NEW SHARON — A Farmington man was being held Thursday on $250,000 cash bail at the Franklin County jail on a charge of attempting to kill a woman who police say was trying to end their four-month relationship.

James Oakes Photo courtesy of Franklin County Detention Center

James D. Oakes, 44, is charged with one count each of attempted murder, reckless conduct with a dangerous weapon — motor vehicle, and domestic violence assault. If convicted, penalties range from up to 364 days in jail to 30 years in prison.

Franklin County Sheriff’s Deputy Jeffrey Brann responded to a complaint from a woman who called 911 at about 8:35 a.m. Saturday saying her 2024 Chevrolet Trailblazer crashed into a guardrail after a dispute with her ex-boyfriend, according to a police affidavit filed at a Farmington court.

The incident initially started at an apartment the two shared in Mount Vernon, the affidavit said. They had been together for about four months and she was packing to move out of state.

When the woman got out of the shower that morning, Oakes was reportedly standing in the doorway with a loaded rifle pointed at her and said “he was going to kill her and himself because he couldn’t live without her,” the affidavit said.

The woman talked him into putting the gun down and convinced him to go get a coffee and talk. They went to Dunkin’ on Wilton Road in Farmington and she told him she was going to take him to his mother’s house in New Sharon, police said.

At the intersection of Cape Cod Hill Road and Vienna Road in New Sharon, the affidavit said, Oakes tried to swerve her vehicle to the side of the road and she pulled it over. He got out and then jumped back in and tried to “snap her neck.”

Oakes released her and grabbed the wheel again and drove, turning the vehicle toward the guardrail next to the bridge. She said the impact lifted the back of the vehicle off the ground, nearly causing it to go into a brook 30 feet below. Oakes fled on foot toward Vienna Road and was eventually detained by Farmington police Sgt. Ethan Boyd.

The affidavit said that while being interviewed at the jail, Oakes told Brann the woman recently decided to break up with him. “James had been trying to handle the situation and help (her) move but he ‘lost his grip,'” it said.

Oakes told Brann “he is messed up and needs to be seen by a psychiatrist,” the affidavit said.

Oakes is scheduled to appear Monday at a Farmington court.

IF YOU or someone you know has experienced domestic violence, you can call the Statewide Domestic Abuse Helpline at 1-866-834-4357.

TO LEARN more about domestic violence prevention and response in Maine, visit the Maine Coalition to End Domestic Violence website.

FOR OTHER support or referrals, call the NAMI Maine Help Line at 800-464-5767 or email helpline@namimaine.org.