and the investigation is ongoing, police said.

Sabattus is about a 40-mile drive northeast from Portland, Maine.

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This story was originally published April 4, 2025 at 4:57 PM with the headline "29-year-old shoots and kills mom, then shoots passing cars, killing 1, ME cops say."

Natalie Demaree
mcclatchy-newsroom
Natalie Demaree is a service journalism reporter covering Mississippi for McClatchy Media. She holds a master’s in journalism from Columbia Journalism School and a bachelor’s in journalism and political science with a specialization in African and African American Studies from the University of Arkansas. 
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